A spokesperson for the fast food chain confirmed the closure to SFGATE on Tuesday and said it occurred on Thursday, Dec. 22. A sign was also posted on the front door of the restaurant at 145 Jefferson St., stating that a new eatery would soon take its place.
“McDonald’s reviews its restaurant portfolio on a regular basis to make the best decisions for our business moving forward,” a spokesperson for McDonald’s told SFGATE in a statement. “Closing a restaurant is a difficult decision in any city, but we look forward to continuing to serve our customers at our other McDonald’s restaurants in the greater San Francisco Bay Area.”
Tourists in the neighborhood won’t have to venture far for a quick burger — the In-N-Out is just two blocks away — and if you have a hankering for a Big Mac, don’t fret. At least 10 other McDonald’s restaurants remain in Union Square, the Financial District, the Fillmore District and the Mission District, among other locations. The spokesperson did not say whether McDonald’s had plans to close any other restaurants in the city.
The building at 145 Jefferson St. currently houses Madame Tussauds Wax Museum and the San Francisco Chocolate Store. It was once home to the kitschy walkthrough horror attraction Haunted Gold Mine, which was popular throughout the 1980s and was subsequently razed for a Rainforest Cafe, and the San Francisco Dungeon, which closed in June 2021.
San Francisco hasn’t lost a McDonald’s since 2018, when the location at the corner of Haight and Stanyan closed.