CosMc’s draws twice the traffic of a regular McDonald’s

CosMc’s, the drive-thru-only concept McDonald’s debuted just outside of Chicago last month, saw more than double the amount of traffic than a typical Golden Arches restaurant chainwide in December 2023, according to recent data.

Per figures reported by business insights platform Placer.ai, CosMc’s also experienced more than triple the number of visitors per square foot, as the beverage-forward spinoff is smaller than the typical McDonald’s outpost, at roughly 2,500 square feet.

For reference, of the roughly 14,300 McDonald’s restaurants across the US, the average spans between 4,000 and 4,500 square feet.

It wasn’t immediately clear exactly how many orders CosMc’s fulfilled last month, though Placer.ai found that its offerings skew to a younger audience, namely the 22-to-29-year-old cohort.

Placer.ai reported that given the buzz around CosMc’s, which is located in a strip mall in Bolingbrook, Ill., as many as 80 vehicles line up at once to order from a menu of “limited test run” items — such as the fruit-flavored and caffeinated “Signature Galactic Boosts” — spilling over into a separate parking lot.

The new restaurant from McDonald’s features four drive-thru lanes, but no walk-up windows. It also lacks an indoor dining room and outdoor seating area.

However, CosMc’s promises on its website that online ordering is “coming soon!”

The menu also includes breakfast sandwiches, savory and sweet snacks — like pretzel bites, has browns and caramel fudge brownies — as well as ice cream, which CosMc’s promotes as a solution to the “3 p.m. slump.”

McDonald’s has said that “by the end of 2024, we plan to open approximately 10 CosMc’s pilot locations, with more opportunities for mood-boosting escapes across the Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio metro areas.”

Representatives for McDonald’s did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.

The CosMc’s restaurant is a nod to a character in the franchise’s fictional McDonaldland world inhabited by Ronald McDonald and his friends — one of which is a yellow-colored part alien, part robot named CosMc, who is known for pairing his futuristic outfit with clunky white sneakers.

The lesser-known character, which began appearing in McDonald’s ads in 1987, has six arms and relocated from his home in space when he discovered McDonald’s burgers and fries. (McDonaldland and its cast debuted in 1971).

Aside from introducing CosMc’s, McDonald’s shared that it’s also looking to expand its global footprint by 9,000 new burger joints by 2027.

The additions mean that in three years’ time, there will be 50,000 McDonald’s across the globe.

Meanwhile, the Golden Arches said its implementing more than 50 modifications throughout the burger-flipping process to improve its staple menu item.

The initiative, announced in November, seeks to make the bunned delights much more juicy by cooking six patties grilled at a time rather than eight — a move designed to apply less pressure and retain more burger patty juices.

The prized Big Mac will also be getting more sauce, and the bun will be swapped with a buttery brioche alternative with sesame seeds more randomly scattered to give a home-style look, among other tweaks.

On top of juicier burgers and higher-quality buns, McDonald’s executives say they’re also catching wind of requests for a more sizable offering.

McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said in an interview with CNN last month that the popular chain is also cooking up plans to sell bigger burgers, though it’s unclear when customers can expect to get more beef for their buck.