"It's food they wouldn't serve their families", the angry customer said. Photo / Supplied
"It's food they wouldn't serve their families", the angry customer said. Photo / Supplied
McDonald's is under fire from its customers after another person was served up a raw burger - the second incident in a week.
The customer, who did not want to be named, told the Herald he and his pregnant partner went through the Greenlane, Auckland McDonald's drive-thru last Thursday at 3am and were shocked when they got home to discover a bright pink raw beef pattie.
The disgruntled customer said he wasn't just worried about his own health but was nervous that his partner's burger could also be raw.
"We were heading back from the hospital and decided to treat ourselves. After a five-minute drive home from McDonald's we opened up our meals, my partner tucking into a Big Mac and me a cheeseburger," the customer said.
"A few of my mates said beef can be medium-rare but how do we know McDonald's patties are pure beef? We don't know if there is anything else in there that we could get sick from.
"I immediately took a photo of it and chucked it in the trash can.
"What if my partner who was carrying ate it? What if she got food poisoning?"
The same morning the customer complained via the McDonald's website, where customers can usually expect a response in three to four days.
However, according to the man McDonald's still hadn't replied six days later.
He said not only was his burger raw, but the service was "appalling".
"The car in front of me was at the drive-thru window for 20 minutes. When we finally reached the window we saw a staff member making her own drink and sipping away and not showing any interest.
"Our chips were cold, like cardboard, and my pattie was raw.
"Thinking about it today I am still grossed out. It's food they wouldn't serve to their own families."
McDonald's have since responded to the man's complaint, issuing a statement to the Herald saying: "We've been in contact with the customer and apologised for the delay in responding to him.
"We've also apologised for the issue with the burger, which we are currently investigating.
"Beef patties are cooked on a grill with automated timers, so we're reviewing CCTV to understand what could have happened."
McDonald's also said: "In the 30 million plus orders we've handled this year, we've had fewer than 20 complaints relating to undercooked food. Regardless, we constantly look at ways to reduce of incidents like this occurring."
However, the customer believes an apology is a "cop out", saying they need to be held accountable.
"I wouldn't mind getting my $25 back. I hope they don't think I made it up because some other guy posted his raw burger. What if my pregnant partner's burger was raw and she ate it and got sick?
"They're a billion-dollar company so why are we just handed a simple apology? They should be accountable for their wrongs."
The complaint comes less than a week after another man took to social media to complain about his raw McDonald's chicken burger pattie.
Phillip Blake raged on social media after receiving a raw chicken burger at McDonald's. Photo / Facebook
Raw and rare meat has come under the spotlight after the Ministry for Primary Industries changed rules over how meat needs to be cooked.
It followed an outpouring of frustration from the Duke Of Marlborough Hotel's award-winning chef Dan Fraser who felt forced to pull the Governor's Burger with its medium-rare pattie from the menu.
New food regulations largely developed to deal with food cooked in fast-food joints had been also been presented to thousands of restaurants, dictating cooking processes which would have stopped Fraser and others from cooking patties on a barbecue grill.
The new generic rules stated minced food and livers needed to be cooked at high temperatures for longer than previously to eliminate any chance of contamination.
