When I was in Melbourne this year, there was a McDonald's right across from the Westin, I was getting over a sinus infection and didn't want to think about a sit down breakfast - it was just easier some of the mornings to grab two Sausage McMuffins without egg at 7am and put them in my backpack to eat later while sightseeing when I was hungry. It didn't hurt that the Australian sausage was much tastier than McDonald's sausage in the US.
Next time, if you head left of the McD's toward the Yarra, you hit the train station, where there are some awesome chips, churro's (??!!??) and other take away spots which are great for breakfast after a run down by the practicing crew teams on the river.
Hey, Rick Steves gives step by step instructions to Americans on how to eat cheaply (and halfway decently) in Venice. It's mostly bar food, pizza and gelato, but that's not a bad combo!
It was getting stiffed on bar food that made me give up on 'eating in' in Venice.
But don't think I'm getting short changed - you can get one heck of a delicious picnic together from the exquisite offerings at the little Co-Op supermarket delis. MacDonalds is for when it's raining (and it's not like there aren't a surfeit of options in the the rest of Italy)
I will do fast food if desprate for something quick. The more I travel, the more I have become adventurous with trying local foods.
Before Flyertalk... I used to take trip with tour groups. Almost every one had the bult of the group seeing McDonald's and doing Lunch or dinner there (Melbourne, Vienna, Hong Kong.) I walked off and found something different, fearing I would never be back to try the local food.
But in my travels I have had:
*McDonalds in Beijing, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Singapore, Berlin, San Jose Costa Rica London and Paris... I have traveleed with FT friends craving "home food." So to be nice I obliged and had Filet o Fish (whcih does taste better overseas.)
My first day in Rome I had a Coke from the McDonalds next to the Spanish steps. Then I went for nice Italian food right upt he street.
FYI: One thing I like in McDonalds in Asia is having pineapple Sundaes. If I see them I have them almost daily.
*Pizza Hut in Guanghau and Beijing. The friend I traveled with did not want to eat the local food. (I had to go on my own for Peking Duck!)
*Starbucks in Paris to get the mug for a friend.
*Burger King in London... had a friend craving onion rings so we went to the big one by Piccadilly circus.
*Subway in Cancun... where I also hosted a Flyertalk dinner at the Ruth's Chris in Cancun.
*It's not fast food but in Singapore a great FT friend and I were disappointed to find one of our favorite places, Trader Vic's closed so we went to Morton's. Good food and service. I try to get to Trader Vic's whenever I can and have in London and Tokyo.
*I've also done Outback in Singapore and Tony Roma's in Singapore and Hong Kong. Again not fast food but close enough.
*Of course when I go to Canadia I have to go to Tim Horton's.
I also try to seek out supermarkets and in Tokyo and Hong Kong 7-Elevens to get my supply of Pepsi -which tastes better overseas. Must be that cane sugar!
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gleff
Not EXACTLY fast food, but there's a Denny's next door to the Tokyo Hilton, and I ate there in the middle of the night when particularly jetlagged. Best Denny's I ever ate at, for sure.
Ah yes, forgot about that one. Let me guess.... someone else took advantage of the Expedia $3/night deal.
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I find myself in American fast food places when I need food fast. While in principle I like other countries' norms that you should sit down and take your time with your food, sometimes that doesn't work.
Exactly. Actually, I eat at McDonald's ONLY when outside the U.S.... I never go near one here. Normally, restaurants in the U.S. are relatively fast. When you go into a restaurant in Europe, you can sometimes feel almost like a hostage. If I'm in a hurry when in Europe, I actually sometimes enjoy a Big Mac (without that yucky sauce).
Well I too have had McD's in several countries, I actually find some regional specials to be good(yes I'm thinking of you pork cutlet sandwich in NRT). Also when I was young I actually worked in a McD's in Norfolk, UK for several months, they had the McRib as part of a "world" promotion so let's just say I had several.
Like others have said, somtimes it's just nice to get a burger that you know you are gonna like, thank you BK in AMS, if for no other reason than to get the taste of that last local burger out of my mouth.
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Walking back to my hotel in Singapore last weekend, about 01:00, I must have passed all manner of tasty local stuff, but nothing tickled my taste buds until I came to BK.....Double Whopper with cheese, +bacon, -pickle.......did the job nicely !
Much to my chagrin my 8 year old daughter begged for McD's while we were in Galleries Lafayette in Paris the summer. Seeing as it was day 11 of our trip in France and it was right there - I conceded. And glad as did as we made our way up to the cafeteria and it was insane up there.
Never to eat but definitely to use the restroom - same as in the US. We did get coffee at a McD's in France because they had free wifi and we felt bad just sitting there without buying something. Coffee wasn't bad but the McFood looked as fake as ever.
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Ok, I've been busted! I had McD's on a Sunday night in Zurich. The food tasted identical to the product in the US...but the cost was almost 3x as much.
I was so ashamed of this, I didn't include the receipt on my expense report for the trip. (I knew my boss would ridicule me for eating there)...
Several years ago I ventured upstairs to the McD's in Seoul in the Itaewon area -- best fries ever!! And the pork cutlets were quite good. Not too surprisingly the place was swarming with US military families in their civvies looking for a taste of home.
All five of our family suffered bad side effects, shall we say, after dining one evening in a lovely Indonesian restaurant in Amersterdam in the early 1980s. The next night, our final night before flying home after a wonderful 3 1/2 week visit to the UK and Europe we settled our stomachs in a McDonalds.
It was kind of ironic but at least our tummies were fine on the flight home.
