Blight. Crappy food wrapped in what looks like toilet paper. I don't eat at McDonald's here, and besides why would I want to eat an empty calorie meal that provides an entire week's fat content in one sitting? There are other places to choose from when you require a restroom, a coffee or quick snack. It does not have to be a "production" that is solved by using McDonalds.

neutral. But all of those who say it's a blight because you don't go to Europe to see American stuff, do you think that chains like "Pret a Manger" and "H&M" (there are many others) should not open locations in the US because European tourists would not like seeing them when they're on vacation here? That just seems like a silly reason - you don't have to eat there!

But I did eat in a McD's in London once. There was a big film opening going on at a theatre right across the street. The street was blocked off, so we went into McDs, got a drink and some ice cream, and sat at the window watching the festivities for 20 minutes. It was a nice break from walking, and a fun thing to see too! :)

BTW...

Just out of curiosity...do you guys feel the same way about Coca Cola that you do about McD's? I mean for example in London, what is the most popular brand of soda? And do young people in Britain and other places in Europe not drink coke products....most restaurants I go into offer beer, wine, bottled water and coca cola products or am I missing something...and if I drink coke, should I be rebuked for not drinking local?

Let's face it, we live in a multi national world and good ideas from one place do spread. I am sorry there are no Pret a Manger's in New York (at least I do not know of any) and in a way I don't understand why Wagamamma has not gone global and opened branches in the US (they would do well but I am sure there are similar operations already in NY). Easy Everything has a great idea with computer access and they have opened branches in the US (as a matter of fact they had one in Times Square last time I was there)...I wouldn't think of boycotting because it is not an American idea.

McDonald's may be junk food and there might be all sorts of reasons not to eat there but in a sense they have brought American efficiency in fast foods throughout the world much as Coca Cola brought American tastes in soda pop to the world. There have been times when wandering the streets in a German city looking for a bite to eat that I have been very thankful to see the golden arches....I just don't particularly like wursts.

Whats wrong with the McDonald's colors? They're quite tasteful.
McDonald's yellow and red color evokes memories of my very first car, a 1972 Ford Torino(351-Cleveland, V-8 engine.)
To this day, whenever I see an old car spewing out burning oil from its exhaust, I get hungry for a supersize value meal.

I do have a tough time in Paris with all those bakery people forcing me to buy pastries. There is one in Wengen, Switzerland, that is very assertive, too. The good stuff virtually runs out into the street and jumps into my pockets.

It makes walking a struggle because of the delays.

Actually, I find the pastries in much of Europe to be good. But I am an addict.
Some people drink beer; I eat pastries.
Lipitor is my helper.

As for McDonalds, the one I ate in along rue des Rennes was good. It was crowded and I saw mostly French speakers inside.

Given my energy level that morning, I was glad to find it open.

I seldom eat at fast food restaurants in my hometown, because there are so many places I like better. However, fast food restaurants become successful financially because they fill a perceived need - consistency, no surprises, economy, efficiency, and availability.

When traveling, we too often wait until we're growing faint from hunger, tired, and impatient. The Golden Arches at those times offer a welcome refuge.

It is very true that the throngs who frequent those American fast food restaurants in Europe are largely European. They go there for the same reasons we do. American fast food restaurants fill a need not met often enough in Europe.

Do all BigMacs Taste the Same? Well since i never eat them i wouldn't know, but i read that an McD's official says, no - that McD's usually tries to buy beef from that country and that 'since grass (or fodder) is different in countries, the taste can be a bit different. Anyone eat McBurgers taste a difference?

BLIGHT

BLIGHT


BLIGHT!!!!!

Sorry for not making my viewpoint too clear! :)

As for the European ban on "US" beef, the beef ban also applies to beef from Argentina, Canada, New Zealand and other beef producing countries that use hormones - a "thingie" that European consumers don't want in their beef.

