I did when I was a kid, but I think it's because there wasn't much in the way of options. The McDonald's close to our house when we still lived with our natural mom had a really cool play area outside. All the equipment was in the shape of the various McDonald's characters -- Grimace and the Hamburglar, Ronald McDonald and the Hamburglar's little fry friends.
It's a shame they've sort of faded away. I bet if you ask my brother, who's 18, if he knows the names of the McDonald's characters, he couldn't tell you.
When I was a kid, I'd get the same thing every time I went -- chicken nuggets. And this was back when chicken nuggets were made with mystery meat! Who knew what kind of chicken byproducts went into them? They certainly weren't made from white meat; they were a sort of dingy grey when you bit into them.
But I loved the batter they were coated in, all crispy and crunchy when they were fresh. Then you dipped them in honey (not honey mustard, but straight, unadulterated honey), and they were just heavenly.
Why honey and chicken nuggets taste good, I don't know. But they do.
When I was in high school, I wasn't allowed to go to the McDonald's across the street from the school for fear of "gang activity." Of course, ten years later that was my brother's preferred hang-out, and my parents were quite aware of where he was. Rules change in ten years.
But I would go every so often when I was craving fries. There is nothing better in the world than McDonald's french fries with their sweet & sour sauce. Don't try it with anyone else's sweet & sour sauce; it just doesn't work. The saltiness of the fries against the sweetness of sweet & sour sauce... oh my!!!
And I just remembered I forgot to ask for sweet & sour sauce for my fries when I went there on Monday. Darn it! It's been so long since I was there....
I'm also not a fan of Burger King. Oh, I'll go, especially since Kurt loves BK, but I don't go voluntarily. About the only thing I like on the menu is the Whopper (or Whopper Jr if I'm trying to be good). In college we had a BK as part of one the dining areas, and I'd get a Whopper with cheese, no onions, at least once a week. I don't like BK fries, though. They're batter-fried, and to me that's just wrong.
Another of my favorite college eateries was Chick-Fil-A. YUMMY!! They take a chicken breast (NOT reconstituted, re-formed chicken breast meat made into a patty, but an honest-to-God chicken breast), fry it up, and slap it into a bun with a few dill pickle slices. And that's how you eat it. It doesn't need any more in the way of condiments! Plus it comes with waffle-cut fries, fresh and crisp and hot.
I just found out a few weeks ago that Chick-Fil-A uses peanut oil to fry everything. Their website says that it should be safe to eat for those with peanut allergies, but it totally bums me out. I'm almost afraid to let Grace eat there because I don't want her allergy getting worse.
That, and Chick-Fil-A's philosophy requiring restaurants to be closed on Sundays, are two major strikes against them. But damn, their food is good!
But my favorite??? That undoubtedly has to be Wendy's.
Wendy's has the best fries of any fast-food restaurant. They're not breaded or battered, they're cut on the large side (McD's fries are smaller), and they're usually perfectly salted.
There is so much more on the menu that I like at Wendy's too. I can be a little picky at a fast-food joint because I don't want to eat straight grease. I like having more options, like all the sides you can get with a Wendy's combo.
I love that Wendy's uses chicken breasts on their sandwiches, instead of chicken patties. And my all-time favorite sandwich is their spicy chicken. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water!
Fortunately Kurt loves Wendy's almost as much as I do. When we're out and about, he's more than willing to head there for lunch. But every so often, I'll give in to his requests to eat at BK or even Jack in the Box. We also both love Taco Bell and KFC, but the one closest to our house is really quite dirty, so we just never think to go. And ever since KFC stopped carrying the Zinger sandwich, I am highly disappointed in them.
Soon a Popeye's will be built near the Navy base south of us. I am so excited! I can only get Popeye's when I go home to my dad's house. My mom will head out on a weekend to grab two boxes of chicken for the family -- one mild and one spicy. She says she can't handle the spicy. I think she just wants a whole box of Popeye's to herself!
Mmmm.
Now I'm so hungry I need to go eat lunch. Too much talk about food!!
PS -- HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!!!