Review: The World's Largest McDonald's Has Anything But A Typical Fast Food Menu

In addition to being home to quite a few theme parks, Orlando is also home to the world's largest McDonald's. This isn't your typical McDonald's — it feels more like a fast casual restaurant than a fast-food joint. With the arcade, various family activities, and PlayPlace, you can call it a tourist destination in its own right. Besides the size, this location is also known for several unique menu options.

Inside, it is ultra busy, and the decor is different than any other McDonald's I have ever visited. The interior blends a modern feel, with inspiration from past family travels. I had the opportunity to sit down with owners Gregg and Dorothy Oerther and the Vice President of Operations, Georgette Lemieux. They treated me with a tasting that included all the unique dishes they have on offer. I was determined to decide if this McDonald's location is worth a stop to fuel your next theme park vacation in central Florida.

While many McDonald's locations feature very modern lookd with the kitchen tucked away and nearly out of sight for guests, this location has an open kitchen. And it's pretty different from other McDonald's locations around the world. Here, you'll find McDonald's first: A wood fire pizza oven. In the back I even noticed an imported Italian meat slicer and a sauce station. Through our conversations, it was obvious to me that the Oerthers take great pride in their restaurant's staff, design, offerings, and cleanliness.

I love pasta in pretty much any form. For me, it's awfully difficult to mess it up, and although I didn't expect much out of McDonald's very own cheese ravioli, it was delicious. I was expecting something close to cafeteria-style pasta, but the ravioli tasted very homemade. Every item arrived covered so it could retain heat, and it was served on a real plate. This addition added an elevated feel to the experience.

The portion of cheese ravioli was generous. Inside, besides cheese, there were little flecks of bright green herbs that I tasted throughout each bite. The marinara had a nice tomato flavor, and although I preferred the other two pastas a little more than this one, this would satisfy anyone who's a fan of classic cheese-filled pasta.

Just like with all other dishes, cheese ravioli came with a little piece of what initially appeared to be garlic bread that was served on the side. It turned out that this was a small sliver of pizza crust with garlic and seasonings on top. It was an interesting take on garlic bread and an ideal partner with this meal.

According to Gregg and Dorothy Oerther, at this unique McDonald's outlet, few dedicated cooks make all the sauces from scratch. Though they feel inclined to follow their hearts with the measurements, the Oerthers insist that the recipe should be the same every time, just like people have come to expect from McDonald's.

I noticed that this Bolognese sauce had an abundance of meat to it, like every other I've had before. Apparently, this is the same meat used in the Quarter Pounder burgers at McDonald's. When creating the menu items here, the idea is to use as many materials and ingredients McDonald's already has, but to repurpose them in new and creative ways. This utilization of the Quarter Pounder meat is just one interesting use of an important McDonald's ingredient that crops up throughout the different menu options.

With the cavatappi noodles, this is a very easy dish to recommend to all pasta lovers who want a more substantial, meaty bite. I found that it had a very hearty feel that the other two pasta dishes didn't, and I liked it. I can imagine ordering this again if I'm looking for a red sauce pasta.

Fettuccine Alfredo that came topped with a sliced McCrispy chicken was my favorite pasta dish I tried in this lineup. While I enjoyed the interesting use of the chicken, I would've been just fine having the fettuccine Alfredo without it, but I can imagine many people enjoy this crispy chicken addition.

I love fettuccine Alfredo, and as long as it features enough sauce and deliciously soft noodles, it's going to be a hit for me. This was an easy win for those reasons, though, I noticed that the noodles had a very soft texture. If you prefer your pasta on the chewier side and cooked al dente, you're going to find that the noodles across all three pasta dishes were probably a little too soft for your taste. While I enjoy pasta with some bite, I also enjoy soft and tender pasta strands, so this soft texture had no impact on how much I enjoyed this plate. In fact, I might return to the location strictly for this fettuccine Alfredo.

The thing that stands out the most on the main floor of Sandlake McDonald's location is the pizza oven. Obviously, McDonald's locations typically don't feature one of these, making this Orlando location one of the coolest McDonald's in the U.S. From the incredibly simple to the more complex pizza toppings, everything coming out of that oven was very enjoyable.

The cheese pizza felt like an absolutely perfect option, especially for kids that might be visiting this McDonald's. I can imagine my son loving this pizza because the crust is thinner than pan crust, but not as thin as a crispy cracker crust. It's a little bit floppy when you take a bite, and it was really enjoyable to eat.

The sauce used on all three pizzas is always fresh and made in-house, and I really liked it because it reminded me of the pizza sauce I once enjoyed as a kid back in Northern Illinois. Rather than being solely a savory pizza sauce, this had a little bit of sweetness to it, and though I was surprised to taste it, I definitely enjoyed that it was there.

This pizza is perfect for all those meat lovers looking for a hefty and hearty pizza option. It came topped with sausage, pepperoni, and Canadian bacon. The ingredients here were substantial, and the accompanying pizza is thoroughly crowded with these meats.

