McDonald's Workers Can't Stand This Customer Ordering Request

There is a lot that can be frustrating about working in the fast food industry, from customers with poor drive-thru etiquette on rainy days to people ordering secret menu hacks when it's super busy. And as employees for one of the largest fast food chains in the entire world, McDonald's workers already have a lot on their plates. Their day-to-day is all about maximizing efficiency, but occasionally, down the chain, they receive requests that slow things down in the most annoying way. One request they typically can't stand: asking for freshly melted cheese on a sandwich.

Microwaving a just-made burger requires an extra step — usually tossing the sandwich in the microwave to give it a quick zap. This slows down the line when a little patience on the customer's part would likely achieve the same result. The residual heat from the meat patty will melt the cheese anyway, so unless you're unwrapping your burger or chicken sandwich the minute it comes through the drive-thru window, there is no need to ask for the cheese "freshly melted."

There is also the fact that, when McDonald's employees go to freshly melt customers' cheese, the entire sandwich must go into the microwave, including any lettuce, pickles, mayo, etc., on it — ingredients that are better cold. So, while you're solving the issue of non-melted cheese, you might be compromising the taste and quality of these other elements.

As mentioned, it can take a minute for McDonald's cheese to melt. If you've ordered a burger and found the slice of American cheese still solid, it's partially because of when it gets placed on the protein patty. Cooks shouldn't put cheese on the burgers while they are cooking because of the special grill McDonald's uses, which has a clam-shell lid that closes over the patties. So instead, pairing the cheese and meat is the final step before wrapping. With the cheese slice not coming into contact with any heat until the sandwich is put together, it's no wonder it takes a little while for it to start melting.

Once your sandwich's cheese sits on the heat source and it does start to melt, though, that heavenly, sauce-like texture it attains is the product of two special ingredients. These emulsifiers, sodium citrate and soy lecithin, give the cheese a smooth, clump-free melt. It's the perfect complement to the hefty McDonald's Double Quarter Pounder (the hands-down best burger for meat lovers) or even the Filet-O-Fish.