What was McDonald’s original restaurant name before the company dropped “Bar-B-Q” from it?

McDonald’s original restaurant name was McDonald’s Bar-B-Q.

Richard and Maurice McDonald opened their first restaurant in San Bernardino, California, in 1940. The business was initially a barbecue drive-in, reflecting the American drive-in restaurant culture of the period. Its menu included barbecue items and other foods served to motorists.

In 1948, the brothers closed the restaurant temporarily and reopened it with a smaller menu and a faster preparation system focused on hamburgers, fries, and beverages. They renamed the business McDonald’s, removing “Bar-B-Q” as the restaurant’s concept changed.

The name matters in branding history because it shows that McDonald’s did not begin as the hamburger-focused chain now recognized worldwide. The later “Speedee Service System” and simplified menu created the operating identity that supported the company’s expansion. “McDonald’s Bar-B-Q” is sometimes confused with the later McDonald’s name, but it specifically belongs to the restaurant’s original barbecue era.