McDonald's Mountain Avenue
McDonald's on Mountain Avenue will be closing for renovation on 9/20. If all goes well it should reopen with the play area on or about 10/6. Where will we get our $1.00 soda's now.
Hungry Already 
the hipstr I think the people are very pleasant there. I've had nothing but nice people, especially at the drive up for years. I appreciate it.
DogDayAfternoon
stephen 
LibertyThinker I don't like ketchup on my fries and throw those little packages out, so the company loses money on people like me. Employees could be trained to ask " would you like ketchup with your order" like they do for McNuggets sauce..
JrzyGirl88 So I have to agree sometimes it is like begging for more ketchup or sauce bc they only will give you 1 more extra(I have very nugget and fry specific children) but I will say I am used to the way McDonald’s are run in England and Ireland ... they charge you 5-20p per ketchup pack you ask for so it could be worse lol
H-Town Mama Back in the day the rule was 1 packet for a small fry and 2 for a large in the bag with napkins. Always.
Steve Wouldn’t it be easier to use those magic words of please and thank you and the workers are very pleasant. I go weekly
Drew I HOPE that they repave the drive thru lane ... it's full of pot holes/craters. During renovations go to Mc D's in trade zone/Mt. Olive....they have the dual lane for drive thru. It does get busy there....but then so does Mt. Ave and spills out onto Mt. Ave which is super dangerous with the East Ave turn.
SS2cats Terrific news as this needed to be done 10 years ago as the place was falling into disrepair. It will be interesting to see how they construct the dual lane drive thru.
They really don't have a lot of space around the back of the building to work with.
“Where Will we get our $1.00 sodas now?” How about Walmart, shoprite or Weiss? Buy it by the 2 liter bottle and it’s far cheaper than $1.00.
Fries have been tasteless at McD's since they changed the frying oil to mollify the vegetarians . Putting ketchup on them gives you ketchup flavored cardboard sticks . They still make some good breakfast food though .
97XBAM That’s good to remember a change made in 1990. Modify vegetarians? How many in 1990? I believe the move was really made to lower the fat content by 45% and remove the cholesterol. A healthy change, not a vegetarian movement. The next change in about 2000 was to remove the trans fat, again for health reasons. The latest change has been a food starch coating for extra crispness. This also adds extra carbohydrates which turn to sugar to help your diabetes along. Somewhere along the line, they also added beef flavor, which really wasn’t beef, but included milk to un-mollifythose mollified vegetarians ;-). IMO, while not a health disaster, coated fries are not as good as pristine fries. But getting harder to find.
Meanwhile I wonder what the addictive drug added to the Big Mac is? As much as I think they are gross in every aspect, look, taste, feel, I still must have at least one every year.... And I’m jonesing again just mentioning it.
Strangerdanger 
Luca The fries were also cooked to a nice golden brown. Now they are barely a pale yellow. Not crispy on the outside either . I wonder if they also changed the temperature they cook them at , or the time.
I also dislike the coating they put on fries anywhere. To me, It gives them a floury taste, Instead of that nice potato flavor they should have. It is very difficult to find good french fries anymore.
JBJSKJ "Fries have been tasteless at McD's since they changed the frying oil to mollify the vegetarians . Putting ketchup on them gives you ketchup flavored cardboard sticks . "
"I miss how the fries used to taste with the unhealthy oil! They were so much better!"
+1 to both of these. I belief they used to fry them in beef tallow YUMMMMMM
JeffersonRepub I agree that fries have gone to crap. I used to be able to eat them, but for years now I can eat only a very few and have had enough. For me, it was the same time as they changed the oil, that's why I never get the meal deal. The fries would go to waste. That goes for McD's or Wendy's. I don't even eat at Kinky Burger to begin with.
When they open back up, it would be nice if they featured the "I don't know why I love it, but I do, McRib." When it was around this year, it got as far as PA and was never in this area. What really sucked as far as sandwiches go is that Arbys only had their fish sandwich during the Lenten season. That's a crime in my book. Best of all the fast food fish sandwiches in my book, especially with an added slice de Swiss on top.
Phil D. You'll miss them if they ever decide to leave town. Gosh, so many complaints. Just don't go. If ketchup packets are such a huge problem, omg. Maybe they're told not to give them out to save a few bucks at their particular franchise. I've never had a problem there and get very nice service at the drive up. People wonder why other large franchises don't come - well, here ya are.
