New York City’s fast food wars have a new enforcer — and she’s not on the menu.
A Queens McDonald’s has officially hired a “McBouncer” to keep violent, rowdy teenagers from turning the Golden Arches into a daily battleground.
Claudia Zanabria, 45, isn’t your average crew member. The cancer survivor says she was handpicked for the job because she’s the “toughest one in the store.”
“This generation is really different,” Zanabria told The Post. “They push me, they disrespect me. They think they can do whatever they want.”
The McDonald’s on Metropolitan Avenue in Forest Hills sits just a short walk from a massive school complex housing over 2,000 students. Every weekday at dismissal, hundreds of teens spill into the area — and the restaurant has become ground zero for fights, vandalism, and social media-fueled mayhem.
Police records show officers have been called to the restaurant at least 15 times in 2025 alone for assaults, disorderly conduct, and property damage.
“It gets wild,” Zanabria said. “By the time the cops arrive, they’re gone. Chairs flipped, ketchup everywhere, customers scared.”
In May, the restaurant took drastic action. Between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., no minors are allowed inside unless they’re with an adult. One door is locked and barricaded with trash cans.
Teens with mobile orders must show their phones to Zanabria, who stands guard outside, often in freezing temperatures. Others are allowed in one at a time — under her sharp watch.
“They do everything to me — boys and girls. They scream, they try to push in. I don’t hit back, but I call the police,” she said.
Video footage from earlier this year shows teens from two rival groups storming both entrances and brawling while terrified customers looked on. “They were even disrespectful to the cops,” Zanabria recalled.
For some locals, the policy is long overdue.
“I don’t want to be a victim,” said 64-year-old retiree Joseph D’Auria. “You don’t know if they’re going to throw something at you or punch you in the face. It’s scary.”
The teens, unsurprisingly, aren’t thrilled.
“It’s horrible — so unnecessary,” one grumbled while shivering in 48-degree weather, waiting for his cheeseburger outside.
Still, many regulars say the chaos before the ban was “out of control.”
This Forest Hills McDonald’s isn’t alone in its battle with unruly kids.
In February 2025, a 14-year-old boy was stabbed to death during a fight inside a McDonald’s in nearby Sunnyside. That tragedy, police say, marked a turning point in how the chain handles after-school crowds.
Across Brooklyn, a McDonald’s at Nostrand and Flatbush avenues began carding customers at the door after masked teens shattered glass doors and attacked a security guard. “We had to do something,” manager Amber Hussain said. “It was chaos every single afternoon.”
Despite the hostility, Zanabria refuses to quit.
“I fought cancer. I can fight this,” she said firmly. “I’m not scared of them. Somebody’s got to keep the peace.”
Locals have started calling her the “Arch Angel of Forest Hills” — a nickname she wears proudly as she patrols the golden arches she’s sworn to protect.
Source: New York Post (Nov. 30, 2025)
Discover more from
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
May God have Mercy on her and protect her from harm.