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I think every, or most, major cities in the US have one McDonalds so notorious for violence, and often located in a relatively unassuming place, that it is instantly recognizable and nick named by the locals. NY, Chicago. etc. If you see a social media post about crime and there's a McDonalds in the background, you are sure to find locals in the comments saying "I knew it was Crackdonald's on 5th without even clicking the link. City should have closed it down 10 years ago at least, poor out of towners don't know to avoid it."
It's always McDonald's. Maybe the bathrooms are to blame. This is why so many stores now have the keypads.
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Yeah, but I was inside and outside the infamous Greenwich Village McDonald’s countless times over the years, including late nights, and it was always sketchy in the mostly fun / entertaining way, not the scary way. This felt different, although I suppose it’s hard to articulate why, but the vibe was scarier.
The Greenwich Village one isn't the worst in NYC -- as the thread linked above says, it's 8th and 35th just north of Penn Station. If it's still there, I fortunately don't need to walk by there any more.
Ah yes, that was indeed pretty grim.
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