Furious McDonald’s customers have taken to social media to express their frustration after an IT outage left them unable to order food.
The global issue started early on Friday morning, but within hours Britons were complaining online.
One user posted on Twitter: ‘You ruined my morning McClowns. I ate here daily and was denied my McMuffin because your waste system wasn’t working.
“I thought you quit playing Roland McDonald’s years ago.”
Another person commented on his anger at the situation: “Soooo, for the first time in a while I’m craving a yummy McMuffin… order online, drive to McD’s and… you have a nationwide bust?
‘How about then locking the app until it’s sorted, instead of allowing people to order? Just a thought?’
McDonald’s British app noticed a spike in the number of problems around 5 a.m. on Friday
Another user expressed disappointment that he couldn’t even serve a latte this morning.
McDonald’s has so far made no official comment on the widespread issue.
But a spokesperson for McDonald’s UK said they were “looking into” the issue.
A system used to monitor IT issues for businesses, Downdetector, noticed a spike in problems with the McDonald’s UK app around 5am on Friday.
In 2018, McDonald’s said the company served an average of 3.5 million customers per day in Britain.
But the problem has also been reported around the world, including in Australia, New Zealand and Japan.
Another user on social media wondered why McDonald’s couldn’t continue taking orders with pen and paper after the digital shutdown.
They moaned that they ‘didn’t have their McBreakfast today’ because of the failure.
However, it is believed that not all stores have been affected by the outage and a small number are still operating in the affected countries.
McDonald’s customers cannot order food in restaurants due to an IT outage (stock image)
But the problem has also been reported by media organizations in China and Sweden. Other social media users posted the same issue in Germany and Austria.
In Japan, the company apologized to customers on social media and said they may have to “wait a while” for the issues to be resolved.
McDonald’s Japan, which has about 3,000 stores in the country, said: ‘There is currently a system error. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and ask that you please wait until service is restored.”
A McDonald’s Australia spokesperson said it was “aware of a technology outage” currently affecting stores across the country.
A manager in the country wrote on Reddit that his store continued to accept orders by writing them on paper, while other locations decided to close.
The IT outage comes after McDonald’s in the UK and Ireland announced it will undergo its biggest menu change in decades as the chain celebrates its 50th anniversary.
In 2018, McDonald’s said the company served an average of 3.5 million customers per day in Britain
Amid the major shake-up, the restaurant will be making recipe changes to its beloved beef burgers, promising they will be ‘better than ever before’.
Fan favorites that will see changes include the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder with Cheese, and of course the classic Cheeseburger variations, including the double and triple.
The commotion comes fifty years after the first golden arches appeared in a British shopping street in 1974.
The Woolwich restaurant was the first McDonald’s in Britain and offered customers ‘The United Tastes of America’.
And switching recipes isn’t the only big change; the news comes just after McDonald’s launched a new personalized ‘inclusive’ uniform that allows staff to wear the clothes ‘they feel most comfortable in’.