Did You Know There’s A Reason McDonald’s Coke Tastes Better?

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Almost anyone with kids has spent more than their fair share of time sitting on those little plastic/metal chairs at McDonald’s, sipping away at a Coke, while the kids were burning off energy on the playground. And during that time, you may have also noticed that the Coke’s at Micky D’s are way better than what you can get anywhere else…did you ever wonder why though? Here’s the real reason why McDonald’s Coke Tastes Better.

McDonald's soda

Did You Know There’s A Reason McDonald’s Coke Tastes Better?

First, it isn’t the syrup. I know you think that’s why, but you’re wrong. Actually, while most restaurants have their syrups delivered in plastic bags, Coca-Cola brings McDonalds special stainless steel containers that keep things just a little fresher and  preserve the ingredients better. So while they don’t add extra syrup, they do take steps to make sure the syrup is served as identically as possible at all of their restaurants.

You should know, too, that while they don’t give you extra syrup, the melting ice and how much it dilutes the drinks is taken into consideration with their syrup ratio. So if you’re like me and ask them to hold the ice, you actually ARE getting a slightly sweeter drink than those who go full cube.

Second, it’s cold. Like, really cold. While McDonald’s has been known in the past for their hot coffee, it should probably be recognized for its cold carbonated beverages. Cold temperatures hold carbonation better, so by serving it just a little cooler than their competitors, McDonalds is able to make the carbonation last longer and more bubbly means a better taste.

Not only that, but their straws are slightly bigger so more of that carbonated goodness hits your tastebuds all at once. Apparently, with straws at least, bigger really IS better.

Third, McDonalds really wants you to love your soda, so they actually filter the water more than most to keep the quality even higher. In fact, they invest a lot of money into keeping their double filtration system well maintained and working better than anyone else’s system.

I mean, think about it…better drinks means parents don’t mind sitting as long to watch the littles run in circles through the playground.

Pretty smart, McDonalds!

HEY, REDDIT! I was scrolling through the front page before I went to bed tonight and saw you all reading this!! Thank you so much!! You made my night!!! ~Mary

Have a Did You Know question you want us to check out? E-mail: mail@totallythebomb.com! We’d love to hear from you!

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183 Comments

  1. My wife and I are starting a food company with our first product being Potato Salad. 100% of the net profits will be donated to charities thru out the USA. Habitat for Humanity and many others. The company is Dvorak’s Specialty Foods LLC P.O. Box 1942 Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52403 Any advise out there for us to get the word out to the general public. Only other person in our area that is doing this is Paul Newman salad dressings.

  2. Cokes are amazing at QuikTrip also. They filter the water and serve them similar to McDonalds. They taste very similar. Fountain drinks always seem to just taste fresher than from a bottle or can.

  3. Is this a joke? I’m a huge Coke drinker and find McDonald’s Coke and other soda to be awful whether it’s served with or without ice. I’ve tried it both ways. It all taste flat to me.

  4. “I mean, think about it…better drinks means parents don’t mind sitting as long to watch the littles run in circles through the playground.”

    Are you serious? I’ve never heard of Coke in any form referred to as being in the category of “better drinks” in any context.

  5. This is complete rubbish, as soon as a soft drink makes contact with ice you lose carbonation immediately. the brix ratio is way too high for mcdonalds because they serve coke with WAY too much ice.

    you’re simply diluting a drink that is supposed to be already mixed.

    the best coke is not in the usa, period. your corn fructose syrups taste like crap….

    the best way to drink coke is from a bottle, a refrigerated bottle, the flavor will be at its most intense and consistent.

    you’re an absolute idiot

  6. Don’t eat or drink anything at McD so no problem with the addicting drinks

  7. Almost everyone with kids spends time drinking coke at McDonalds? Are you serious? Any good parent spends NO time there. Stop taking your kids to McDonalds. You are teaching them horrible habits.

    1. Ha. I’m pretty sure you can be a “good” parent even if you’ve had a Coke from McDonald’s. Quite frankly, I’d rather feed my kid a burger every now and then instead of teaching him to judge others based on one little snippet of their lives.

