For years, the UFO-shaped McDonald’s in Roswell, New Mexico, boasted a flying saucer inside the restaurant. From the outside, it looks like a real spaceship, and the interior is decorated with space-themed images and objects related to extraterrestrial life.
This restaurant has become a key tourist attraction in the small town that shot to fame in 1947 due to the alleged alien crash landing. McDonald’s seized the opportunity presented by the “Roswell Incident” to attract more customers and align itself with a theme that once took the world by storm. When a place becomes famous not just for its products but for what it represents, it achieves a powerful impact on consumers.
Dining experience at the UFO-shaped McDonald’s
There’s no mistaking the building’s distinctive saucer shape, highlighted during the day by its metallic skin and at night by the judicious use of neon-style LED piping around the window frames and along the roof lines.
Inside the UFO-Shaped McDonald’s you’ll find a massive play area with a space theme, complete with mascots in spacesuits. While there are a handful of McDonald’s locations worldwide that strive to blend into their community despite the overwhelming influence of corporate conformity, few take it to this level. However, in a town where everything (even the streetlights and mailboxes) is inspired by the Roswell incident, McDonald’s, as usual, fits right in.
The large wall of an adjacent building features a mural by Roswell’s guerrilla artist, Larry Welz. Ronald McDonald and Birdie the Early Bird are flying space gadgets around what appears to be a planet-sized brain. The mural gives people waiting in the drive-thru something to ponder and provides a perfect photo opportunity for Roswell’s extraterrestrial-minded visitors and fast food lovers alike.
Dining inside this spaceship-themed restaurant offers a totally fun atmosphere, but that’s not all this unique McDonald’s has to offer. Owner Nicholas Snowberger says some of the dishes are from a secret menu. You can only get these secret items by watching Eat, Play, Stay exclusively on the Very Local app.
