As this news item reveals, McDonald's is discovering that not all is well in Hamburgerland. A survey of guest satisfaction found that complaints increased by over ten percent between 2005 and 2006, even as financial results improved (proving once more that financials don't necessarily reflect long-term profitability).

I wish I could get my hands on this document, which apparently distinguishes individual restaurants that are "brand builders" (good customer ratings) from those that are "brand destroyers." News reports indicate that western U.S. McDonald's are friendlier than eastern U.S. locations, while Philadelphia and the Baltimore-Washington, D.C. area have the worst ratings.

Having lived for a time in the latter region, I don't find this surprising. My own love affair with the golden arches ended years ago, however, when they stopped using beef tallow to cook their fries, in a cowardly failure to confront militant vegetarians. Once they gave up the beef tallow, they gave up their heart and soul. Ah, McDonald's. How far you have fallen.