Though the majority of the over 37,000 McDonald's outlets around the world hardly rise to the definition of "architecture," the company is no stranger to spectacular design: some of its first locations, built throughout the Midwest as early as 1955, were remarkable demonstrations of mid-century design, typified by two large golden arches that appear to hold the structure upright.
In response to the company's recent rebirth of its brand, after several attempts to appeal to a younger generation, McDonald's has recently unveiled a shockingly clean and modern design for its new global flagship in Downtown Chicago. Not only is the Ross Barney Architects-designed building an aesthetically pleasing take on the fast food chain, but it also features several innovative features, including cordless phone charging, a mini-arboretum with harvestable apple trees and 27-foot windows to keep them and the whole interior well-lit.
On the company's website, it is stated that their initiative is "putting people, processes and practices into place to make sustainability the new normal." With that in mind, Ross Barney Architects introduced several sustainable features into their design, including the Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) implemented in the building's structural system, a solar pergola and permeable paving "used to reduce storm water runoff and the heat island effect."
Here is the MickyDees in Batumi, Georgia, on the Black Sea.
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I saw this building recently and it comes off as a piece of suburbia plopped down into what is becoming a pretty dense and urbanized part of Chicago.
I like it!, I'm sure it cost 3x the cost of a standard one.
I did think it was well done, but just not suited to its site. If the typical locations in the USA suburbs looked like this one, it would be great.
fancy building, still toxic sludge food.
perhaps a company changing it's design direction can be a stepping stone to changing its other directions.
Don't mess with those fries.
In-n-out fries are lightyears better
^ Not where I live, unfortunately.
is this on that site on grand avenue? they built a new flagship shop there about 15 years ago with the same goal, less sophisticated architecture. i'm not sure changing the building accomplishes much. big companies put a lot of effort into continuous change but keep ending up in the same place.
Yes, they demolished the 1990s "Rock N Roll McDonalds" and rebuilt.
Spend more time on healthy food not architecture
I’d rather they have their ugly buildings and spend the $ on creating some better, healthy menu items.
I’ll settle for food that doesn’t make me have to instantly shit after eating it.
Here is the MickyDees in Batumi, Georgia, on the Black Sea.
McDonald's architecture, same everywhere
They should have kept the Rock N Roll McDonalds and built something like the Georgia McD rather than this Renzo-lite . Good news, McD is using real beef again... haha
So by "real" do you mean fresh vs. frozen ?
lipstick on a pig
McDonald has used permeable interlocking paving stones for storm water infiltration in Germany since the 90s.
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