This could be the McDonald’s drive-thru of the future

A new Fort Worth, Texas location looks to the next phase in the fast-food chain's pivot to pickup.

Is this new McDonald's in Fort Worth, Texas the fast-food restaurant of the future?Courtesy McDonald's
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Flying cars and teleportation pads might still be a few centuries away, but don’t fret: These days, one fast-food chain is tweaking its drive-thru process to make sure its food comes faster than it ever has before.

On Dec. 1, McDonald’s announced the opening of a new test restaurant that aims to take the chain’s drive-thru experience into the future.

McDonald's new concept location in Fort Worth, Texas.Courtesy McDonald's

A first-of-its-kind for the largest fast-food chain in the world, this Fort Worth, Texas McDonald’s location was built specifically to focus on serving digital customers through drive-thru, pickup and delivery services with brand new systems and technology.

The first bit of new tech from the golden arches, the Order Ahead Lane, seems pulled directly from the “Jetsons” or a revolving sushi bar, if you’ve been to one of those. The feature consists of a exclusive drive-thru lane where customers receive their orders through a food-and-beverage conveyor belt.

The Order Ahead Lane's conveyor belt in action at the McDonald's concept location in Fort Worth, Texas.Courtesy McDonald's

McDonald’s said that the Order Ahead Lane is perfect for customers who want to place an order ahead of time through the McDonald’s app.

Hey, skipping the traditional drive-thru lanes — of which there is one at this location — and any people in front of you in line who may have no idea what they want could make anyone’s arches experience a little more golden.

Drive through lanes at the McDonald's concept location in Fort Worth, Texas.Courtesy McDonald's

The Order Ahead Lane also has the added feature of letting crew members know when your car is getting close to the location so they can time your order to your arrival. Operating like a deep-fried ballet, this feature aims to make sure your burger and fries (or whatever else you’re getting) will be freshest by the time you arrive.

Other features in this McDonald’s location emphasize that the concept is for customers on the move. In addition to courier parking and curbside pickup lanes, The location is geared towards customers planning to dine at home or on the go, meaning that there are no tables or chairs to dine at inside of the restaurant. Instead, inside there are kiosks and pick up shelves for orders, so that customers can come inside and get their orders quickly.

Courier Parking at the McDonald's concept location in Fort Worth, Texas.Courtesy McDonald's

“At McDonald’s, we’ve been setting the standard for Drive Thrus for more than 45 years,” said Max Carmona, McDonald’s senior director of global design & restaurant development, in a news release. “As our customers’ needs continue to change, we are committed to finding new ways to serve them faster and easier than ever before.”

McDonald’s is not the first restaurant to go high tech with a clever redesign of one of its locations — and in fact, the chain tried AI ordering with customers in the past, along with Sonic and Checkers. In summer 2022, Taco Bell opened a two-story location that aimed to innovate the drive-thru process through never-seen-before architecture for a fast-food shop.

The chain, named Taco Bell Defy, is still operating in the Brooklyn Park, Minnesota area, utilizing video technology and delivering food via a “proprietary vertical lift.” In layman’s terms, that’s a type of food elevator like you would use at your local bank’s drive-thru lane, except instead of cash it dispenses Baja Blasts.

Inside Mobile Order Pick Up at the McDonald's concept location in Fort Worth, Texas.Courtesy McDonald's

It’s not just fast-food restaurants that are taking drive-thru ordering seriously, either. In addition to curbside pick up instituted during the quarantine and social distancing efforts of the pandemic, casual sit-down restaurants like Applebee’s and Shake Shack have explored drive-thru lanes for their shops. And, of course, Starbucks has been serving coffee via drive-thru since 1994.

For those wondering how soon a space-age McDonald’s will be making its way to your area, the chain said this one location is being used to “test and learn” for now. While this can only be found in one location in Texas at the moment, if things go well, you may see your Big Mac and fries make its way to you via conveyor belt sometime soon.