As a consumer, I would hate to see the "standardized" and very tasteless food of the US replacing the wonderful flavorful foods of Europe. Just my HO.

Blight. I feel that way about McDonald's in the US as well.

While I don't frequent McD's in NY, I find that they offer me a comforting touchstone, something familiar when I'm in a foreign country. I must admit, I snicker and enjoy picking out tourists walking into McD's all over the world, but I always remember that my first European meal, in London, was at McDs. It's also a great meeting place for friends trying to get together, and then going off somewhere else. :)

PalQ
A definite bulldoze. Perhaps they attract you because they are "comfort"...like you know at home. There are lots of places with WC other than Mickey D's if thats a criteria! Branch out when you travel, have fun.

McDonald's is a nasty brand. It is not representative of good American food. To equate McDonalds, a brand, with Italian or Indian cuisine is silly. They do have convenient restrooms though so it's a good place to deposit other, fine cuisine.

Congratulations. You are all superior people. Geez. How can you make eating or not eating in a particular establishment a moral issue, or a badge of membership in a particular class of society. As I said, Geez.

Mary Fran,
No one is making a moral issue out of anything. However, with your name I want to call you Sister Mary Fran...it just seems to go with you and your post! lol

Mary Fran--actually, it is not unusual to find that eating or not eating at a particular establishment is a moral issue. Many if not most boycotts of particlar restuarants and chains have a moral basis, whether you or I agree with that basis or not. Anyway, I was under the impression that people here were making it an aesthetic and maybe political issue more so than a moral one.

<i>i find it strange that you seem more concerned with the problems of mcds in europe than you do in your own country, especially since the problems are much worse in america.</i>

We've given up hope in America.

Part of the travel experience for Americans is going to countries with many more centuries of history than our own country. So, predominant European landmarks that were exported in the last 50 years from America are more noticeable by virtue of the contrast with what we go to see in Europe.

<i>How can you make eating or not eating in a particular establishment a moral issue</i>

I don't. But I'm really surprised nobody has mentioned the health issue. When I see the golden arches I think McHeart Attack.

The ony reason to go to a McD in Europe is the clean throne and white TP. Eat somewhere else.

I'm going to agree with my dear departed Papa on this one, about fast food chain invasions like McD's. He abhored them, (and malls too for that matter) because he felt they reduce human behavior to the lowest common denominator, and destroy the local ambience of places where they rear their ugly heads. Of course lots of people go to them, they're a quick fix, but also a blight IMO, both here and there.

Actually I once kept a souvenir map of France that shows all the McDonald's locations, as a kind of joke, since that country is so well-known for it's great cuisine!

I remember when my grandparents had two children from London to stay with them.
They were bewildered by the quiet, cows and chickens.
One day they were taken to the nearest town and saw WOOLWORTHS. Their eyes lit up.
I suspect that it is the same for Americans. They are surrounded by unfamiliar scenes and people talking funny and then suddenly they see those golden arches and their eyes light up.

Traveler863: Please tell me the other places with free WCs in places like London, Paris and most big cities, i'd love to know, i'm not doubting your knowledge, i just want to branch out. And please don't tell me cafes where i'm expected to sit for minutes and order something nor those fancy pay toilet on streets that are often a cesspool mess inside - i've seen ones in Paris smeared with blood i theorize junkies use to shoot up and may miss the mark occasionally - they also cost about a buck just to pee!

No strong feelings one way or another. Rarely go into one at home, but they don't bother me just by being there.

So, after we all weigh in, what happens next?

We sink the boat! McDonald's is disgusting food: poor quality, poorly prepared. If I were minister of food, or culture, or health, of France, I would have them banned!

Blight.

Having said that, we did resort to a McDonalds in Malaysia, mainly for the airconditioning. Certainly not for the food. I'm with PalQ on this one - close them down and string them up for their wilful and reckless disregard for the nation's health.

Has anyone counted up the 'blight' votes on this thread?

