restaurant review

TIMES THREE @ JESSELTON QUAY

Driving Through With Our Voices

Drive-throughs aren’t really a new trend. They’re very useful for a faster and more convenient food ordering experience. Around Kota Kinabalu, a lot of drive-throughs have popped up over the years. Some outlets even offer drive-ins instead too. Although, I do question the use of the term, but that’s a story for later. Anyway, this time I’d like to discuss some of the things that make up a drive-through and the little details that surround them.

Although there are a lot of drive-throughs today, you might’ve noticed most of them have golden arches over them. However, they’re not the only guys in town who offer the service. The colonel and a certain mermaid also have drive-through outlets around town. No matter which you prefer, all these drive-through outlets are located near dense populations or along roads that lead to said populations. Obviously, it’s so people going home from work can conveniently stop by to get dinner, or those going to work can get some needed breakfast, and everything in between.

If you’re not familiar with the concept of a drive-through, you basically drive up to a box, talk to the attendant taking your order, and “drive through” to pay and take your food. When you think about it, it’s quite intriguing to say the least, that the microphones and speakers used to take our orders are good enough for an intelligible conversation. Even when the winds are howling or the traffic gets loud, you can still order comfortably from your car without shouting at the top of your lungs.

During your visit to one of these drive-throughs, you’ll notice a lot of menus that’ll either be constantly showing regular meals, or ones that are changing every few moments to advertise the latest promotional meals, desserts, and drinks. They’re there for those who usually have a hard time making decisions of what to order or always forgets the names of a menu item. Though, when you do have trouble, the attendant will always help you out so you get the food you want.

After ordering you’ll usually advance your vehicle to a window to make the payment. Like most restaurants, you have cash or cashless options to pay. E-wallets and QR code scans have now come a long way to make payments more convenient rather than relying on cash and cards. Starbucks also offers an app to help make the experience smoother as a whole. The app acts as a digital Starbucks card, storing credit to be used when you drive through their outlet to buy you drinks. McDonald’s on the other hand, went to another level when it comes to their app. You simply order through the app on your phone, whether in the office or at home, and then just go to the designated drivethrough to pick up your order. Through these apps, you’ll also receive special promos for free menu items and such.

The next window is usually where you’ll get your food. Depending on the order, you might be able to get your order and drive home. Sometimes, however, when you order certain items or a certain amount, the kitchen will have to take some time to process your order. You’ll have to wait just a little bit longer in front of the window. These outlets have also prepared spots where you can wait as well, in case of order taking a bit longer than anticipated. When your order is ready, the attendant will send it to you directly and you can drive off happily.

Drive-throughs have become a godsend for many, but I do have some slight nitpicks and concerns regarding them. First of all, the rush hour will defeat the purpose and convenience of the drive-through experience. When it rains, it pours, as when the line gets long, you’ll have to wait longer when going through the drive-though compared to simply doing it the old fashioned way of going into the outlet to order. They have implemented somewhat of a solution, where their attendant will walk to your car to take your order. You’ll still have to wait in line to hand an order sheet to another attendant who’ll then give it to the person behind the “magic” box. Confusing? Yes. Pointless? Yes. Problem solved? Not necessarily. The point here is, it’ll be much faster to find parking and go into the outlet to order rather than wait in a long line for the drive-through.

Speaking of which, a few outlets’ have pretty bad infrastructure as well. Since most are focused towards the drive-through experience, they provide little to no parking spaces for those who want to enjoy their meals in the outlet itself. What’s worse for some outlets, because of the designed roadway that’s fit for only one car’s width, even if you prefer to find a parking space, you’ll still have to wait in line since you can’t go past the other cars. This isn’t an issue for all drive-through outlets, but it is for some.

The last of my nitpicks is the fact that there’s a higher chance you’ll get the wrong order, especially during rush hour. Yes, I get that you should always check your order before driving off, but it’ll cause some inconvenience for customers waiting behind you. I have that anxiety and I bet some you guys have it too. Plus, I put my trust into the outlets and their staff to give the correct order as well. But hey, that’s just some of the risks we’ll have to take, even if unnecessary.

As I mentioned earlier, drive-throughs have made it more convenient for us to buy our meals from the comfort of our cars. I know, we can now even order from the comfort of our homes, but going to a drive-through outlet is still an option. Rather than waiting for the delivery of your soggy fries or diluted drink, getting it fresh directly still feels awesome, doesn’t it?