Went to a McDonalds after midnight, after an epic Eminem gig nearby. We just needed some coffees, not food.
You don't go to Maccies for a good coffee but fucking hell, they were the only place we could get it from. Drive through was closed but I could order inside. Some tough guys hanging out and flexing but they're just waiting for their mate to finish their shift.
24 hour coffee is a total boon when you've got a 2 hour drive ahead of you after a big gig.
McDonalds in my country, Australia, has superb coffee. They have fresh-from-whole bean espresso machines in every store -- Often as part of a McCafe with a dedicated barista.
It is seriously as good as coffee from nearly any anywhere else, and consistently so.
I’ve been working in Japan for a decade and one of the things that made morning Roppongi much more tolerable was being able to slide into a Maccas and quietly drink a coffee before going to work.
I’m heading back to Aus now and the thought I wouldn’t be able to do that was actually a little depressing.
In Canada, if you want to rank coffee, it goes McDonalds > Starbucks > piss water >>>> tim hortons. Obviously, if you're in a major city, local coffee shops are way better.
Every time I read about Tim Horton's online, people always talk about how terrible it is. But every time I visit Canada, I'll stop at multiple Tim Horton's during my time there and they are always busy. Maybe it's not great, but it's good enough for how fast and cheap it is.
I think the draw is the doughnuts; we don't have Krispy Kreme or any of those other chains here. While people are at Tims to get doughnuts, they also pick up other things.
Also, they build Tims in some very rural areas that Starbucks would never bother with, and keep them open pretty early/late (sometimes 24hrs), making them one of the few places to congregate at those hours in small towns. Tims (and A&W, oddly) are where you'll find the seniors who can't stop getting up at 3AM, sitting and reading the paper.
It really is because a) traditionally tims used to be really good. b) tims is literally everywhere. I don't think there's other fast food or coffee chain here that is so omnipresent c) they were a Canadian brand and still try to portray themselves as one even though now they are owned by a Brazilian company.
It really isn't that cheap tbh. A coffee at McDonalds is gonna cost about the same price, and starbucks is like $0.5 more.
They have consistently OK coffee. You could be lost in North Dakota, or roasting in New Mexico, or snowed in Wyoming- if you find a McDonald's, the coffee will be OK.
I try to support small remote gas stations & buy stuff there, but the coffee is often undrinkable.
You don't go to Maccies for a good coffee but fucking hell, they were the only place we could get it from. Drive through was closed but I could order inside. Some tough guys hanging out and flexing but they're just waiting for their mate to finish their shift.
24 hour coffee is a total boon when you've got a 2 hour drive ahead of you after a big gig.