It's McDonald's. You know what you're getting.
4 stars might seem high for a McDonald's. If you lump it in with everything else, it makes no sense. But I'm basing this on a McDonald's level, fast-food chain, scale.
This particular McDonald's in Offenberg, Germany was nice. I've found that many of the McDonald's locations abroad are all a bit different but they seem to put in some extra effort. For example - The first thing that I noticed when I pulled in was a McDonald's Playland. Something you don't see much in the US anymore but we all remember from when we were kids.
Being an English speaking American, I was pleased to find that they had the kiosk displays to place your order that you could customize the language to suit your needs. This made the ordering process easy. Remember though - they call out your receipt number in German so you have to pay attention or do a little Google Translate action so you're on alert.
Inside this McDonald's they also had a McCafe with bakery items and coffee to order. I did order a slice of the Chocolate Cake to take home with me and it was actually quite good. Dense and rich, but good.
When I travel abroad, I always try to hit up a McDonald's. It's one of the very few businesses that you can visit at just about any country in the world. I call it, "The American Embassy". I began doing this just to compare the little differences in tastes. I obviously notice that many foreign locations offer items that you wouldn't see in the US which is always interesting to me.
Because this is a "thing" that I do when I travel abroad, I always try to get the same thing. A Quarter Pounder with Cheese type of burger, Fries and a Coke. I also make sure to get ketchup too as this sometimes tastes different.
The burger was a little dry as it seemed quite lean. Not sure if that is how it was supposed to taste or if that's just how it was that day. It was also topped with lettuce and tomato. It was good, as McDonald's burgers go, but not the best that I've had. The fries were notably better than what I would typically get in the US. Hot, crispy and they had good flavor. Aside from salt, US McDonald's fries are typically void of any flavor. The ketchup was not noticeably different. You'd be surprised, but some EU McDonald's ketchup does taste different. This difference is what sparked my quest to try McDonald's in different nations. The Coke was uneventful.
Would I go back? I would, if I were local and went to McDonald's occasionally. Because I rarely go to McDonald's and I'm not local, I probably won't. But, if you're looking for a quick bite while you're in the area, give it a try. read more