queen and spadina mcdonalds

Viral video shows every inch of Toronto McDonald's covered in bags​​​​​​​

Life is excruciatingly slow right now for many Toronto residents as the COVID-19 pandemic keeps us inside, away from our friends and in some cases without work or an income.

Fortunately, there are some parts of the city where work and activity are still plentiful (aside from hospitals).

McDonald's has been has been absolutely slammed lately despite the closure of all in-person dining rooms across Ontario thanks to delivery and takeout options.

Whether through the fast food giant's own app, which lets customers order ahead for curbside pickup, or through McDelivery options such as Uber Eats and SkipTheDishes, Toronto is clearly getting its comfort food fix in these uncomfortable times.

Evidence of this can be seen not only in the hands of myriad delivery people in elevators, but inside at least one downtown Toronto restaurant itself.

Instagram user Katie Hope snapped a quick video as she walked past the infamous McDonald's location at Queen and Spadina and on Sunday night around 9 p.m., for reasons that should become obvious upon viewing said video.

The clip shows the restaurant's dining room teeming with a sea of delivery bags — every surface is covered in the company's iconic brown takeout vessels: Tables, chairs, counters, even the entire floor.

It's an almost unbelievable scene, for better or for worse, prompting thousands of people across the web to ask what in the heck is happening.

Some commenters are concerned about seeing so many bags on the floor, calling the practice dirty and gross. Others defend the scene by saying that customers aren't even allowed into the store and that the floor is likely as clean as the counters.

The video, which has been seen nearly a million times on Instagram alone thanks to re-posts from popular accounts such as 6ixbuzzTV and blogTO, continues to drop jaws as it circulates nonetheless.

"I never realized how much people did not cook at home until now," joked one commenter on Instagram.

"Bless these McDees employees," wrote another. "They deserve a BIG raise."

McDonald’s Canada responded to a request for comment early Monday afternoon to explain that the bags on the floor were actually empty.

"Our top priority is to protect the health and well-being of our people and our guests — it's at the core of everything we do," said a spokesperson in a statement. "We have worked to quickly adapt our business to reflect the realities of COVID-19, including moving to only operate Drive-Thru and McDelivery."

"In anticipation of a very busy night for McDelivery, empty bags were prepared in advance," said the spokesperson of the Queen and Spadina situation.

"As soon as we learned of this, we contacted the restaurant and reinforced operational protocols with the restaurant team. All the bags on the floor were discarded and not used for any orders."

Lead photo by

Katie Hope


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