McDonald’s @ ECP circa 1983
Daddy Ting woke up this morning, barged into our room (he co-sleeps with the boys) and then said:
‘Wake up! Come, let’s go have breakfast at ECP McDonald’s!’
Wah wah wah. Never heard him or see him so energetic so early in the morning for that long hor. A couple of days ago, I had told him that Marine Cove will be open today. He had humm and hawwed about it, cos he was worried about the crowd. But hey, he would do ANYTHING for the boys. Including waking up early to beat the crowd haha.
That area was demolished 4 years back a big scale up-haul. It holds a lot of memories for both Donald & I. I have always lived in the east, and my weekends are spent at East Coast Park. From Bedok Jetty, to Lagoon, to the chalets, to Red House Seafood, to McDonald’s, to Big Splash.
say hi to my mom!
When I got older, there would be primary school excursions to ECP, to pick rubbish up at the beach. And then it became a meeting point for my friends and I in our teenage years.
my suave paternal grandpa & my cousin
so obviously when the area was to be demolished, I felt sad that a piece of my past was gonna be gone. Of course something new will come up again, but the old school building would be gone.
And in turn, we got this!
McDonald’s on opening day
I say: This was this morning at 9am. It was crowded, but not packed. I love it that the aisles are wide, probably to cater to strollers, scooters, pushbikes. I had to really hand it to the staff at McDonald’s. They had staff assigned to designated areas, so tables were quickly cleared, staff assisted in putting chairs back. So all very organised!
Daddy Ting (DT) says: There weren’t enough highchairs, which doesn’t make sense considering kid-flow was going to be crazy on weekends.
awesome display for the range of offerings from McCafe
the salad bar
kids getting interactive with ‘silhouettes’
Ollie & his Hamburglar mirroring his movements.
There is a separate dessert counter outside of McDonald’s so you don’t have to join the crazy queue indoors for just one ice-cream sundae. Yeesss! Definitely works for me!
If you think that McDonald’s is too cliche and want something more traditional, fret not. There still is kaya & kopi from Hill Street Coffee Shop and even prata from My Bryani House if you want. At the other end of the strip, you have Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf for your more ang moh tastebuds and American breakfast.
Of course the highlight of the entire place had to be the HUGE ASS playground for the kids. It’s not only a playground. It’s like a mini obstacle course for the kids. Parents WILL have to get involved haha.
Swings! Something we don’t see very often these days!
I say: Love it that there is a playground that caters to all age groups. It was crowded this morning but there was still ALOT of space in between for people and kids to run around. It isn’t just a regular playground, but it has obstacles like a really steep slope with ropes for kids to pull themselves up, a netted ‘skywalk’, and ‘spiderwebs’ for older kids to climb. It does pushes the boundaries a little for the kids. Love it!
DT says: There are some danger spots, like those rollers, fingers could get pinched between them. (me: but all supposed to be played under supervision mah, so be responsible!)
Amenities
What I like is that there is a lot of pathways around the play area for strollers, scooting. There is even a sheltered pathway all to the way to the toilet, in the event of wet weather. Phew. So no need to worry about getting drenched. But downside is that if you are dining at McDonald’s..you will have to walk a fair bit to the toilet. There is a toilet for kids which includes shower cubicles for wash ups. Adult toilets also have both shower and regular facilities.
Another area that I love to highlight, is this small little area near the toilet. It only has a small maze, probably not a lot of kids gonna be interested but it is a really quiet nook for parents to take a break, for mummies to nurse or feed their little ones. Or if there is more than 2 kids, one could be fed whilst the other still play around the grass patch. No need to yell for them to be careful or have any mini heart attacks!
BONUS: Free parking today! The gantries are not up yet, so go go go! Otherwise it will be
Mon to Fri: $2.60 per entry
Sat, Sun & PH: $2.60 for the first hour, $1.30 per subsequent hour on. There is also a 15 min grace period. The parking lots are REALLY spacious so bring them bikes down!
Looks like Marine Cove is gonna be a regular spot for us soon!