      What comes out of your mouth is much more important than what goes in it.

      Kindness and understanding goes a long way in this world.

      1. Amen Tracy. People seem to be so mean sitting at keyboards. What an unkind world we are living in. Sad.

    2. Oh please tell us more about how to be a good parent ???

    3. So I guess being a judgemental asshole makes for a better parent.

  8. Totally incorrect – the stainless containers you see being delivered could possibly be the CO2. Some restaurants have a truck that shows up and re-fills their CO2 tanks, others swap out empty ones for re-filled ones, but the syrup definitely does not come in a CO2 container.

    1. no one uses anything but syrup bags in boxes, lol stainless steel?

      they go thru about 5 bags a day probably. expensive way to cart sugar around isnt it?

  9. I can’t believe someone finally wrote an article on this. Thank you Mary!! My best friend has been saying this for nearly 20 years. She most definitely got me hooked on their diet coke, always both of us going through the drive-thru ordering two extra large diet cokes..NOTHING tastes better lol. Sooooo refreshing. Now, I’d never eat there (well maybe an ice-cream cone….or a breakfast burrito lol) but there soda, it’s an addiction. One I’m happy to keep. 🙂
    Much love and thanks from Maui Hawaii (originally New England)
    ALOHA,
    Belle

    1. its probably refreshing because its the most water you’ve had in a while. you sound like you need a health check up.

  10. Mcdonalds Coke is awful??! At least in this area. It has this weird fruity taste like something is just off. Or old. Or they ran OJ through the same hoses that morning or something. I wish there cokes tasted as this description.

    1. Very good, its fermentation of sugars in the older post mix machines. it happens in the lines. when you see beer on tap those lines are flushed and maintained every night (with chemicals)

      I taste the same fruity smell too. its like the smell of my diarrhea after a big night drinking scotch and coke.

  11. I hope you are aware this information is wrong. Let me know if you’d like the truth

  12. There’s a reason Mary is so big, its because she is a sugar addict like most and drinks down those cokes with pride. She has on that scarf covering her turkey neck for a reason. Sugar is bad and will kill you if consumed in large doses daily. Coke is especially bad as it has a higher amount of sugar. If your still eating at McDonald’s by now after knowing how bad there food is that is on you. Dont sue McDonalds when your died because of liver failure or a heart attack or diabetes from all there sugar.

    1. Your comment has so many grammatical and spelling errors that it hurt my head.

    2. Oh yes, let’s just have her sue them… When she died. Because that’s clearly a plausible course of action…….

    3. What an awful thing to say. To hide behind the Internet makes you very sad.

    4. I don’t think you can sue someone after you die

  13. I work for Coca-Cola and what this article describes is called a Pre-mix container. And actually they used to go out to a lot of restaurants. They were basically the syrup already premixed with carbonated water. But most places have gotten away from using them in favor of the Bag in a Box or BIB.

  14. I’ve worked for McDonald’s a few times and none of this is true for my experiences. All of them were bags in boxes. I know, because I had to change them a few times. So, I’m not sure where they do this..

  15. In all the McDonald’s in my area, they have black specks floating in the soda… They don’t clean out their lines much. I admit, I don’t go there anymore because their food makes me sick from any of their restaurants or any other fast food place. Since the water is different in states, Florida Sprite doesn’t taste the same as Wisconsin Sprite out of their soda machines. That is why Coke sells better, it kills the taste of the water down there.

  16. I believe everything that you wrote, but I have also been told by a previous employee that restaurant chains have their “own” special Coke formula and that McDonald’s Coke has cinnamon in it. Whether this is true or not, I have no way of proving but it would seem like a silly thing to lie about. Just throwing that bit of info out there. 🙂

    1. I heard the same thing when it comes to the cinnamon. And the the next time you get one actually taste the coke just don’t drink it, you will taste a hint of it. Also I have found the McD’s coke actually gets rid of my headaches.

