Ballina Central McDonald’s slammed over wait times, management of staff

A North Coast McDonald’s restaurant has been grilled over its painfully slow wait times, with teen staff copping abuse from customers and management allegedly nowhere to be seen.

Beneath these golden arches, the food is anything but fast.

A northern NSW McDonald’s restaurant has been grilled over its painfully slow wait times, with teen staff copping abuse from customers and management allegedly nowhere to be seen.

Hundreds of Ballina residents took to social media on Thursday to vent frustrations over what they say is consistently slow service at the Ballina Central McDonald’s, saying “enough is enough”.

The quarter-pounder-pile-on started after one local complained of a 35-minute wait for their meal at the Bangalow Rd restaurant.

“Ballina Central McDonald’s waiting time was 35 mins again today. Poor staff are under the pump and getting abused. Where’s management? They need to step in and help,” they wrote.

Resident Tanya Lee said the problem was not isolated: “It’s been like that for months now. I refuse to go there as when I have it’s taken 45 mins – ridiculous.”

Ballina Central McDonald's. Picture: Supplied / Google Business Listing.

She added that the slow service “was not the poor kids’ (staff’s) fault”.

Ian Dunsmore wrote: “Someone needs to put a stop to this. Enough is enough Ballina McDonald’s.”

Several residents claimed they had seen customers abusing young staff at the restaurant over long wait times, and that management were absent.

Kellie Little wrote: “The owners need to step up and sort this out! The staff/kids are getting flogged, it’s not fair!”

The store has come under fire for slow service.

Ben Lovett added: “Poor buggers are hugely understaffed and massively under the pump. It’s frustrating but don’t take it out on the guys behind the window, they’re doing their best.”

The person who wrote the initial post said: “I have asked for management several times and not once have they been there.”

But user Patsy Mastrippolito fired back, saying the managers were “working behind the scenes” and “I don’t know any who didn’t pull their weight during busy times”.

Darren Bunt gave a blunt reaction, saying the restaurant should “McF--k off”.

Kye Lane commented on the apparent state of the Ballina Central franchise, calling it “filthy”.

“All bins overflowing, tables filthy, floor filthy, receipts sprayed across the counter. Is there just not enough staff? It’s not fair on them at all.,” he wrote.

Rochelle McGauran offered a simple solution: “McDonald’s is nasty. Pack your lunch.”

A McDonald’s Australia spokesperson told NewsLocal that the store, along with BP Ballina Travel Centre, had been taken over by a new licensee in September last year.

“Customer feedback is extremely important as it helps us provide the best possible service to our community,” the spokesperson said.

“We are working to address this feedback as a priority through hiring more people and training our staff on McDonald’s high standards of customer service and cleanliness.

“While we will always do our best for our customers, we do not tolerate anti-social behaviour and expect our people to be treated with respect at all times.

“We are committed to providing our customers with a great experience and our team is working hard to make sure we’re meeting the high standards we set for ourselves.”