JR === another Mickey D's taste historian who remembers those 1990 tastes of old as if it were yesterday and blames the 1%-3% American vegetarians who actually had nothing to do with it....... And I guess the non vegetarian "natural beef flavoring" didn't cut it either, although it did make a nifty lawsuit.
The amount of crispness seems to be somewhat location/time/luck dependent; seems to be great variability.
Can not find if they use the food starch coating ---- BK most certainly does.
At 9 million pounds a day, 3.28 billion pounds a year, that's about 68 million pounds per state or about 1 pound per person per month for every man, woman, and child in America, even vegetarians..... somebody really likes em..... I haven't had one since 2019 so it must be those other Liberals :>)
I think the 10 million dollar lawsuit had something to do with them changing the fries
McDonald's Settles Beef Over Fries https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mcdonalds-settles-beef-over-fries/
The suit that Bug3 mentioned came years after Micky D changed oils . In 1990 they changed from beef tallow to vegetable oil to lower the sat fat. Too bad. That beef tallow was some tasty stuff
Local Gal But that was when the vegetarians fried the fry guys for vege lies, not in 1990 with the tallow turnover. That was fat and cholesterol. And then 2002 for the trans fat removal.
. .
Local Gal
Yummy indeed. They haven't been the same since, lol. Bad for us, very likely, but yummy, YES!
What to get really good fries go to CHECKER'S but unfortunately there are on 12 in NJ and most are south Jersey.
Fast Food With their changes I hope they do something about the people going in to drive in that they are not sticking out on Mountain Ave. They also have people heading west on Mountain Ave making a left in. This creates a very dangerous situation when people trying to get around them dodge out into the other lane.
Jim Jim
I wish they would do something about that too, but don't see much likelihood of it happening easily. Another real boondoggle is the Dunkin Drive In just up the road. There you have people occupying part of what's essentially a turning lane for the intersection with Victoria Lane and extending back along Mountain Ave Southbound. People coming from the other side will stop to join the line, but can't.
Traffic then backs up on both sides of Mountain Ave. and people try to pass stopped cars, creating another dangerous area. People trying to get out from Victoria also can't see beyond the backup to know if traffic's coming even when the line's just extending North along Mountain. I don't know of any easy fix for either business, Mc D's or DD's, but would love to see one (that works)!
The backups onto Mountain Av at Mcs and DD are side effects of the Virus. ALL there business is drive through. Backups were rare before the Corona restrictions.
EVV EVV a month or 2 ago I would agree with you but now you can park your car, you can enter the McDonalds place an order l, eave get back in and go your merry way. People are too damn lazy. Doing this is almost as easy as putting on your directional signal when making a turn. Oh that's right they don't do that either.
Just think how much of a healthier place tha Hackettstown would be without McDonalds or Dunkin Donuts
If Hackettstown got rid of all junk food including the M&M candy factory the stress of higher taxes would be every bit as unhealthy (; Moderation in anything is key - you don't eat that stuff every day , but rather treat yourself every now and then .
EVV
Apparently, you haven't noticed the backup at DD around 6:30-7:00 AM (and hours around then) before the virus. I came through there every weekday on my way to work and as Jim states, it was mostly backed up there due to laziness (imho). I dislike drivethroughs and park to go inside as much as possible.
In McD's case, I rarely saw any line out past the entrance before the virus. I don't know if people knew whether or not they reopened the inside to take orders, though they should have, since places are now allowed to be open for 25% capacity for dine in.
EVV, don't mean to beat a dead horse but today I was in the mode for DD coffee cake muffin. Turning onto Mountain Ave, about 9am, I saw 4 cars on Mountain waiting in line. Now the cones are not blocking you from parking and you can enter the building. there was no one in the parking lot. I went in, applying mask first of course, got the muffin and out in 2 minutes. When I came out the same person right next to me in the drive thru still waiting. I saw the window was down and I said to her "enjoy her lunch". People are just lazy
A little off topic...but good to see Wal-Mart has stopped the line entrance procedure and the isle directional signs are gone. Even the garden dept entrance was operating....altho their fruit/veggie scale was not. Thanks Essential Workers!
