At most McDonald's Corp. (NYSE: MCD) drive-through windows, the worker's ask: "Do you want fries with that?" But at one Massachusetts McDonald's, drive-through customers got an unusual offer: "Do you want marijuana with that?"
It sounds incredible but it's true. The Eagle-Tribune quoted Haverhill Police Sargent John Arahovites as saying that Michael Brown, an assistant manager at the Haverhill, MA store, sold bags of marijuana worth $20 to $80 along with a McDonald's meal to his customers. He would use his cell phone and direct customers to the drive-through. Police set up a sting to buy $40 worth of marijuana from Brown and arrested him Thursday at the restaurant. Police seized $57 and six bags of marijuana from Brown.
What does Brown say? "This is not going to put me down. I'll get back on my feet." No word on whether McDonald's got a share of Brown's profits. But smoking marijuana makes people hungry. Brown could have created some important synergies.
Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates, a management consulting and venture capital firm. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in McDonald's.











Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-17-2007 @ 11:42PM
Vince said...
Expand your waistline and your mind at the same time. Would that be the McWeed extra value meal? :)
Flashback: Does anyone remember back in the 70's when McD had the coffee stir sticks shaped like little coke spoons?
11-18-2007 @ 6:16AM
canadadodo said...
Just another poor working guy screwed by "the man". Seriously- a "sting" operation?? How long did the people working at this place have to put up with this behavior??
Just another McTragedy!! To go along with the strip search and sexual abuse. The managers must be better screened. Maybe they should go into teaching or the ministry.
What is this world coming to??
11-18-2007 @ 7:52AM
Doug said...
They been doing this for decades.Nothing new.
11-18-2007 @ 8:46AM
W. B. Wilhite said...
Yes, it makes sense. You go to a bar for beer and soon there will be salty condiments adding to your thirst. It only makes sense that legalizing pot will help the economy and fatten American profits and waistlines. Excellent synergy. Except some of us will be at home listening to our Pink Floyd endlessly.
11-18-2007 @ 8:50AM
W. B. Wilhite said...
There's the happy meal for the kids, and for the parents, a surreal meal.
11-18-2007 @ 9:07AM
transformer said...
Golden arches clowns Grimmus,c-mon anybody been in McDonalds latley. My recomondation would be acid
11-18-2007 @ 9:51AM
Barb said...
McDonald's are filthy, nasty restaurants. I'm not sure how they come up with some of the idiots they hire, but many of the managers are bigger morons than the employees. Of course with the low pay they offer the counter folks and managers, it's no wonder they can't get anyone semi-intelligent to work there. These jobs should be left to high school kids and semi-retired folks who are just looking for a little pocket change and perhaps health insurance.
11-18-2007 @ 1:16PM
tori said...
Im sure you must have worked in a mcdonalds before to make this comment. Otherwise you would know that McDonalds ranks number 1 for travelers preference of the cleanest bathrooms, so if the one you have been visiting is "nasty" then you should report it to the mcdonalds corparation!
And while it is hard to find good help ANYWHERE, most mcdonalds are independently owned and being the #1 burger chain requires having alot of people on hand at one time. I believe everyone in the world should have to work at mcdonalds for a week, yes everyone is intitled to their opinions, but if you dont know the circumstances then you shouldnt be to quick to judge!
11-18-2007 @ 2:35PM
Barb said...
Tori, I sat in a McDonald's dining area and in front of me, on the plate glass window, the top part of a hamburger bun stuck to the glass, along with the pickle, onion, mustard and ketchup that had been smeared there along with it. That could have been put there by some kid 10 minutes before I sat down. However, a week later I sat in the same spot, and while the bun was gone, the rest of the food, including the pickle slice, remained smeared on the window. Now if this is how well they're cleaning the area that the customers can readily see, what are they doing in the kitchen where customers can't see?? There is no need for one to have worked there to know that this is intolerable slovenliness. As for stupidity, I once spoke to the manager who backed up her employee's decision that, while Quarter Pounders with Cheese were on sale for $2.00, I was expected to pay $2.69 for a Quarter Pounder with No Cheese since they weren't on sale. It's tough to ignore this special kind of idiocy.
11-27-2007 @ 9:46PM
Brandi said...
Unfortunately Barb the computer decides the price of your food when it is rung up, not the cashier who does the ringing. While one item is on special a similar or substituted item may not be. Although I do agree that the QPC should have been entered as the special and then grilled "less cheese" I personally wouldn't have done it for you on the simple principle that you seem to be a complete ass and should have to pay more for making them deal with you. Do not judge a multitude by the mistakes of some, just as I do not want myself judged as a woman or even human based on your example. And don't forget the cardinal rule; don't screw with the people handling your food!
11-18-2007 @ 6:59PM
Blondiee29 said...
Mcdonalds used to be my favorite place to get my kids a quick meal if we were on the go. They were usually clean, cheaper than most places and a decent burger. But I have to say, recently I went to get 8 sausage biscuits and I went through 3 different employees whom not 1 spoke english, lets remind u I was in AZ and there was not 1 english speaking employee, so after 15 minutes of trying to place a very simple order I just left! That was the last trip I will be making to any McDonalds!
11-19-2007 @ 5:23PM
Brian Patterson said...
My son got e coli 0157 H:7 from eating a McDonalds meal in August 2002. He was in the hospital for 7 days on morphine. Both McDonalds and Zurich Ins both denied liability yet the CDC found isolated and random PFGE matches. My advice to anyone is to save their receipts and a uneaten portion of their meal for further testing and confirmation.
11-23-2007 @ 10:06PM
James said...
Ok I am tired of hearing about your sons e-coli. Its been posted in too many comments. No doubt I am sorry about it but truth be told doubt it was from McDonalds food. McDonalds meats go through the most thorough testing before they are shipped out. Millions of customers eat that meat on a daily basis, theres no way something like that would go unnoticed. Check the other food your sons been eating. Also, I agree with Tori. McDonalds didn't get to be where it is by being dirty, check your store before you blame the corporation. And.. 90% of the time, the customer is the Idiot.
11-26-2007 @ 2:13PM
Brian Patterson said...
James,
You must be a corporate attorney or marketing. The story has been checked and documented. It is clear you do not understand how this works. The CDC found random and isolated PFGE matches in the National PulseNet database. The CDC does not sound an alarm unless there are two or more PFGE matches in the same geographical region. Since the MCD's is located on an interstate highway in CT, customers stopped and continued on their journey into New England, Canada and elsewhere. If your son was in the hospital in pain, on morphine for 7 days, you would react the same way....unlike the idiot(s) you wrote about.
12-07-2007 @ 11:07PM
harold9904 said...
u don't absorb nutrients as well after smokin pot so u actually gain less weight