Who founded the McDonald’s restaurant later expanded worldwide by Ray Kroc?

Richard and Maurice McDonald founded the restaurant later expanded worldwide by Ray Kroc.

The McDonald brothers opened the first McDonald’s restaurant in San Bernardino, California, in 1940. They later redesigned the operation around a limited menu, assembly-line preparation, and rapid service. That system became the foundation of the McDonald’s brand.

Ray Kroc became involved after encountering the brothers as a milkshake-machine customer and then helped develop a large franchise network. His role was enormously important to the company’s expansion, but he did not found the original restaurant.

The distinction matters in branding history because the company’s name, service system, and early identity came from the brothers, while Kroc built the organization that made the arches internationally famous. The first restaurant opened eight years before Kroc opened his Des Plaines franchise in 1955.