Oh, nearly forgot. In addition to wilful and reckless disregard for the nation's health, add 'giving offense to good taste'. Even if I felt like a hamburger (it has been known!) McDonald's is the last place I'd go looking for one.

By the way - Free loos can be found in any cafe or bar you care to wander into in any big Euro city - including Paris, london, wherever.

No one has mentioned that they also have maps. Many times we have walked into McDs when we are lost in a Cityi.

Yes - cheap coffee, WC and maps. I remember eating in two McD's in Italy. One in Pompeii when we had ten minutes flat before we had to meet our guide for a full afternoon of walking and another time in Rome just outside the Vatican museum where all the local places were major tourist traps that would charge 15E (1999) for a mini, dried out prosciutto sandwich and a soft drink.

The one in Ronda, Spain must have the most magnificent view of them all :) We actually CHOSE to have a coffee there since they had (almost) the same view as the Parador and the cost was at least a third.

I do not sponsor McD's at home except in situations which are similar to the ones described above. So I guess my policy is the same overseas.

Watch that moviemetary &quot;Super Size Me&quot;, scary stuff...

Neither. Just another part of the landscape.
I don't see anything wrong with eating at one once in a while. Why is eating at McD's so terrible, yet eating at Quick (a Belgian fast food chain also found in France) isn't condemned? Quick is actually worse the McD's IMHO. And the McD menu in France is no worse than the menu at, say, NordSee in Germany. I don't see any anti-Quick or Nordsee tirades here--why not? It's the same thing.
While living in Germany for six months, we ate at the McDonald's in the shopping mall twice. Big deal. It didn't ruin our health. I also ate one quick lunch at the McD's in Vienna during a 10-day trip. During our 5 years in Brussels, we ate at McD's maybe once every 4 months. It didn't stop us from enjoying European cuisine or affect our health.

I'm really confused. Europeans are supposed to have such refined tastes and superior knack for eating only healthy food of the highest quality.

Yet, these places are often packed. Is another Dark Age about to descend upon us?

I am leaning towards Blight. I just find Mc Food gross and not great for kids.....I am not thrilled to see them every few blocks in some countries. Saying that it would be nicer with chairs outside and internet access (Not even close to that in Dublin).

They now have the Mc Cafe that is a section separate that serves coffee and cakes/scones that is pretty good.

I am a veggie who nearly starved to death a few years ago in China after refusing the mystery meat we were being served and saw the local butcher full of flies and no windows in the heat. I am still surprised I managed on Cabbage soup and rice and whatever I could find in Shanghai back then. Once we hit Beijing we did go to McDonalds as I had lost about a stone (14lbs) and needed a feed. It was great and much better tasting the the shriveled up US Burgers (Yes I actuially ate a burger I was so hungry!).

Other than that I never seek them out as I also like to try the places that each country has. I eat chips once a year from Supermacs (Irish Chain) and in Spain went to this fast food sandwich place and it was actually quite nice.

Public toilets are around but with kids you have to make do with the closest. I agree about some of the cafe toilets...some are scary in the touristy areas, I had a bad experience in Monmartre.

Overall I think its too many Md's, KFC's and BK's for my liking ehrn most countries have nice food just as quick

&gt;And MacDonalds, as many Europeans inevitably pronounce it,

Inevitably and correctly. Mc is just an abbreviation of Mac. In parts of Ireland, the two used to be interchangeable in common spelling. Sometimes the Mc or Mac is an unaccented syllable and might sound like &quot;mick&quot; or &quot;meck&quot; or &quot;muck&quot;, but it is properly Mac. Does anybody remember the old McDonalds jingle? &quot;...You deserve a break today at MACK Donalds.&quot;

When we lived in Germany in 1970 while in the Army we had no McDonalds and no other fast food places. We also had no American TV. Those two years were fantastic. We learned to live without the dope of watching TV and we did not miss the fast food joints at all. Eveywhere we traveled was an adventure.

