The Golden Arches gets a makeover
Norwich — Spending $84 million across the state this year and next, McDonald's isn't clowning around with its renovations to modernize its restaurants.
The franchise at 109 Salem Turnpike reopened Oct. 11, and it's not your grandfather's McDonald's.
There's the touch-screen order kiosks, where customers can "order at their own pace" and find new options. You can opt for table service. There's the sleeker design, with dark gray and yellow chairs and booths, increasing the number of seats by 10. The staff is wearing new uniforms.
Norwich Mayor Peter Nystrom; state Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague; and state Rep. Kevin Ryan, D-Montville, joined local franchisees and corporate officials at the location on Wednesday for a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
"The City of Norwich is very proud of the renovations, very happy and pleased to see how it turned out," Nystrom said. He noted that he had "some fun times" working at the Norwichtown McDonald's in high school.
Husband-and-wife team Rachel and Walter Deane are the owners/operators of this location, along with ones in Norwichtown, Lisbon and Mansfield.
"The inside was dark, dated," Rachel Deane said. "It needed a refresh, so what we did was we took away all the stanchions, so now it's bright, inviting. We took the canopies off the front."
The 109 Salem Turnpike location has existed for 40 years, and the Deanes came onboard as owners three years ago.
After many changes over the years, "The transformation now is to bring it more contemporary, give the guests what they would like," Rachel Deane said. Walter Deane noted that table service is a big deal, especially for mothers coming in with children.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony also included the presentation of two $250 checks: one to Thomas W. Mahan Elementary School, and one to the Norwich Police Benevolent Association.
Rachel Kaprielian, government relations regional lead, said that renovations are taking place at 99 of the 142 McDonald's locations across the state, which employ 8,483 people.
In August, McDonald's announced its $6 billion plan to modernize restaurants across the country by 2020. McDonald's has said that 15,000 stores globally will be modernized by the end of this year.
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