--- title: "Love the McDonald’s drive-thru? Thank the military" description: "Most of us take the McDonald's drive thru for granted, but we actually have the Armed Forces to thank for the easy takeout trip." date: "2022-02-02" modified: "2023-02-01" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/popular/can-thank-military-mcdonalds-drive-thru/" categories: - "History" --- # Love the McDonald’s drive-thru? Thank the military ![]() Now that we can thank McDonald's restaurants for serving breakfast all day, we should take the time to thank fatigue-clad troops for not having to leave our cars to get it. Despite the Army and Air Force's current relationship with Burger King, their first love was McDonald's and Mickey D's was more than [willing to accommodate that love by mediating the one thing which kept our troops from easy access to the Golden Arches](). In 1975, Army regulations near Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista, Arizona prevented soldiers wearing their olive-drab fatigues to leave their cars. ![McDonald's workers]() *(U.S. Army photo)* McDonald's heard their plight and added its first drive-thru to McDonalds stores in Arizona, then to Oklahoma and Georgia to serve the soldiers in those areas. The [first drive-thru came way earlier](), however. In 1931, a Los Angeles franchise called the Pig Stand opened the first restaurant where motorists could roll around and get a bag of food, packaged to take home. The first burger chain to feature a drive thru was an In-n-Out in Baldwin Park, California in 1948. In May 1999, that historic location closed forever so that a new McDonald's restaurant [could open next to it](). The first McDonald's drive-thru was torn down and replaced by a parking lot to serve the new McDonald's. Burgers, cars, and troops: the triad of American life. ![The original McDonald's sign]() *NOT Covered by the Post-9/11 GI Bill.* **Read more on WATM:** https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-history/type-95-japanese-tanks/ https://www.wearethemighty.com/lists/navy-productivity-hacks/ https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-history/most-famous-military-victories/ https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-history/that-time-a-surfacing-russian-sub-slammed-into-an-american-spy-submarine/ ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()