Now....we see a McDonalds on every corner and we use them occasionally...but it is not the same and never will be. Europe is not the adventure it once was....just another place to visit now.

McDs burgers poor quality and disgusting? Man, have you got it wrong. McDs burgers have been researched, studied, experimented with, and refined to have exceptional appeal to human senses of touch, taste, and smell. They are engineered to taste good, and they do to most people.

Of course, it's the snobby thing for someone to say McDs food doesn't taste good to them--and folks who do say that put themselves in one of three positions: 1. They've never actually tasted McD's food. 2. They are just saying it to impress people. 3. Their sense of taste/smell is abnormal.

I don't eat it because of health issues--well, once in a while.

The McDonalds in Rothenburg ob der Tauber is located in the center of the town, in a medieval building, where the exterior remains totally medieval. The usual Golden Arches sign has been reduced to a small heraldic sign where the golden arches are incorporated into a medieval shield. Very discreet, almost unnoticeable.

That being said, I agree with those who tout their usually clean toilets. And when in a rush, I have upon occasion eaten in Mickey D's in London, Paris and Hong Kong. After all, it is &quot;Fast&quot; Food.

generally don't like mcdonalds. but the mcdonalds in letterkenny, county donegal, ireland, should be avoided at all costs! they get the order wrong 9 times out of 10, the food is even more dire than foodies tell us the usual mcdonalds food is AND two years ago i gave in and joined my sons in getting a burger from there only to be stung by a wasp that was encased under the burger and above the bun! it was very painful and has put me off ever ever eating a mcdonalds again. of course what didn't help is that to this day (and i still have the moulded, disintigrated burger in it's box in a shed) no-one in the letterkenny branch has responded to our two telephone calls to them to inform them of this happening. nor, i have to add, has anyone from the main mcdonald's website email address. and as for their health eating ... wasps probably have at least 100 calories!

Why you'd eat in a MacDonalds is beyond me, they are only good for a bathroom and cup of coffee.

This is for Rufus:

I personally cannot stand the taste of any MacDonald's food. Call me anti-American, call me whatever you want to call me, but I just gag on anything MacDonald's produces. Maybe it's because I'm a cook and a culinary tour guide and a maven of fresh Mediterranean and Southwest France cooking. I dunno. But let me say that LONG before I developed a love for France and Italy and their respective cuisines, I eschewed food from MacDonalds.
Have I been in a MacDonalds in Europe? Yes. Once, our entire family stopped for a meal at the McDos in P&eacute;rigueux at the Zone Artisanale. It was so gross we pretty much all tossed our meals and drank the drinks and called it a day.

I only have a somewhat found memory, more of a rescue memory of a Macdonalds in Southern England. I had just gotten off the QE2, rented car and drove perhaps about an hour when remnants of caviar hell still ravaged my intestines! The hazards of traveling Queens Grill I suppose, little niceties left in your cabin you openly consume. It was a night of meeting porcelian, almost need for ships doctor...things slacked off enough to disembark that morning, get rental car and well you know the rest. LOL

Traveler 863, yes I concede. McDonald's does have it advantages at time ::) How terrible for you - not fun!

Sorry to go off topic..

StCirq.... if you happen to come back to this thread, I was wondering if you could email me the &quot;letter&quot; you posted a few weeks ago if you still have it:) My email is [email protected]. Thanks if you happen to see this:)

Worse than McDonald's for me was the unbelievably huge number of Starbucks everywhere you turn in London. Maybe it was just the fact that when I lived there 10 years ago, they didn't exist, and now having recently returned for the first time, they had popped up, it seemed like, everywhere you go. Never bothered me in SF or NY, but it just felt completely alien in London. God (or at least Chirac and Delanoe) help us all if it ever gets near that point in Paris....

-Kevin

Well Kevin, besides not eating fast food I hate Starbucks coffee. Yuck!
I guess I am sure in the minority however. Well I don't guess, it is obvious that I am.