McDonald’s Middle Road unveils remodeled store with grand reopening

McDonald’s Middle Road in Chalan Kiya marked the completion of its $2-million renovation with a grand reopening last Saturday. (Photos by Mark Rabago)

McDonald’s Middle Road in Chalan Kiya marked its grand reopening last Saturday with activities geared mostly for children like parlor games and face-painting.

Branch general manager Jocelyn Asistores said the fast-food franchise holder on Saipan marked the occasion with children’s games like ring toss, goal toss, and knock down the cups. Winners went home with McDonald’s gift certificates. They also had a face-painting corner where two of the branch’s staff transforming children into their favorite characters.

To top it all off, McDonald’s Middle Road also had a grand reopening cake to mark the occasion. Food specials were also offered, such as a $1.99 McDonald’s six-piece chicken nuggets and $1 off McDonald’s 20-piece chicken nuggets (coupon should be presented).

Six-year-old Adrian Mercado has his face painted by a McDonald’s Middle Road staff.

Asistores said the Chalan Kiya location’s $2-million renovation happenred in phases. The first part involved giving the lobby a more modern look and installation of self-serve kiosks and was completed last Jan. 8.

The second phase was the construction of the two-lane drive-thru and upgrading the outdoor digital menu board, while the last phase called for bringing in new equipment for the kitchen, training the staff on the new system, and the return of the mobile order pay.

Saturday’s grand reopening was truly an all-hands on deck affair: Not even an hour past the start of celebrations at 3pm, McDonald’s Middle Road had already served nearly 800 customers.

McDonald’s of Guam & Saipan president and owner/operator Joe Ayuyu, who was off-island during the grand reopening, welcomed the completion of the long-awaited renovation of its flagship restaurant on Saipan.

“I’m very, very happy with the modernization of our restaurant. I’m happy the community is receiving it well and they deserve it. Now I can say that we’re up to what we see in terms of restaurant presentation and technology. What you see in New York is exactly the same as what you see here,” he said in an email message.

The Middle Road location now has all the bells and whistles of modern technology following its major facelift. Front and center of this modernization are the six self-order kiosk screens in the main lobby that allows customers to order at their leisure and customize their meals.

Table service is also a new convenience not offered before at McDonald’s Saipan. Ditto for the double-lane drive-thru that now allows two cars to order at the same time in two different speakers. Customers can also check their order on a big digital menu board that shows menu changes from breakfast to lunch and vice versa. The digital video screen menu is also repeated indoors at the sleek modern counter.

“We have served our community for 29 years and Saipan deserves a state-of-the-art McDonald’s we can all be proud of,” said Ayuyu. “I hope our island residents will come and enjoy the modern conveniences and friendly employees serving delicious food for many years to come.”

McDonald’s of Guam & Saipan, locally owned and operated by franchisee Joe and Marcia Ayuyu, is the leading food service restaurant chain in the Marianas. First opened in 1993, the organization includes eight McDonald’s restaurants, two on Saipan and six on Guam. In 2016, the Ayuyu’s acquired all McDonald’s restaurants in Guam and has remained one of the largest employers in the U.S. territory.

McDonald’s Middle Road also had a special cake to mark the grand reopening.