Fascinating images of an abandoned McDonald’s in a remote Alaskan ghost town show how many fast-food chains have raised their prices since 1993

Located on a remote island in Alaska sits a McDonald’s seemingly frozen in time, with its original drive-thru menu still on display and its interior untouched from the day it closed in 1993.

Canadian videographer and photographer Chris Luchardt recently visited the abandoned fast food restaurant on Adak and documented what he found.

His YouTube video shows the windows and doors closed, but outside is a sign showing some of the items that were offered decades ago – as well as the incredibly low prices they were all offered for.

Back then, a BigMac cost $2.45 (the equivalent of $5.10 today) and a hamburger cost 99 cents (the equivalent of $2.08 today). Today, those same items cost about $7.19 and $3.39 respectively, depending on your location.

In a sign of the times, when Jurassic Park was a huge success at the cinemas, a sign at the drive-thru stand advertises a ‘Dino-Size’ meal. The blurb explains: “Get Dino-Size fries and a large soda in a free Jurassic Park collectible cup.”

One photo uploaded to Flickr by user Travis S. also reveals the eatery’s interior, with a terracotta tiled floor and retro-style plastic chairs.

Filmmaker Luckhardt notes in his video how the McDonald’s is located in the ghost town of Adak, which once served as a bustling naval base with more than 6,000 residents.

The grassy rock served as an important strategic base to protect against Japanese invasion during World War II and beyond.

However, once tensions had subsided, the base was closed in 1997 and many people living in the community had already moved out by that time.

Luckhardt told DailyMail.com that the Adak McDonald’s opened in July 1986 and that the Navy “helped the franchisee ship everything.”

The prices at the restaurant were higher than those in mainland America because everything had to be flown in or shipped.

One veteran told Luckhardt that he paid more than $6.00 for a 20-piece McNugget meal when the restaurant opened.

Despite the relatively high prices, another veteran said people were not deterred and it was “packed every day.”

And compared to the modern McDonald’s menu, those prices seem much more reasonable — with a Filet-O-Fish costing just $1.95 in 1993, while today the same sandwich would cost you about $5.99.

For years the restaurant remained a popular spot, but when the military efforts began to wane, the owner decided to close shop.

Luckhardt explains, “The franchisees left Adak when the Navy base was decommissioned and subsequently opened two McDonald’s in Oregon.

“They later moved to Texas and opened two other McDonald’s.

“When they closed their business in Adak, the McDonald’s corporate team deployed a crew to collect the arches along the main road in late 1994.”

After lying vacant for many years, the McDonald’s restaurant was repurposed as an employee dining facility by a local seafood processing company from 2011 to 2013.

“Icicle Seafoods gutted the kitchen, but the pastel-colored chairs remained intact, based on an interior photo from 2018,” says Luckhardt.

The restaurant was then boarded up after “an unfortunate act of vandalism shortly before the pandemic,” which resulted in “at least one of the restaurant’s windows being smashed.”

Like McDonald’s, most other buildings in Adak are abandoned.

Luckhardt’s drone footage reveals a patchwork of vacant buildings left to the elements, while parked vehicles are also rusting.

One building with antennas was used for ‘radio navigation and intelligence gathering’, while the base also housed a hospital, pub and town hall.

According to Luckhardt, 33 permanent residents still live in Adak today.

Some are employed by the small local government, some work at the airport where there are two flights a week from Anchorage, while a group also manages accommodation for tourists, including hunting, fishing and bird watching.

Several homes in Adak are listed on Airbnb, with rates starting around $200 per night.

A map of the small community on the local government website shows that some of the facilities still operating include a bar and grill, liquor store, gas station, school and post office.