      1. It sounds like your “headaches” are actually symptoms of caffeine withdraw…

      2. Yep – definitely caffeine withdrawal, OR low sugar. Try drinking a gallon of water daily, you won’t have headaches any longer.

      3. omg americans, do you not even understand the basics of how your body works?

        coke is water and sugar, thats basically it. if you’re dehydrated you get a head ache, if you drink water it fixes it. water is in coke.

      4. I’m pretty sure “Americans” know that water is a main ingredient in coke…we also know that water helps headaches. Thanks for the pointless information though!

  17. there is a partnership between Coke and McDonalds. There are trained “Coke” service personnel who make sure the Coke machines are calibrated correctly at least every 6 months. (my husband did that for a few years)

    1. Laura got it right. Coke will not allow anyone to tamper or adjust their product, syrup or syrup/ water/CO2 ratios. Also Coke requires McDonalds to tell customers they have Coca-Cola only, if they ask for a Pepsi.
      Cinnamon in Coke? Poof! Never has, never will be.
      Advice: Careful how you maliciously post unsubstantiated health issues or false quality issues about a Company’s Brand. Companies like Coke and McDonalds protect their Brand through legal means. In short, they will sue the hell out of you and toss you to the curb, naked,hungry and crying like a baby. Just saying so dummy up.

      1. no they wont, not a single person has been sued for mentioning the nutritional value for any of their products. if you make a false claim in the media you can get sued but there is nothing uniquely dangerous about anything at a mcdonalds.

        its the same fast food, frozen food you can buy in a supermarket.

        its all legal and above board.

  18. You can’t use words like “better” or “quality” when you talk about coke or McDonalds. It’s unhealthy crap no matter where you buy it. But yes, a “smart” way to mislead people into buying unhealthy products.

    1. “Better” and “quality” don’t necessarily refer to how healthy something is for you. Thought I’d let you know how English works.

  19. You sit in McDonald’s for long periods of time… you bring your kids there to play… gross. Go outside and grill a real burger and if you have to, drink a canned coke. Horrible, horrible blog.

  20. Mary you are close but not exactly right McDonalds in fact does brix their coke a little different that most restaurant (Brix is the ratio of carbonated water to syrup That is how they account for the melting ice in the drink What use to make McDonald soda (All products of CCUSA) , so special was the Multiplex soda system they use to use It was a constant circulating system the remained fresh and provided cooling to the syrups as well as the carbonation.
    The countertop system now used are made by CCUSA but lack the best taste Coke products had with the Multiplex system

  21. ANYTHING FROM mcdonalds IS REAL BADF OR YOU. MOST EVERYTHING IS GMO.
    ALL THIER FOOD IS GAR

  22. Oh my god what utter crap! Metal canisters? Like 50 years ago maybe!

    I’ve worked in 11 different stores all over Australia. They ALL use disposable bags in boxes!

    Where’d you get your ‘info’ the maccas public bathroom?!

    1. I dont know about australia buf i have worked at five incthe us. It comes in a 75 tallon stainless steel fank. Mcdonalds has no say in anything concerningct heir coke mixing and we dont even own most of the equipment invthe store

      1. I’m pretty sure that’s the CO2 you’re seeing in the big thank. Any McDonalds I’ve ever worked at had the bag-in-a-box syrup for coke.

      2. I have worked in 3 different McDonald’s in Canada and the coca cola syrups come in a plastic bag contained in a box, like all other syrups.

      3. world wide…. think about the cost lol.

        gas comes in tanks because its pressurized.

      4. a 75 Tallon Fank, ehh? did JK Rowling deliver it?

    2. Some coke companies including the one I work at now used to and still do use pre-mix containers. They are long cylindrical tubes about 2 feet high and slightly smaller around than a basketball is. Most places these days usually just use the bag in boxes now and have to order a CO2 tank to mix the syrup with to make the carbonated water mixture.

  23. Will never darken the door of McD’s again. I was cured many years ago when I ordered a fresh burger without a pickle. I got a lot of complaining from the server, then when I finally got the burger, the bun had the imprint of the pickle slice. I am highly allergic to pickles and dislike the taste of pickles!!

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