McDonald’s was founded by Richard and Maurice McDonald in San Bernardino, California, in 1940.
The McDonald brothers opened their first restaurant on May 15, 1940, at 1398 North E Street near West 14th Street. It began as a drive-in barbecue restaurant, but the brothers later redesigned the business around speed, limited choice, and inexpensive food. In 1948 they introduced the Speedee Service System, removing carhops and shifting toward counter service and standardized preparation.
That system helped establish many features associated with modern fast food: a short menu, paper packaging, assembly-line kitchen work, and rapid customer turnover. The brothers’ menu was eventually reduced to nine items, including hamburgers, cheeseburgers, drinks, milk, coffee, potato chips, and pie.
Ray Kroc did not found the original restaurant, although he played the decisive role in turning it into a global franchise corporation. Kroc became the brothers’ franchise agent in the 1950s and opened a highly influential restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois, in 1955. The corporation later emphasized Kroc’s role, creating a frequent source of confusion about McDonald’s origins.