2. McDonald’s

It’s a different world under that McDonald’s marquee

Not all McDonald’s are created equal. Most are in fact quite pedestrian, with the easily recognizable “M” set in on a wooden grating. If the Golden Arches has a New York flagship store, the one on 42nd Street would be it. The full length theater marquee with a total of 7,500 light bulbs running along all sides harken back to the era of the Harris Theater– a state-of-the-art picture palace designed in the Italian Renaissance style. Blasting music greets patrons as they order from a counter that looks more like a box office than a fast food chain.

The Times Square McDonald’s is located in the Candler Building, constructed between 1912 and 1914 by the founder of the Coca Cola company. The terra cotta building, listed on the National Register for Historic Places, was one of the last to be built under the 1916 Zoning Resolution, which featured setbacks.