Inside CosMc’s, McDonald’s glimmering challenge to Starbucks

The first car lined up at 3:30 a.m. Employees didn’t even show until 5, and food didn’t leave the drive-through window until 6. 

Technically, McDonald’s new drink-and-snack-focused spin-off concept called CosMc’s (announced this week) isn’t even open today. But operators had determined that during the first store’s soft launch, they wouldn’t turn anyone away. And by the time my Rav4 rolled up at 10 a.m., a 45-minute line of vehicles had spilled beyond the four-lane drive-through and into a generous strip mall parking lot. The team expected most customers to order between one and two items—a drink and maybe something else. Eager Midwesterners, drawn to the glossy “CosMc’s blue” building, were ordering three, four, or (many) more items. And yes, I was among them.

As we previously reported, CosMc’s is a concept and a learning lab; the first is located in Bolingbrook, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago where McDonald’s corporate team watches from nearby. Aimed at a market that’s dominated by players like Starbucks and Dunkin’, CosMc’s offers no burgers, fries, or seating area (inside or out). Nothing else about it is finalized, other than a plan to open about 10 more locations in Texas by the end of the year. 

Sidestepping the drive-through for a moment, McDonald’s corporate team invited me inside to take a look at the store’s unique design. I was greeted by a gray and white room—a bare-bones entry space that won’t be included in future stores—that’s decorated with a hand painted CosMc’s mural. 

Walking through a door, I entered the kitchen. It’s designed like a long rectangle, and the layout couldn’t be simpler. One half is dedicated to beverage prep—with rows of drink dispensers, coffee machines, and flavor shots. The other half is dedicated to hot foods, which mostly means egg sandwiches and baked goods. Whereas most everything about CosMc’s is on the table to change, this kitchen layout sounds like it’s largely finalized following almost exactly one year of development since the project kicked off in 2022.

Unlike McDonald’s, there are no grills and no fryers, and the exterior facing wall is almost entirely windows, which allows several spots from which to serve cars their food, but is also meant to provide something of an open kitchen feel to customers driving through. In any case, the benefits to employees are palpable. The windows bring a significant amount of natural light into the kitchen—a requirement I recall Chef Grant Achatz demanding for his kitchen staff at Alinea, his Michelin 3-star restaurant in Chicago.

The CosMc’s crew, which had only been in training for the past two weeks, was surprisingly convivial as they prepped orders. Outfitted with CosMc’s uniform swag—including tees, bowling shirts, jean jackets, and custom Air Force 1s—it seemed no one had spilled fluorescent violet dragonfruit topping onto their kicks (yet). 

Anxious to try the menu myself, I hopped back into my car and waited in line. But despite having more than ample time to think, I opted to panic-order at the king-size digital order sign, hypnotized by a rainbow of hyperbolic foods. I snagged a Sour Cherry Energy Burst (an electric pink slushy with canary yellow boba), a Tropical Spiceade (magenta with dragonfruit floating on top), a turmeric spiced latte (which was refreshingly brown). For food, I tried a Spicy Queso Sandwich and hash browns. One small, but important, feature of the ordering experience: I could pay for my order at that sign, or I could pay when I pulled around to pick up the food. CosMc’s is trying to acknowledge people should just be able to pay however/whenever they want.

As I rounded the corner, the crew handed me food in surprisingly premium, gift-style CosMc’s paper bags. Then, because CosMc’s, again, has no dining room* or outside seating, I shame-parked in an Aldi’s lot and tried it all.

I’ll say this: I could certainly taste what CosMc’s is going for. This is statement food—a collection of flavors-as-brand finding their formula. But I do imagine McDonald’s will choose to refine and rebalance the menu significantly before scaling the store. My two fruit drinks were both super sweet and tart. I’m a boba-sucking machine, but the Sour Cherry Energy Burst was essentially a mouth-puckering cherry Life Saver that blows out your palate. The Tropical Spiceade had a similar boldness of flavor that negated much nuanced difference. These are four-sip drinks for me. I’m sure there’s a market for them, but give me something closer to the classic boba baseline, too.

I was relieved when I took my first sip of the turmeric latte, which was something like a latte with floral notes. I’d order it less sweet in the future, but I would try it again. I also, like a moth to the flame, found myself admiring the rest of the CosMc’s drink menu, curious to try even more. I could have just gotten a cold brew. I wonder how that tastes! But I suspect my descent into debauchery was by design. (Notably, this drink menu was so enticing that I heard only one customer had ordered a Coke product all day.)

The Spicy Queso Sandwich was pleasant—and frankly, I liked it more than the breakfast sandwiches I’ve tried at Starbucks. The fluffy egg on a locally made Turano roll tastes less like McDonald’s than a Chicago rendition of the egg-and-cheese. The queso was one of three cheeses that blended with a welcome kick, and fried jalapeno chips on top were legit delicious—I’d eat them as a side. But the sausage tasted straight off of the McDonald’s menu, meaning it was almost anachronistic in the context of CosMc’s. (FWIW, I also think the sandwich would be better with no meat.)

Alongside the sandwich, I had the Savory Hash Brown Bites, mostly because I couldn’t imagine ordering the McPops donuts or anything else sweet with three sugary drinks already in tow. The hash browns were tasty, like, if, say, McDonald’s had formulated them with the sole goal of improving the Dunkin’ hash brown bites. They’re larger, crispier, a little less oniony than what Dunkin’ offers, and not nearly as rich as that McDonald’s hash brown patty (something I haven’t eaten to completion in 15 years). 

This entire pseudo-food review is really just my way of saying, after eating at CosMc’s, I did find myself a bit dizzy, and almost hopeful that the menu will end up being pared back a bit—or at least, presented in a way that mix and matches drinks and treats in complementary ways.

It was also clear that CosMc’s is absolutely not aiming to be McDonald’s. I’d probably compare it most closely to Starbucks, albeit with the tuning knobs turned up. Everything from the beverage line to the branding seems designed to be more colorful, more expressive, more in-your-face. And as CosMc’s stores spread, it’s easy to imagine these glimmering blue buildings side-by-side with beige Starbucks and Dunkin’s, promising a slightly exaggerated experience, and making competitors look dull by comparison. 

I do hope the CosMc’s team considers its own impact on the broader landscape of food. McDonald’s shapes the way America eats as significantly as any company in the world, and it would be a grand lie to pretend that’s had no consequences on our health or our environment. As it launches a new brand, free of decades of tradition and consumer expectation, McDonald’s has a unique opportunity to do something I wish it had done from the beginning: Not kill the excitement or treat factor—hell yes, you deserve that ice cream cone and a zany cartoon mascot—but to also offer people a healthy, sustainable, and satisfying meal on the go. The egg sammies don’t feel like a bad start. Just give me some irresistible veggies in the mix, and maybe we’re good? And, you know . . . perhaps a bathroom or a few nice picnic tables?

I already know McDonald’s can convince me to eat things I shouldn’t; CosMc’s greatest opportunity could be convincing me to eat the things that I should. Because if CosMc’s doesn’t take that step, well then, eventually Starbucks, Dunkin’, or some other player will. And that will be the new store concept I’d love to see pop up everywhere.

*After eating “at” CosMc’s, I drove to Panera to write this.