Ray Kroc opened the first McDonald's restaurant in his franchise system in Des Plaines, Illinois.
The restaurant opened in 1955 at 400 Lee Street, after Kroc obtained the rights to franchise the McDonald's operation created by Richard and Maurice McDonald in California. It became the first location operated under Kroc's expansion plan and helped establish the standardized restaurant model associated with the brand.
The Des Plaines location was designed to emphasize speed, cleanliness, consistency, and the familiar red-and-white visual style that Kroc promoted. It later became a museum and reconstruction, although the original building was demolished in 1984.
San Bernardino is another important city in McDonald's history because it was the location of the brothers' original restaurant. Oak Brook, Illinois, became the company's headquarters for many years. Those places are related to the chain's history, but Des Plaines is the answer for Kroc's first franchise restaurant.