We Asked McDonald’s Why the Coffee Tastes So Good

Most people love McDonald’s for a nice, indulgent burger. Perhaps they enjoy treating themselves to some fries, or on busy nights, they might snag their kid a Happy Meal (or hey, adults can get it too; we don’t judge). But not in my house. For my entire life, McDonald’s stops have been for one thing and one thing only: Coffee.

Since I was a little kid riding in a booster seat, my dad has always gushed about his love for a hot cup of McDonald’s coffee. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him order a burger, fries, nuggets, or anything else from a McDonald’s menu or any fast food menu, for that matter. But ask him where his favorite coffee shop is, and he’ll always reply it’s under the Golden Arches.

As a coffee snob, I could easily brush this off as Dad being Dad. But here’s the thing: He’s right. And he’s not alone. Just give it a quick google and you’ll find Reddit threads proclaiming, “I try all kinds of coffee trying to duplicate the taste of that $1 large cup of McCafe and almost always fail. What is McDonald’s secret?” with commenters adding, “I think that every time I buy coffee anywhere,” and “I swear it’s their coffee bean.” 

But rather than having to wonder any longer, we went straight to the source, McDonald’s chef Mike Lingo, to find out. 

“At McDonald’s, we’re focusing on making sure the little things are done right and leveraging great partnerships to ensure we are selecting the best beans for our blends and roast levels to bring out that great flavor,” Lingo shared with Food & Wine. “For our coffee, we use 100% Arabica coffee beans sourced from Rainforest Alliance Certified farms or farms participating in our McCafé Sustainability Improvement Platform (SIP) program — it is a special blend made just for McCafé, a medium-dark roast with a full body, fruity, floral, and chocolate notes.” 

That’s the biggest secret. You literally can’t get McDonald’s blend anywhere else. However, we do know a bit about one of its coffee suppliers, Gaviña Gourmet Coffee, which sources coffee from across the Coffee Belt, including Central America, Peru, Brazil, Jamaica, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea.

As McDonald’s shared about its supplier, it not only sources most of its beans from the Gaviña family, which established its coffee roasting plant in Southern California in 1967, but the Gaviña family also offers a training program to McDonald’s employees so they can learn “the art of brewing great coffee.” As Pedro Gaviña noted, his family’s company remains committed to delivering “the best coffee in the world to McDonald’s.” And while you can’t get the exact McDonald’s blend (which the fast-food chain purchases through Gaviña’s wholesale program), you can try purchasing a bag or two and see if any come close to the in-restaurant experience. 

According to Lingo, it’s a simple “traditional hot brew” for all its brewed coffee and a “Japanese iced coffee brew method for our iced coffee. “We pay attention to the details while we brew, from the quality of our roast and selection of our beans to the equipment we use.” It also grinds all its coffee on-site, which helps to preserve its flavor as ground coffee begins to degrade instantly. 

As for the Japanese iced coffee brew method, it’s also known as “flash brewing,” which Perfect Daily Grind explained, involves using a typical ratio of water to coffee, but with a portion of that water being ice. You then put the ice under the dripper of a power-over, and heat the remaining water to brewing temperature, using it as you would in a typical pour-over, only this time, you’re creating a coffee concentrate. Basically, you’re making a typical hot coffee that is quickly cooled to bring out its full flavors.

When asked if he’s surprised at just how much people love McDonald’s coffee, Lingo said absolutely not. 

“I’m never surprised how much they love our McCafé beverages; they are delicious and affordable for our consumers,” he said. “They can feel good about our pledge to sustainability as well. We love to hear the stories of people’s memories and experiences with our coffee.”