McDonald's CosMc's Is Open. Here's What You Need To Know About The New Chain

Amid the strict lockdowns of the Covid-19 pandemic, the restaurant industry took a big hit, especially during 2020. But the fast food market has proven resilient, and many popular chains are doing better than ever. McDonald's in particular, with its inexpensive menu items and zealous marketing, has big plans for increased growth not just in the United States but across the globe. Between the new MyMcDonald's Rewards loyalty program on the McDonald's app, a revamp of its burgers, and partnering with Google Cloud to improve the customer experience by using artificial intelligence, McDonald's is riding high.

But those aren't the only new ventures for the Golden Arches. McDonald's has set its sights on semi-new territory: specialty beverages, the realm of  Starbucks, Dunkin', and Peet's Coffee. McDonald's has long been a Starbucks competitor based on scale alone. However, it's officially gone head to head with Starbucks and the line after the opening of its new chain of specialty drink drive-thrus: CosMc's.

CosMc's went from concept to launch in just over a year, proving that McDonald's has a lot of confidence in this new venture. So, what is it about CosMc's that McDonald's thinks is so extraordinary? Read on to learn all there is to know about this new specialty beverage chain.

"Wait a minute," you may be thinking. "Doesn't McDonald's already have a standalone coffee chain?" The answer is both yes and no. It comes down to where in the world you live.

The first McCafé opened its doors in 1993 in Melbourne, Australia, where the brand remains quite popular. Group brand manager for McDonald's Australia, Lancy Huynh, told Franchise Executives that McCafé is "one of the largest coffee retailers in the country, representing [...] one in every four coffees sold in Australia."

Today, more than 4,000 McCafés are now operating in 60 countries. They are distinct from McDonald's restaurants by having a more relaxed atmosphere and a unique menu. A standalone McCafé is quite similar to a Starbucks with its menu of barista-made specialty coffees and teas as well as pastries and other small bites to eat.

McDonald's introduced the McCafé concept to the United States in 2001, opening its first location outside Chicago in Oak Brook, Illinois. Reactions were less than enthusiastic, however, especially among franchise owners who incorporated a McCafé into their preexisting McDonald's locations. Complaints centered on the extra time it took to create beverages, the lower quality of drinks compared to competitors, and the requirement of buying special equipment to make those drinks.

In the U.S., McCafés are often part of a McDonald's location, which means that you can order a Big Mac and fries with a caramel macchiato. CosMc's, however, is a separate location. Like the standalone McCafés found abroad, there is a distinct lack of burgers on the CosMc's menu.

That isn't to say that CosMc's is a beverage-only chain. The menu includes some McDonald's favorites such as the Egg McMuffin, as well as McFlurries. (Whether or not the ice cream machine will remain fully functional has yet to be seen.) There are also two new sandwiches, the Spicy Queso and Creamy Avocado Tomatillo, both of which have a distinctly Southwest vibe. You can also order snacks such as savory hash brown bites and McPops, essentially fried donuts with your choice of cookie butter, apple cinnamon, or hazelnut filling.

As for drinks, there are your standard teas, lemonades, cold brews, and mochas, among others. Or you could step out of your comfort zone and opt for one of the more unique signature brews: the S'mores Cold Brew and Turmeric Spiced Latte. To help you cool off, frappes and slushes are also on the menu with unique flavors such as churro, popping pear, and pomegranate hibiscus. Also unique to CosMc's are the Signature Galactic Boosts, energy drinks with tropical fruit flavors and names like Island Pick-me-up Punch and Sour Cherry Energy Burst.

Many of us have felt this: it's a couple of hours after lunch with only a few more to go before we can get home. Our eyelids feel heavy and our energy levels are low. It's the dreaded afternoon slump. There are lots of different reasons why we may be feeling fatigued, including changing hormone levels, not getting enough sleep the night before, or blood sugar spiking and then crashing after eating lunch.

Many ways can get you back to feeling awake and alert. Some people take a quick nap, while others stretch or do a brief exercise. Of course, there are also caffeinated beverages like coffee and energy drinks that might give you the boost you need. This is where CosMc's wants to come in. As McDonald's told investors in its 2023 update, "Think of [CosMc's] as an out-of-this-world solution for the 3 p.m. slump."

If you're bored of conventional coffee drinks, perhaps you will be enticed by the bright colors of CosMc's Galactic Boosts. Another reason you may be feeling tired is because you are overstressed. Perhaps the chain's Turmeric Spiced Latte will help. Turmeric is a popular natural anti-inflammatory, which some report can reduce stress and help you to feel less anxious (via Neuropsychopharmacology). If nothing else, the caffeine will give you the kick you may need to get through the rest of your afternoon.

The first CosMc's opened in early December 2023 in the parking lot of a strip mall just outside Chicago in Bolingbrook, Illinois. The building is dark blue with yellow accents and lettering and operates entirely via drive-thru, meaning there is no seating indoors or outdoors. There are, however, four drive-thru lanes that are meant to get customers what they want fast. You will also order and pay without the face-to-face interaction that you might expect from another coffee chain's drive-thru.

At the Bolingbrook location, the four lanes each have a large menu screen and a speaker, similar to what you find at a more standard McDonald's drive-thru. But here is where things change, as you both order and pay at the speaker. You then wait while the screen displays a red stop sign. When your order is ready, the red changes to green, and the number of a particular pickup window is displayed. You proceed there to grab your order.

