The hints are in the happy meals!
McDonald’s. Some people consider it to be mediocre, others downright malevolent. Then there’s the other lot – which includes myself – who think it’s simply magnificent. Or, if you’re in Paris and about to take the first bite from a Royale with Cheese, magnifique. And yet I consider myself to be someone of varied and, dare I say, sophisticated tastes – at times anyway.
But how could someone capable of such a heretic and sacrilegious view also be a connoisseur to boot? Is everything what it seems? Could it be possibly true that McDonald’s, that first and last word in fast food, has more to it than we think?
Sure, there’s an annual turnover of gazillions coupled with the Golden Arches being the undisputed king of brand logos, not to mention nearly a century of staggering popularity. However, some seasoned travellers will tell you there’s more to their menus than what we’re used to here in the UK. The last thing many people want when they go abroad is a McDonald’s; the trouble is, if you’re out late and you’re feeling peckish, it’s sometimes the only option (wherever you may be).
I’ve found myself in this very situation more than a couple of times, and it’s been somewhat of an eye-opener, despite the primitive side of my brain going into overdrive in sending urgent signals to my stomach. See, Ronald McDonald can take you on a unique culinary journey – if you just let him – and I’m not talking about those temporary gimmicks like ‘Tastes of America’ that pervade British outlets. As mighty fine as some of those are, they don’t give you a genuine insight into what makes a nation tick – on or off the plate.
There’s Budapest for example, with its ‘Maestro Goosey Gustav’. Yes, it really does contain goose; contact grilled foie gras slices, to be exact. Boo and hiss to that, but it does reflect Hungarian gastronomy, especially when you see it on the menu alongside three different varieties of pork burger. Turns out the Magyar are that passionate about their culinary traditions, that this should be reflected everywhere. Same goes for their neighbours in Austria. The home of classical music doesn’t go so classic when it comes to patties wedged in a bun. Stroll down the picturesque streets of Vienna, and you’ll soon bump into a vendor with currywurst among their wares, so why shouldn’t the fast food mirror the street food? Enter Austria’s ‘Signature Sweet Curry’ burger beneath the Golden Arches.
And yet the idiosyncrasies don’t end there – take Italy. When it comes to food, there’s surely no nation that does more to keep things as nature intended, so it’s maybe no surprise to learn that they’ve gone the opposite way of some of their European neighbours and avoided the fast food fusion. However, there’s an exception to every rule, and if you wander into the Naples outlets, you’ll find an altogether Italian twist to a McDonald’s, complete with mozzarella, salami, etc. Does this reflect the Neapolitan spirit – as defiant as it is unique – and that the rest of the country sees its reputation as one of the world’s premiere culinary nations as something to be guarded at all costs? Bologna takes its food extremely seriously, and there you’ll find nothing more adventurous than a Big Mac on the menu.
If we cast our eyes down under, where they use the far more preferable nickname of Macca’s instead of Maccie D’s, it’s the breakfast menu that really catches the eye. Sure, it’s not a patch on the US of A, with its pancakes, bacon and maple syrup, but compared to the UK it’s a banquet fit for a king. So, surely this tells us that breakfast is genuinely the most important meal of the day, from Sydney Harbour to Ayers Rock.
Then again, l could be one french fry short of a maris piper with these conclusions. Still, that’s the beauty of McDonald’s and the gastronomic globe as a whole: it’s wide open to interpretation and you’re free as a McBird to make your own mind up.
The Early Whistle 