McDonald's opens eco-friendly drive-thru restaurant in Jeju

McDonald's Korea Managing Director Kim Ki-won, fifth from left, poses with company executives and employees of a new McDonald's Jeju Oedo DT on the rooftop of the restaurant in northern Jeju Island, Friday. Courtesy of McDonald's Korea

By Ko Dong-hwan

• Published Nov 24, 2023 2:58 PM KST
• Updated Nov 25, 2023 6:42 PM KST

McDonald's has opened a new drive-thru restaurant in Jeju Island that boasts environmentally clean features for energy efficiency and visitors' convenience, according to the global franchise, Friday.

Oedo DT in northern Jeju, which opened on the same day, has a rapid recharging station for electric vehicles, a feature first introduced by the franchise's chains in the country. Photovoltaic panels are on the third-floor rooftop and, outside the restaurant, safety wooden fences are made from used ground coffee beans from the restaurant's McCafe. Inside, paints, wallpapers and polishers are all products with eco-friendly certifications, according to the company.

The new restaurant also caters to customers behind wheels with a speedy service by introducing double lanes to receive orders, known as "tandem DT."

Dine-in patrons can enjoy the restaurant's exclusive ocean view, while decor in and outside the eatery is accentuated by an image of a full moon, a theme the management has borrowed from its reflection on the island's northern coastal waters the restaurant flanks. The company said the restaurant is the world's first with a lunar concept.

"The new restaurant is in the vicinity of the Jeju International Airport so it has great access as well," said an official from the company.

To celebrate the new restaurant's opening, the company delivered 200 burgers and beverages to five local orphanages. The company has been giving out Happy Burgers to socially vulnerable groups since 2013.