Raiders of the Golden Arches

Offbeat Frontier took an excursion to the Inland Empire. We only lost one person. Our goal was to “lose” two, but Larry is just too cunning. Anyway the team took a detour and encountered what is probably the most important historical site this side of the Prime Meridian (other than Branson, Missouri) the site of the first McDonald's. I now know what it was like to be apart of The Crusades, minus the killings.

Tucked away in the “Sunny Part” San Bernardino off of E Street (two blocks down is where Bruce and the band got started as well), the “OG McDs” can be found. Unfortunately it is no longer a functional fast food dispensary. The building is now the headquarters for the restaurant chain, Jaun Pollo. The good news is that half of the building is a mini-museum dedicated to the history and memorabilia of the franchise juggernaut. The golden years of Grimace, Chicken McNugget Gang, & Garfield Collectible Glassware are all waiting to be relived.

The McNugget Gang!

It’s too bad the Mc Mega Giant lacks the interest in preserving its roots. By the way, only spend fifteen minutes in the museum. After twenty your car will be stripped for parts.

Top Five Highlights of McDonald Museum:

5) Mac Tonight

You can’t get away with a singing Crescent Moon these days. For those who don’t remember, this was McD’s campaign of their late hours.

4) Happy Meal Toys… All of Them!

Remember all those plastic toys you had to have, then after a month they would disappear in you couch or thrown at your little siblings? Or better yet the summer Hot Wheels/Barbie toys? This place has them all. It’s astounding! They even have some of the displays for the toys.

3) Officer Big Mac

Equivalent to a child’s Freudian Nightmare, they have the old hamburger officer playground structure. And if there is an Officer Big Mac, does that mean the Hamburglar was a murder?

2) Festival of Happy Meal Boxes

Like some sort of Cholesterol holiday decorations, they have a collection of Happy Meal boxes hanging from the ceiling. One thought comes to mind, since this is not supported by the corporation. Who keep all these boxes? The toys I understand, but the boxes?

1) Tetanus!

Just by looking at the old sign you get a sense that just by stepping on the property, you’re going to get tetanus, but I guess that’s the over all decor of San Bernardino.