Would you like electricity with that burger?

And now for something completely different from the North Carolina News Observer...

Watts are free at new McDonald's
BY SUE STOCK, STAFF WRITER

CARY, N.C. - When it opens Tuesday, the McDonald's at 1299 Kildaire Farm Road will be the country's first McDonald's with an electric vehicle charging station.

The station will allow drivers of electric cars to plug them in and charge them while they eat.

McDonald's is one of several chains exploring green store design. Wal-Mart and Target are revamping their stores to conserve energy. Subway has opened its first stand-alone LEED-certified restaurant in the state in Chapel Hill.

The Cary McDonald's is under review to be LEED-certified by the U.S. Green Building Council. It would become the third McDonald's to receive certification, after restaurants in Savannah, Ga., and Chicago.

To start, the restaurant will feature two charging stations, which will sit at the front of a parking space. If the feature proves popular, McDonald's can expand the system to add more stations, said Helda Rodriguez, president of NovaCharge, the Florida distributor of the ChargePoint stations.

Th charge is free.