10 Of The Most Unique McDonald’s Locations Around The World
It’s no secret that McDonald’s has long desired to be a global
franchise. This is a goal they’ve achieved decades ago and still strive
towards to this day. Many countries have adopted some aspects of Western
culture and many of them now have their own McDonald’s.
In some
cases, the idea of a McDonald’s fast food location is offensive to
locals. Some feel that American fast-food does a disservice to the local
ethnic cuisine. Some feel that the buildings themselves are eyesores.
To combat these feelings, some of these McDonald’s locations have added
more local fare to their menus. In many cases, the locations have used
already established architecture instead of building new
American-influenced buildings. This has led to some rather unique
McDonald’s locations that have even been featured on travel television
programs, in magazines, and tourism blogs. Who would have thought a
McDonald’s would ever be a tourist destination?
Here are
ten of these extremely unique McDonald’s locations built since the brand
has spread across the globe. First, let’s take a look at one in
McDonald’s country of origin.
10. Colonial Mansion McDonald’s – Hyde Park, New York
Even in the U.S., locals still want to preserve the historic
architecture. The origins of this McDonald’s go back to 1795, well
before the McDonald’s founder was ever born. It was originally built as a
farmhouse by a man named Joseph Denton and has since been known as The
Denton House. It was converted to a mansion in 1860 and throughout the
better part of the 1900s it was used commercially as a funeral home and
other restaurants.
In the
1980s, the mansion had fallen victim to neglect and McDonald’s purchased
the property with the intention of bulldozing the mansion and building a
new store. Fortunately, the citizens of Hyde Park had the building
deemed as a historical landmark and McDonald’s had to use the existing
building for their new location. The result is arguably their most beautiful places location in America.
9. Airplane McDonald’s – Taupo, New Zealand
If you’re ever taking in the natural scenery in New Zealand and feel
the need to eat something familiar, the McDonald’s near Lake Taupo
would be a nice option. A DC-3 sticks out of the side of the play area
and even has a dining area inside the plane during the day-time hours.
The plane once carried passengers for Austrailian National Airways and
then spent time as a crop duster before becoming a fixture at the Taupo
location.
Unfortunately,
if you were thinking of sampling the notorious Serious Lamb Burger,
unique to New Zealand and Australia McDonald’s locations, you’re out of
luck. The item was discontinued in the middle of last year due to slow
sales.
8. World’s Biggest McDonald’s – London, England (sort of)
The odds are if you’re planning a trip to London you’re probably not
concerned with finding a McDonald’s. In the event you were hoping to
make the World’s Biggest McDonald’s a stop on your European vacation,
you’ll be out of luck; McDonald’s only ever intended it stay open for
six weeks.
This
McDonald’s was built specifically to cater to the 2012 Olympic games in
London. The interesting part about it is nearly 75% percent of the
building was recycled or reused in other locations. Even the used
cooking oil was converted into bio-fuel for McDonald’s UK delivery
trucks.
7. The McDonald’s on Spanish Broadway (Gran Via) – Madrid, Spain
This is not your typical McDonald’s. Reviewers have claimed the
burgers actually taste like all-beef and you get real potato wedges
instead of fries. The McCafe in the location sells chocolate dusted
cappuccinos in actual coffee cups as well as the types of scones and
macaroon’s you’d expect from a high-end bakery. They also serve beer, a
rather unusual menu item that you wouldn’t see in a McDonald’s location
in its country of origin.
The inside
architecture is consistently described as classy by Yelp reviewers due
to its marble walls and chandeliers. The outside architecture is
incorporated into the outside historical buildings of the Gran Via.
6. McDonald’s Drive Thru – Ulsan, South Korea
This McDonald’s drive-thru is an interesting location. For starters,
it doesn’t use the typical red and yellow color scheme; opting instead
for bright pinks and neons. The structure also sports a huge
moth-wing-like structure on tall columns to keep the customers outside
from getting wet in the event of inclement weather. This structure isn’t
there to keep outside diners dry, but because this McDonald’s also
sells gasoline.
At the
time this McDonald’s was built, it was very unique to the surrounding
architecture of Ulsan. In most cases, a McDonald’s has a stand-alone
appearance due to being incorporated into pre-existing architecture.
5. McDonald’s – Tbilisi, Georgia
In the country of Georgia, Western fast-food chains are seeing an
opportunity to expand their business even further into the global
market. Wendy’s and McDonald’s have both established locations in the
country. Three of McDonald’s Georgia locations are all in Tbilisi but
one of them stands out among the others.
When
Western fast food chains first made their way into the country, many
residents felt that fast food would hurt local slow-cooked cuisine and
the buildings would be eyesores. Fortunately, McDonald’s chose to go
with a look that was in keeping with local architecture. The fast food
chains have more or less became places where youth congregates for quick
affordable food and to take advantage of free Wi-Fi.
4. McDonald’s in Downtown Hangzhou – Hangzhou, China
This Chinese McDonald’s location doesn’t just bring Western food to
the fast food arena. Aside from being unique in its architecture, once
again incorporating already standing local buildings, the location
offers rice plate dinners for those that prefer to have local cuisine
instead of Western. They also boast a much wider variety of pie flavors
such as pineapple, banana, and taro (a Southeast Asian root vegetable).
This location also boasts a service many college students have dreamed about for ages: delivery.
3. McDonald’s Imperial – Porto, Portugal
This McDonald’s reused a historical building from the 1930s known as
the Imperial Cafe. This pleased a number of the Porto locals due to the
building being in desperate need of restoration before the McDonald’s
purchase. The outside has retained an eagle statue at the entrance and
the inside is full of mirrors, beautiful chandeliers, art deco stained
glass, and ornate architecture on the high ceilings.
There are a
few unique menu items but for the most part the food is exactly what
you’d expect from a McDonald’s. This can be quite the comfort for
expatriates or tourists feeling a little homesick.
2. Exotic McDonald’s in Yangshuo, China
Yangshuo has more English language schools than any other city in
China. The city is also a haven for foreign tourists looking to backpack
and rock climb in scenic China. It is for these reasons it comes as no
surprise that American fast-food like KFC and McDonald’s have built
locations in the city.
This
location blends in well with local architecture and sits on the water
where diners can dine in a pagoda. The only thing that sticks out is the
highly recognizable “golden arches” logo but it’s since become less
noticeable as other fast food restaurants and chains like Adidas have
opened outlets as the city caters more towards foreign tourists.
1. McDonald’s by the Spanish Steps – Rome, Italy
This has been dubbed “the fanciest McDonald’s in the world” and in a
city so full of history and sight-seeing, has been added to its roster
of tourist attractions.
The
outside of the building doesn’t stand out as much as some of the others
on the list; however the interior is quite the site. There are trickling
fountains, statues, and mosaic walls. Most of the interior is marble
with cobblestone steps leading up to the actual restaurant.
The menu
has much more variety with specialty pastries in the mornings, a salad
bar, and various specialty dinners like Jamaican jerk chicken with
Caribbean rice.