Jim
I see it all the time, since I live within sight of it again now too. Many mornings (and other times) I won't go out that way, even though I'm mostly making a right to get to work because of the difficulty of line of sight there. I usually take the slower (yes, I keep within the 25mph AND stop for stop signs) route along Mitchell, etc. to get to work.
Thinking about the McDonald's issue, besides the horrendous paving in the parking lot, they really should have thought to construct their access better when they built the place. But then again when it was originally built, did they have drive through service ? They have that large lot to one side for parking and it would have been better to have located it more in the middle of the lot or towards the opposite side of the lot.
The entry and exit points could have been different too, as in enter towards the middle and exit at the South end of the lot, It's too late for that now, obviously, but unless that parking area was bought and added later, they really didn't plan the original site out all too well, in my book. That's one of the reasons I rarely go there. I drive the slightly further distance South to Wendy's, unless I really have a hankering for the old Quarter Pounder, Fish Fillet, or that rarity, the McRib.
The Dunkin Donuts backup was an issue long before Covid. The fact that customers feel it’s ok to be four or five cars deep on Mountain Ave is a little obnoxious. The other day there was a guy trying to make a left turn into lot and was waiting for the line to move which was backing up traffic. It will unfortunately take an accident or two to have the issue dealt with.
Regrandomguy I just can’t believe there are so many people who need to stop at DD for coffee. I mean, it’s not actually that good. And nine times out of ten it is easier and faster to simply park and go in to the store.
Eperot Look at it this way.
$1 a day every work day=$25/mo.
Plus fuel wasted waiting in line=1.5 tanks of gas a month.
Not to mention time loss.
I don’t get it either.
Stymie Why dont they drive over to Mansfield and use that one rather than wait in line forever?
Trying to go into the parking lot of my dentist next door to DD a few weeks ago. I tapped my horn at a woman - and pointed to the dentist’s lot. She could have simply let me into the lot but she laughed, pulled up and moved to block me. What a jerk.
Blackcat I will never understand the huge line of cars waiting for Dunkin Donuts on Mountain Avenue. It's just okay coffee, nothing special. I go 1/4 mile down the road, not even that, for Wawa. In and out in less time it takes to drive around the DD building.
honestyseasy "Plus fuel wasted waiting in line=1.5 tanks of gas a month."
what do you drive, a top fuel dragster?
callitlikeIseeit callitlikeIseeit
"what do you drive, a top fuel dragster?" Funny line, that. In reality though, for example, the Ford Crown Victoria, which was used as a police vehicle up until they stopped making them (though many are still in service), has an "idle meter". It measures the amount of time the vehicle spends idling, which could be a lot, depending on its usage. This is to track the equivalent MPG to take into account for maintenance purposes.
They state that 1 hour of idling is relatively equal to 33 miles of driving, which could be 1-2 gallons of fuel in most cases per hour of idling in line. That's another reason why they have the "3 minute idle rule" also, to save incremental amounts of gas with each drive. So yes, depending on the amount of fuel in each tank and the amount of time spent waiting, it may or may not be 1 to 1 1/2 tanks per month, though likely not quite that much, unless you use a lot of drivethroughs. Usually vehicles with lower MPG are both larger and have larger gas tanks, so it kind of equals out.
Of course you have to factor in your own wasted time sitting in your vehicle, though I'm sure many people spend it "on their phones".
Personally, I'd rather park and go inside. That way I can also see what I'm getting, though I think the drivethrough lets people avoid the now ubiquitous "Tip jar", though maybe they have one there too.
I live super close to the Mtn Ave DD and it boggles my mind that people would line up all the way down Mtn Ave to buy mediocre coffee drinks and no-longer-made-on-the-premises doughnuts. The DD traffic disruption has been going on for a couple of years. It's a block from me and it creates a hazard.
FWIW, I've never seen a drive-thru line at McD's that disrupted Mtn Ave traffic.
SquirrelGrrl SquirrelGrrl
Good to hear from someone else who lives almost right on top of it, as I do. Since I live in Victoria Village, a stone's throw away, I see it all the time. Back in '95 when I lived in Greenview Gardens, I lived directly across the road from it and it wasn't that bad, except for the constant traffic in their parking lot in the middle of the night/early morning. Drove my ex nuts!
