<P> In October 1948 , after the McDonald brothers realized that most of their profits came from selling hamburgers , they closed down their successful carhop drive - in to establish a streamlined system with a simple menu which consisted of only hamburgers , cheeseburgers , potato chips , coffee , soft drinks , and apple pie . After the first year , potato chips and pie were swapped out for french fries and milkshakes . The carhops were eliminated , making the new restaurant a self - service operation . Richard and Maurice took great care in setting up their kitchen like an assembly line to ensure maximum efficiency . The restaurant 's name was changed again , this time to simply `` McDonald 's , '' and reopened on December 12 , 1948 . </P>
<P> In October 1948 , after the McDonald brothers realized that most of their profits came from selling hamburgers , they closed down their successful carhop drive - in to establish a streamlined system with a simple menu which consisted of only hamburgers , cheeseburgers , potato chips , coffee , soft drinks , and apple pie . After the first year , potato chips and pie were swapped out for french fries and milkshakes . The carhops were eliminated , making the new restaurant a self - service operation . Richard and Maurice took great care in setting up their kitchen like an assembly line to ensure maximum efficiency . The restaurant 's name was changed again , this time to simply `` McDonald 's , '' and reopened on December 12 , 1948 . </P>
when did the first ever mcdonald 's open
when did the first ever mcdonald 's open
December 12 , 1948
December 12 , 1948