<P> The McDonald brothers opened their first restaurant adjacent to the Monrovia Airport in 1937 . It was a tiny octagonal building informally called The Airdrome . That octagonal building was later moved to 1398 North E Street in San Bernardino , California , in 1940 . It was originally a barbecue drive - in , but the brothers discovered that most of their profits came from hamburgers . In 1948 , they closed their restaurant for three months , reopening it in December as a walk - up hamburger stand that sold hamburgers , potato chips , and orange juice ; the following year , french fries and Coca - Cola were added to the menu . This simplified menu , and food preparation using assembly line principles , allowed them to sell hamburgers for 15 cents , or about half as much as at a sit - down restaurant . The restaurant was very successful , and the brothers started to franchise the concept in 1953 . </P>
<P> The McDonald brothers opened their first restaurant adjacent to the Monrovia Airport in 1937 . It was a tiny octagonal building informally called The Airdrome . That octagonal building was later moved to 1398 North E Street in San Bernardino , California , in 1940 . It was originally a barbecue drive - in , but the brothers discovered that most of their profits came from hamburgers . In 1948 , they closed their restaurant for three months , reopening it in December as a walk - up hamburger stand that sold hamburgers , potato chips , and orange juice ; the following year , french fries and Coca - Cola were added to the menu . This simplified menu , and food preparation using assembly line principles , allowed them to sell hamburgers for 15 cents , or about half as much as at a sit - down restaurant . The restaurant was very successful , and the brothers started to franchise the concept in 1953 . </P>
where was the first mcdonald 's located at
where was the first mcdonald 's located at
adjacent to the Monrovia Airport
adjacent to the Monrovia Airport