‘Refuse to go’: Ballina Central McDonald’s slammed over wait times
McDonald’s has responded to complaints from customers, who say the food at their local restaurant is anything but “fast”.
McDonald’s has responded to complaints from customers in northern NSW, who say the food at their local restaurant is anything but “fast”.
Hundreds of residents have inundated social media in recent weeks with their frustrations over what they say is consistently slow service at the Ballina Central franchise – with the wait for an order sometimes between 35 and 45 minutes; and a lack of management on the floor.
“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,” one local wrote on Facebook.
“It’s been like that for months now. I refuse to go there as when I have it’s taken 45 mins – ridiculous,” another said, adding the slow service “was not the poor kids’ fault”.
Several customers said they’d seen young staff abused by customers over the restaurant’s long wait times.
“Poor buggers are hugely understaffed and massively under the pump,” one man wrote.
“It’s frustrating but don’t take it out on the guys behind the window, they’re doing their best.”
Another resident commented: “The owners need to step up and sort this out! The staff/kids are getting flogged, it’s not fair!”
Others claimed that, due to an apparent lack of staffing, the state of the venue was “filthy”.
“All bins overflowing, tables filthy, floor filthy, receipts sprayed across the counter,” one said.
“Is there just not enough staff? It’s not fair on them at all.”
News.com.au understands that the store, along with BP Ballina Travel Centre, was taken over by a new licensee in September.
A McDonald’s spokesperson told news.com.au that steps were being taken to “address this feedback”.
“Customer feedback is extremely important as it helps us provide the best possible service to our community,” they 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.”