Although I tend to be someone who prefers veggie-heavy pizzas or ones featuring different types of cheese varieties, I still enjoyed this meat-centered pizza for what it was. However, I won't be ordering it again because I generally prefer other options. On the other hand, my husband really enjoys meaty pizzas, and I could tell this would be something he would have really loved.

As it's in the middle of a busy entertainment area, I think it's important that this location offers a variety of foods as you're feeding so many different tastes at once. Although it might seem like this McDonald's goes a little overboard with its specialty offerings, I appreciated the fact that it caters to many different preferences. And while this meaty pizza may not be my favorite variety, I'm positive that many people would enjoy this flavor and the selection of toppings.

While the Meat Lover's version wasn't my favorite, this vegetable pizza option was more up my alley. This pizza was packed with all the veggies that you would typically find on vegetable-forward pizzas like mushrooms, olives, onion, green pepper, and also some surprises like tomatoes and spinach. For those who really love a veggie pizza, especially when it resembles a salad on top of the pizza, this is the one to order.

The way the different veggies came together with the sauce and cheese was really enjoyable, and although it was somewhat of a messy bite, thanks to the heavily layered veggies, I still enjoyed it. Although I had no problem eating it with my hands, I can imagine some customers might want to grab a fork and a knife. As there are so many toppings on this pizza, no one would think twice about such a decision.

Gregg and Dorothy Oerther shared that there are many ways this McDonald's location relies on standard McDonald's ingredients, but they think of the new and unexpected ways to use them. And perhaps the most interesting of these is the version of a Philly cheesesteak that is served on this location.

McDonald's Philly Cheesesteak is a roll with mayo, steak, cheese, tomato, and lettuce. The steak in this sandwich is the same steak used to make my favorite breakfast sandwich, the Steak, Egg & Cheese Bagel sandwich. While I love the use of the steak on the bagel, the use of it in this version wasn't as tasty as I expected it to be. The cheese on top of the steak is obviously delicious, but the whole sandwich needed a little more moisture to make an exceptional dish. One of the best parts of the steak-based bagel is that it's juicy, and I was hoping to have that with this sandwich too.

Another unique sandwich available at this special McDonald's is the Ham and Cheese French Toast. Imagine a grilled ham and cheese sandwich, but the regular bread is switched with two slices of French toast that are dusted with powdered sugar. This unique combination is a part of the breakfast menu. Though I visited later in the day, the staff was able to make one of these for me so I could try it firsthand.

The sandwich reminded me of the classic McDonald's McGriddle because it had that familiar sweet and savory profile. Though the maple syrup is not naturally part of the bread, but rather a dip you can choose to put on your sandwich, the combination is a little different, but the effect remains similar.

I was impressed by just how large this sandwich was. I took a bite without the syrup, and it was good, but with Gregg Oerther's insisting, I tried it again with the syrup and it was even better. It tasted nothing like I've had at McDonald's before and felt like the perfect addition to the menu. Honestly, McDonald's should consider offering this at other locations.

Unbelievably, this McDonald's has unique desserts reserved only for this location. While most of the exclusive menu options at this McDonald's are made fresh in the restaurant, there are a few desserts sourced from a local bakery called Annie Pie's Bakery. This bakery has been part of central Florida eateries since 1991, and its popularity has only grown since then.

The first sweet treat I tried was the New York-Style Cheesecake that was served with a light caramel drizzle. It had the right amount of sweetness that was complemented by just a hint of sharpness. There was a small amount of whipped cream on the side to complete the plate by adding more flavor and texture. This dessert reminded me of the type of cheesecake you might order at one of Orlando's many sit-down restaurants. Finding it at McDonald's was just wild.

If you prefer desserts with more character and something that is slightly more substantial than cheesecake, then Chocolate Corruption is an ideal choice for you. This is a cake designed for the ultimate chocolate lover as it consists of chocolate cake layers intertwined with a decadent chocolate filling.

I loved how this tasted, but my only complaint is that it felt wildly out of place. The cake slice was absolutely huge and took up nearly an entire entree-sized plate. I can imagine this cake being something that a customer would order when coming to McDonald's exclusively for dessert, rather than ending a McDonald's meal with it. As it was so large, I would struggle to see how someone would comfortably order this after a plate of fries or a Big Mac. It's delicious, but it just felt like it didn't belong there.

Chocolate cake is delicious, but when all that chocolate gets overwhelming, you can order the Peanut Butter Explosion. Like the chocolate cake, this piece is very large, but since this has a peanut butter flavor, it feels like it fits the McDonald's vibe just a little better. It might seem like a subtle difference, but the playfulness of the chocolate and peanut butter together was really enjoyable.

Like the chocolate cake,this peanut butter version offers an opportunity for customers to utilize this location completely differently than they would a regular McDonald's shop. This item, like all menu items offered at this location, begs for an open mind, and you'll have to change the way you think a visit to the Golden Arches should go. As it's so close to many theme parks, I can easily imagine a family enjoying a full day at a park, eating dinner, and then stopping by this Sandlake location for a dessert followed by some games on the second floor. Of course, it's also a great place to grab a tasty meal, but to get the best out of these desserts, you may choose to arrange your McDonald's visit a little differently than you normally would.