Whether or not this will prove to be more efficient than the current quick-service drive-thru remains to be seen. But you have to admit that it's certainly different.

By now you may be wondering about the name CosMc. We admit that it seems like an odd choice for a chain that claims to be innovative and forward-thinking, given that the character CosMc the Space Alien is close to 40 years old.

CosMc (pronounced cosmic) first appeared in a 1987 commercial featuring Ronald McDonald and other characters from McDonaldland. CosMc has six arms, big eyes, a round body or space suit, and two antennae. 

He isn't the first of the McDonaldland inhabitants to make a recent comeback. In the summer of 2023, purple shakes created to celebrate Grimace's birthday went viral. Debuting in 1971, Grimace originally stole milkshakes and scared children but was quickly reformed into the friendly purple blob we know today. The Hamburglar was likewise brought back in 2023, this time to advertise improvements to McDonald's burgers. The McNugget Buddies have also recently made a comeback as toys included with adult Happy Meals.

It will be interesting to see if Millennial nostalgia will be enough to carry an entire chain of restaurants. As customer Maria Hinojosa told the BBC, "We're really children of the '90s. But we've seen a lot of stuff about CosMc, it's all online."

CosMc is a space alien from CosMcland introduced as part of the McDonaldland crew in 1987. In his first commercial, CosMc lands in the colorful world of Ronald McDonald and his friends, who are on their way to a picnic. Grimace at first mistakes CosMc for a flower pot, but Ronald realizes there is more to this strange object than meets the eye.

Rather than steal food, like Grimace and the Hamburglar once did, CosMc makes a trade. Only, he doesn't ask for permission first, and many of the items he trades with are a bit silly. For example, he takes Grimace's headphones and gives him a pool floatie. Things grow serious when he makes off with Ronald's picnic basket full of burgers, fries, and shakes, leaving a bouquet of flowers in its place. Luckily, Ronald saves the day and CosMc learns the value of sharing.

According to McDonald's lore, upon CosMc's return to his home planet, he began experimenting with different beverages based on the McDonald's menu. After sharing his specialty drinks with millions of his fellow aliens, CosMc has brought them to Earth for the benefit of humankind.

The single arch in the CosMc's logo is reminiscent of something out of "The Jetsons," while CosMc himself is a product of a 1980s vision of the future. Today, drawing on the same retro theme, employees at the Bolingbrook location are outfitted in denim jackets and yellow knit hats.

There is currently only one CosMc's location in operation in the entire world. Word of the Bolingbrook restaurant's soft opening traveled quickly on social media, attracting people from near and far. One woman flew from London after hearing about it online, around two days ahead of the location's December 7 opening.

So, it's not surprising to hear that customers waited in line for between one and five hours on the first day. Even four days later, one customer tweeted that the wait was still five and a half hours. Another customer complained nearly a week later on X, formerly known as Twitter, that they couldn't even get in because the lines closed at 4 p.m. — although the restaurant closes at 8 p.m.

If you want to try CosMc's out for yourself, try arriving at 5 a.m. an hour before opening. Hopefully, you won't have to wait nearly as long, even if you have to get up early.

One of the most useful recent innovations in the fast food industry is online ordering, including ordering via the app. Just punch in your order while you are still at work, pre-pay, and pick up dinner on the way home without dealing with long lines or crowds of fellow patrons. It's even more convenient on days when you just can't deal with people anymore.

Would online ordering ease some of the hours-long wait times that customers are currently experiencing at CosMc's? McDonald's thinks so and promises that online ordering is coming soon. There is even already a spot for it on the CosMc's website.

McDonald's has also announced that it will use geofencing technology to alert a restaurant when a customer who has already ordered is close so employees can deliver it as fresh as possible. Whether or not that will be incorporated into CosMc's app is unclear, but it is something to keep an eye on.

The United States is a big country, so 10 locations really doesn't feel like much. Chicago is the third-largest metropolitan area in the U.S. and is also fairly central within the U.S., making it a pretty ideal place to try out a new restaurant concept such as CosMc's. Clearly, people aren't afraid to travel long distances to give it a taste, either.

So far, the only additional locations announced for CosMc's will be somewhere in the Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio areas, with both set to open before 2024 is out. The Dallas–Fort Worth International Airport is the second-busiest in the country, making this region another solid place to test a new quick-service chain.

It would be surprising if other major metropolitan areas like Los Angeles and New York City aren't also eventually on the list of future locations, but nothing has yet been announced. Who knows? Maybe it isn't too late for customers to petition that their cities be added.

McDonald's is a highly successful international business that thinks globally. As CEO Chris Kempczinski told investors, "It's not worth our time to develop an idea that will only work in one market. We need big ideas that have global appeal and can work across multiple markets" (via Nation's Restaurant News). Likewise, McDonald's works to stay ahead of the curve by testing new technologies (such as AI) and responding quickly to customers' wants.

There is no doubt that higher-ups are scrutinizing what is happening in Bolingbrook right now at the pilot CosMc's. It is also clear that the eyes of the world are also focused in that direction. Remember also that CosMc's launched just over a year after the idea was born, demonstrating that the chain is moving at cosmic speeds.

If CosMc's proves to be half as successful as McCafé did in Australia, then McDonald's fans abroad can perhaps look forward to hunting down a CosMc's location on their continent.