My main issue with McD's as far as the roads, are the people going in there making a left from Mountain Ave. aka 517, aka 182, headed North. People jump out into the Right turn only lane to go around them and of course there are always near collisions because of that and other factors. As I mentioned earlier, that's bad planning on the entry and exit of the site itself, since it also lets out traffic too near the intersection as well. I only make a left out of there if traffic is sparse, otherwise, I'll just take the safe, longer route and make a right and go down to Shelley and loop back around.
Or I'll just go to Wendy's...much easier and safer in and out! That is, unless there's a special at McD's I really want like a McRib or 2 Fish fillets for $5;-D
When was the McDonalds originally built? Was there another location in the area first?
larry 
tmb6123 It was a walk-in location when they first opened - no inside seating or drive-thru. I remember posing for a picture with Ronald McDonald when they brought him in to celebrate the new location. The kids thought it was quite a big deal to have a "celebrity" like Ronald visit Hackettstown, lol.
Friend bug. The light at 46 and Mt. Ave and the one at 57 and Mt. Ave. No lite at East ave or Shelly.
I for one would like to know who is paying for the heavy police presence at the McDonalds job site? Is the town footing the bill for them or is the Franchise owner paying for that? By my daily observation, it seems they are only there to make it easier for the construction trucks to pull in and out without having to wait for the lights to change.
inquiring taxpayer I am certain the franchise owner is paying for the police for the traffic during the construction. That's standard practice in most any construction project that impacts traffic.
Greg 
Angela 
Jim L 
Mmadone I can't believe they renovated the store and kept the play place. I assume they had the plans for renovation in place a long time ago, but in this age of COVID I can't imagine any parent wanting their kid climbing around in that kind of germ trap.
COVID will go away at some point honestyseasy. So while the playplace may remain closed even after the renovations, long term it will still be used.
A tad bit off topic because its not about Mt Ave, but does anyone remember when the Walmart in Mansfield had a McDonald's right inside the entrance? If anyone does, do you remember how long ago or what year they upgraded the Walmart and got rid of it?
Thecatsmeow I do recall the Mickey D’s there. It has to be 5/6 years ago when it was removed. I believe it’s when they added the grocery section.
CraftBeerBob I worked on the addition and renovation of the Wal-Mart in 2010 ...I’m pretty sure the McDonald’s was removed during this time.
Dam Thank you, it was driving me crazy that I couldn't remember! All I remember is it being there and the Ronald statue they had sitting in front.
The McD's in Wal-Mart ALWAYS has better (fresher maybe?) food than the McD's on Mt. Ave. I always preferred the Wal-Mart one. I was bummed when it left.
Interestingly, the same can be said for the Pizza Hut that was inside Target- the quality of food there was always better than what I got from the Pizza Hut that was in the Piggy's plaza. Never figured that out, as I assumed all that stuff was premade/frozen (for the most part, toppings excluded perhaps?), and all they did was stick it in the oven.
Calico696 Bug3
I think it was about 3-6 months ago. The Pizza Hut Express that was at Target seems to have gone when they were doing (yet another) store remodel around the same time. If you search for Pizza Hut Express, they supposedly steer you to the Plaza where Rita's was across from the Quick Chek at the corner of Stiger and Rt. 46. I drove by today while dropping off my ballot at the drop box and saw no signage anywhere that indicated there was one there, unless C&L was adding that in or they're moving to the old Rita's location.
My Brother in Law was a manager at Pizza Hut and they do actually make the dough onsite(or at least in the dine in restaurants, not sure about the others) and get deliveries of fresh ingredients. I've read that they use approximately 1/3 of the cheese output of the US, though I'm not sure where that data came from, when I was reading an article about them and other Pizza Chains two days ago.
The new color scheme on the updated Mc D's is so drab. Something brighter and more cheery may actually attract more customers.
I like the way they added the double drive thru without fixing the traffic back up...what a total complete waste of money
Bug3
Well, you know, that was to be expected I think. I doubt that they actually take things like that into account when they should. I don't think Ray Kroc would have stood for such a waste of time and money for little results. Based on his book "Grinding It Out" and how he made executives serve in the restaurants, aka "front lines" every year made it clear he wanted them to think in terms of customer service, and what their team was facing every day.
Roywhite The double drive thru is in series...instead of parallel...so it doesn't really speed things up..I guess there was no room for parallel
They should of relocated to a better place with better access and exiting. The one in Ledgwood was redone a year or so ago. Location is terrible for left turn on 46 so close to the old circle.
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