Inside Business: Main Street McDonalds | Video

Jim Christianson | 2/5/2013

The McDonalds on Main Avenue and 7th street is getting a much-needed makeover. Owner Denny Sotebeer has operated the fast-food restaurant for the past 20 years, and he decided it was time to do some major remodeling.

"The store was old and tired and we`re giving it a facelift," he said.

The inside of the building is being completely gutted and the new space will offer an expanded dining area, reconfigured kitchen and bigger restrooms. But the restaurant will still retain its attachment to downtown.

"We`ll have graphic wallpaper with themes of downtown. It`ll be a Bismarck theme, not rock and roll," Sotebeer said.

Although the rock and roll theme is on the way out, Sotebeer says the remodeled restaurant will be an even more comfortable place for regulars to come and enjoy a cup of coffee. "We`ll have padded seats, and it will be a softer, more comfortable hangout."

It`s not just the diners who will enjoy a new experience at McDonalds. Sotebeer says the employees working behind the counter will also enjoy a brand new ordering system. "It`s a different system for us. Customers won`t see anything new but it`ll be faster for us."

Sotebeer is also adding a second drive-thru lane, so two orders can be taken at once. "Seventy percent of our business goes through the drive-thru. With dual orders, we`ll have twice as many cars in half the time, so we`ll probably have to hire more people."

The dining room will be closed to customers until mid-March, but the drive-thru lanes are expected to re-open on February 18.

The employees at the Main Avenue McDonalds are temporarily working at the McDonalds on Expressway, which is currently absorbing the extra business. But, they will return.

If you`re wondering about the old rock-n-roll items, they were auctioned off and helped raise more than $25,000 for the Ronald McDonald House Charities.

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