COOK — The golden arches are going dark in Cook.
The local McDonald’s restaurant is set to close for good next Wednesday, May 28, according to store manager Jonah Kirkpatrick, who confirmed the decision in a brief conversation with the Timberjay on Wednesday morning.
Kirkpatrick, who lives in Hibbing, said he and the restaurant’s nine other employees have been offered jobs at another location. While the shorter commute is a silver lining for him personally, he said he’ll miss working in Cook.
“It’s a great town,” he said. “Everybody’s so nice.”
Ownership of the Cook location quietly changed hands earlier this month when CLK Management, a Hibbing-based franchisee, sold the business to a new owner. But the closure, Kirkpatrick said, wasn’t that owner’s decision — it came from higher up. Specifically, McDonald’s corporate headquarters. Kirkpatrick suggested the corporate office had been scrutinizing the Cook store for “several years.”
That’s not unusual. While most McDonald’s restaurants are independently operated, the corporate office has the authority to shut down underperforming stores or locations that no longer meet franchise standards. Closures also happen during company-wide restructuring – and signs point to that playing a role here.
It’s been a tough stretch for the fast-food giant. The first quarter of 2025 was McDonald’s worst in five years, with same-store sales down 3.6 percent in the U.S. and 1 percent globally. That followed a 1.4 percent decline in the fourth quarter of 2024. While menu and pricing adjustments have long been a McDonald’s strategy to attract and retain customers, the company also appears to be using significant expansions and targeted reductions of stores to increase its market share.
A report by CTOL Digital Solutions placed much of the blame on falling foot traffic from low- and middle-income households – once core McDonald’s customers – who are increasingly skipping fast food altogether. Restaurant industry leaders say rising prices have pushed burgers and fries into “luxury” territory for many families. The trend has only deepened as economic uncertainty and declining consumer confidence under the Trump administration continue to weigh on spending.
News of the closure hit hard on social media, where community members expressed everything from disbelief to weary acceptance.
“It’s a tough blow for our little town,” one person wrote.
“How does a McDonald’s close? They should be printing money,” said another.
Some noted the Cook location’s demise in the context of other recent dining losses, with the Crescent Bar and Grill having closed, and the Montana Café forced to shut its doors after last year’s flood.
“This town needs family dining,” one commenter said.
Whether that call is answered remains to be seen. For now, Cook will say goodbye to its Big Macs – and one more piece of its dining scene.