Louisville KY Tiny McDonald's Is a Nostalgic Wonderland

I caught wind of a Facebook post about a tiny McDonald's, and it set me off on a search to clarify a few things. The poster, Kristen Ingold, said it's the smallest McDonald's in the world and then quickly admitted that's what she BELIEVES to be true; she has no verification. (SPOILER ALERT: It isn't, and we'll get to that.)

Right up front, this is not a traditional McDonald's. Known as McDonaldland, it's actually a personal museum on private property in Louisville, and it attracts tons of visitors. That was certainly true on the day this video was recorded. (I found a much better presentation than the Facebook video.)

A Louisville McDonaldland Packed With Fast Food Nostalgia

Loaded for bear with a lot of the cool McDonald's memorabilia we all remember, this unique collection gives visitors an opportunity to go back in time and relive some great childhood memories. (When you visit, you might have to explain the pay phone to some of the younger members of your entourage.)

How This Louisville McDonald's Collection Got Started

Joe Fleig and his family are fast food enthusiasts, with a particular interest in McDonald's. (In case you couldn't tell.) His "museum," located at 1704 Greyling Drive in South Louisville, features more than 20 pieces of old-school McDonald's Playland equipment. The seed for this project was planted in 2013 when Fleig purchased an old Frisch's Big Boy statue. Since that time, Fleig has been scouring the country in search of memorabilia to add to his collection. He's done an admirable job; that Grimace came from Iowa and the Ronald McDonald statue from New Jersey.

Is This Really the World's Smallest McDonald's?

So, IS it the world's smallest McDonald's? The answer is no. There's a much smaller one in Sweden known as the McHive.

No Quarter Pounders with Cheese, just honey.

Is it the world's smallest? The answer is...maybe. But we don't really know.

And if Joe Fleig ever tried to purchase this unique creation, I wouldn't be a bit surprised.

LOOK: 20 Discontinued McDonald's Menu Items You'll Never See Again

Discontinued McDonald's items tell the story of eight decades of quiet experiments, from a pizza that took too long to cook to a lobster roll that never made financial sense. Some disappeared overnight with no explanation, others were cut to streamline operations, and a few became cultural phenomena long after they were gone.

Gallery Credit: Stacker