What was the original name of the McDonald's restaurant chain founded by the McDonald brothers in 1940?

The McDonald brothers originally operated a restaurant called McDonald's Bar-B-Q in 1940.

Richard and Maurice McDonald opened the restaurant in San Bernardino, California, in 1940. It began as a drive-in barbecue restaurant with a broad menu and carhop service. The business was quite different from the streamlined hamburger operation that later made the McDonald's name famous.

In 1948, the brothers temporarily closed the restaurant and reorganized it around a faster self-service system. They reduced the menu, emphasized hamburgers, fries, and milkshakes, and introduced the Speedee Service System. This change created the operational model that attracted Ray Kroc and eventually became the foundation of the modern chain.

The original name is often mixed up with “McDonald's Famous Hamburgers,” a later identity associated with the simplified hamburger restaurant. It is also distinct from Speedee, the early chef mascot used in the chain's branding. The 1940 restaurant was a barbecue drive-in before the famous production system emerged.