Internet pranksters are trolling presidential-hopeful Donald Trump by leaving bad reviews for the McDonald's he briefly worked at during a photo opportunity on Sunday.
The Republican candidate put in a short shift on the fries station and in the drive-thru window at restaurant in Feasterville-Trevose, Pennsylvania. But the move seems to have riled some online jokers, who have since targeted the venue with reviews mocking Trump's performance.
One reviewer, Karen S, gave a one-star review, writing: "Customer service was a joke. Senile old man got bronzer on my fries, didn't wear gloves."
The former president's restaurant stunt came as the count ticks down to polling day on November 5. He and the Democratic candidate Kamala Harris are ramping up efforts to appeal to voters and ensure their supporters get out to cast their ballots.
Many polls suggest the race is too close to call, with one recent survey suggesting Harris and Trump were tied at 49 percent each in Pennsylvania, a key battleground.
Newsweek has reached out by email to the campaign teams for both Trump and Harris, as well as emailing McDonald's, seeking comment on the publicity stunt and the subsequent reaction in the Yelp reviews.
Trump is famously a fan of fast food and in 2019 put in a bumper order with McDonald's to feed Clemson University's football team, who were visiting the White House for an event.
During his appearance at a Pennsylvania McDonald's branch this weekend, The Republican presidential candidate used the opportunity to attack Harris, who says she worked at the fast food chain while she was a student—a claim Trump says he does not believe.
Newsweek has emailed Harris' campaign team for a response to Trump's allegation that she fabricated her old summer job.
Following Trump's visit, the restaurant was hit with a slew of negative reviews on Yelp that appeared to reference the former president.
Many were jokey accounts of his job performance, but one criticized McDonald's for allowing the political campaign event, while others alleged that Trump had violated food hygiene rules by not wearing a hair net or gloves.
Newsweek has reached out by email to McDonald's seeking comment.
Awarding the restaurant the lowest possible rating, Karen S, from Ambler, Pennsylvania, also wrote of her apparent server: "Repeated himself several times, something about Ronald McDonald in the showers at the golf club? … 0 stars. Do not recommend."
Her comment about the showers appears to be a reference to Trump's bizarre and apparently lewd claims about golf legend Arnold Palmer at a campaign event on Saturday.
Another one-star reviewer, Bill N from Tarpon Springs, Florida, wrote: "The atmosphere was creepy with a convicted felon … behind the counter." He appeared to be alluding to Trump's well-publicized legal woes including being found liable for sexually abusing journalist E. Jean Carroll.
The reviewer also slammed the restaurant's franchisee for agreeing to the photo-op, saying "the McDonalds corporation should end its business relationship with you immediately."
Christopher F, from West Hempstead in New York, also gave one star, claiming that his fries had "a long strand of disgusting yellow hair among them" while a "creepy old man" at the window "offered to pay me some hush money to keep this story quiet."
He was apparently alluding to Trump being found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records related to alleged "hush money" payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election.
And Brian H, from Pleasanton in California, posted a photo of Trump during the event saying: "Person working there today not wearing proper hair covering, in violation of PA code 95.230."
Chuck P, of Louisville in Kentucky, said: "Usually I hold high praise for a company that employs the mentally impaired but this one seemed more off then usual."
However a couple of other reviewers, apparently on the opposite side of the political spectrum, gave the restaurant top ratings thanks to their temporary worker.
Geoff G from Atlanta, Georgia, uploaded a photo of Trump cooking fries and said: "Best customer service ever at a McDonald's. People seemed happy and having a great time. Hey Yelp, why are you letting one-sided idiot reviews stick around in this case? Oh yeah …"
While John M from San Francisco in California also gave a five-star review, claiming a "slightly older gentleman with a big, beautiful smile and perfectly combed blonde hair opened the door and greeted me with joy and sincerity." He said the man was exceptionally polite and said the fries tasted so good that "tears of joy started streaming down my face." He wrote that he returned to the store to thank the new worker but "by the time I got back, he was no longer employed there. Such a shame, the good employees never last long."
It is not the first time that a venue has been targeted after playing host to a candidate on the campaign trail. A Penzeys Spices store visited by Harris in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, last month was also hit with a slew of negative reviews afterward.
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