Reviewed:
The corporate presence of McDonald's - soon to replace the Harbour Galley - at Disneyland.

But you know what? As I continued to think it through I slowly came to the conclusion that I didn't really care. That depending on how the actual restaurant looks I don't care if it is McDonald's or Disney preparing the food.

On the one hand, let's be real here: this is just food. And it's supposed to be fast food, whether it's McDonald's or not. Plus people like McDonald's, really. It is a large multinational, after all. 

On the other hand, Disneyland is supposed to be different, right? The idea here is to remove the public from reminders of the outside world. I suspect we'll get into a debate about sponsorship in general at Disneyland.

But alas, I forge on and do my best to counter your ambivalence with adamancy (if that is a word). I agree, for many people the main issue focuses on sponsorship within Disneyland. At what point, if any, does it become intrusive? 

Is a Dole Whip a reminder of the outside world? Not really. Are FedEx commercials at Space Mountain over the top? A bit, but its not too bad. McDonalds providing a McDonalds just doesn't strike me as that big of a deal, as long as it is not a traditional red and orange, double Big Mac McDonald's.

Still, it bothers me to some extent. Disney theme parks have always had sponsorships. Not just a name on a ride, but also products. You can buy Coca-Cola or Kodak film - are those reminders of the outside world? 

I think one thing we need to admit is that with a few exceptions, Disneyland food is nothing special. Much of it isn't particularly good (Tomorrowland Terrace) and much of it is just adequate (Redd Rockets). Only occasionally does the food enter into the "good" category. The fried chicken at Plaza Inn or the entire menu at Bayou. McDonald's may actually be filling an empty niche - decent quality, truly fast food.

One thing we should perhaps clarify is that DL's food is nothing special in comparison to what? Other theme parks? Fast food out in the normal world? 

In a sense, I agree with you. A hot dog is a hot dog (though the corn dog cart has been voted the county's best corndog at least once, but that's beside the point).

The difference, one might argue, is that those places did not have established reputations *as restaurants* out in the real world. Again, they evoke a product, not a location.

And I think it is safe to say that 80% of the guests are not going to have a problem with it, either. The fries wagon certainly wasn't hurting for business

But I'm niggling again. I think you are right that 80% of the guests will have no problem. I even agree with the figure. A good 20% of fans are purists, but 20% is no majority. 

Oh, and the fries cart? Internally it's known as the "kiosk" for some reason, and here's a secret: for the first few months of its existence, it was not making profit. Sales were not even paying 100% of the labor costs, let alone all the other factors! To be fair, this was partly due to the overstaffing of the place, something that happens often when new locations are opened. But I would take issue with the idea that the kiosk does good business. I never see a line there.

One nice thing they could do with the restaurant (that would help with its popularity) would be to have that store perpetually use Disney for its Happy Meal Toys (if they will be selling Happy Meals). Even better would be if this one restaurant had special DISNEYLAND Happy Meal toys. I would bet that would get a lot of the purists into the place.

By the way, and I recognize this is changing the topic slightly, we should mention that the prices here will not be standard McDonalds. Like the kiosk, prices will be raised so as to be as expensive at Disneyland. There will be no 39 cent cheeseburger Sundays, nor even 99 cent cheeseburgers normally. The Big Mac, if they have it, will cost several dollars. The result is that a McDonald's burger will cost the same as a Disney burger. 

I don't know. Maybe this is a good thing! For four dollars, do you want a Disney burger or one you know and trust (the Big Mac)? McDonald's is clearly counting on name recognition. It just might work, though I think it doesn't work as well for the fries cart alone.

Seeing as I don't eat beef I probably won't use their restaurant for any of the other food. Personally, however, I have no doubt that the restaurant will prove reasonably popular. Especially as that area of the park is underrepresented by food services.

I think I hear your point that this is not the end of the world. And in fact, you're right, it's not the end of the world. Purists will be annoyed, yet Disney will soldier on despite them, because popularity and profit matter more than cohesive theme that doesn't intrude. All this I understand, and even accept. 

But part of me remains a purist. Recently we talked about Walt and whether he would be happy with today's Disney company. When I ask myself if Walt would be happy with McDonald's, I'm surprised to discover that I think he would be. 

Walt was a plain guy and liked to live like other folks. Lest we forget, the only movie he directed for the company (The Golden Touch) ended with King Midas going out for a cheeseburger. 

So although I am a purist, especially about Disneyland, I think in the final analysis I can "get over it." It just might take some time.