What was the name of McDonald's 1948 service system that shaped its fast-food branding?

McDonald's 1948 service system was called the Speedee Service System.

Maurice and Richard McDonald reorganized their San Bernardino restaurant around a limited menu, assembly-line preparation, and self-service. The system was designed to make food faster and more consistent than a conventional drive-in restaurant, where carhops and a large menu had been central.

The name connected the operating method with the restaurant's early character, including Speedee, a chef-like mascot used before Ronald McDonald became the dominant public character. The system helped establish ideas that later became central to McDonald's branding: repetition, recognizable products, and predictable service.

It should not be confused with the later Golden Arches identity. The arches became a major visual symbol in the 1950s and 1960s, whereas the Speedee Service System described how the restaurant worked. Together, the service model and visual branding helped define the emerging fast-food format.