Why does american McDonalds suck
 

You don't get free refills in Europe!

Why does anyone buy a large drink un the USA when they have free refills?

Because all drink sizes cost the same $1.

Because nowadays, all size drinks are $1. As for why anyone would otherwise, I have no idea, I always bought the cheapest sized drink - which, perversely, often was the large (which was discounted under a promo).

I don't agree, McD's is what it is and when everything goes right their food is a good value. Now, what I don't like is the variability in the meal quality - I like my fry's to be hot! :)

For instance my first im the states as a child i was surprised at how nasty KFC was as it is so tasty in Israel. It felt like i was not eating real chicken... How can you people eat that? Btw Popeyes is pretty good though

KFC in Hong Kong is most definitely not 'fancy' or quality, the chicken pieces are terrible whenever I've tried it.

Pizza Hut was still a sit down restaurant though

Maybe it is all relative. McDonalds may have very consistent standards: they seem low in the US, but high in other parts of the world.

Not true! I was in a McD's yesterday and they had several sizes for sale, even if they have their new drink dispensing machines that make it virtually free refills.

Their stores and menus @ the Louvre, across from the Sheraton Oahu, and 4 blocks from the Oakbrook HQ are very different.

Why?

The answer is hidden in the secret sauce. :D

I checked out the small McDonalds on the Nanjing pedestrian street (downstairs, same side of the street as the Apple Store) in Shanghai in June. No tablecloths there. No BigMacs either. Not as high a standard as we see in Sweden. No better than I have seen in the US either.

Although I always try to eat primarily local when I travel abroad, I always make it a point to try some fastfood to see how it compares to American ff. (To put a fine point on it, though, even eating ff overseas is eating locally.) There is a blandish, not as flavorful quality to much of what I've tried overseas. By far, the Hong Kong McDonald's tastes the closest to the American "real thing." But then I haven't tried Japan or mainland Chinese. Also, the Cape Town KFC is not only better than American, it's also much cheaper!

Sadly I'm familiar with that location- I warned my friend that the woman who stopped us on the street was gearing us up for a tea scam, but he wanted to treat her to a burger anyway. She got bored of us soon enough.

Also, I don't eat McDonald's as a rule, but the customary exception is a taro pie. However, as mentioned up-thread, at least in China, that's where you can find a sink with soap.

McDonalds and other fast food chains modify their ingredients and menus to satisfy local preferences. North American versions are skewed towards blandness with an emphasis on sweetnesss and saltiness. In many Asian markets, one has the option of the sugary water that is ketchup or the hotter "chili" version. There is less emphasis on the sweet condiments and more flavour. The beef is different too. Much of the Asian market has Australian beef. US cattle feed relies heavily on corn. US beef relies more on various pharmaceutical additives to promote growth. The combination of additives and corn based feed give US beef a higher fat content. The end result is a greasier hamburger in the USA.

Another major factor is personnel. Look at who works in a fast food chain in North America and compare it to the Asian markets. It is as if McDonalds USA only hires the mentally challenged and/or morbidly obese who are too lazy to follow company procedures on hygiene and food preparation. In Asia, the personnel are more service oriented and are able to master the the challenges of placing/preparing an order correctly.

KFC offers far more varied menu outside of North America especially in Asia. The worst KFC operation in the world is probably in Canada, where the options are limited, and the retail outlets are decrepit and almost always filthy. A KFC outlet in Thailand is clean, modern and properly staffed. The options available fill 2 menu pages. The end result is that a KFC outlet in Thailand is an acceptable place to eat, whereas a KFC outlet in Canada is the place where trash go for a greasy piece of fried chicken skin.

You didn't got it that the comment about the white table cloth in McDonalds in Shanghai was a joke, did you?

In China (and other countries like Singapore) McDonalds often have "dessert" counters towards the street, where you'll only find dessert items (ice creams mostly) - no burgers there. Often they're connected to a "real" McDonalds, sometimes (semi) stand-alone, with a real McD around the corner.

Generally, McDonalds in China is not seen as cheap as in Europe, but it's not seen as "upper middle class". It used to be like that in the late 90s and early 00s, but those times are gone.

Pizza Hat, indeed, is quite a bit more "pricy" (compared to local alternatives) in China than in the US, they're trying to sell themselves as a "good" restaurant there. Don't like them, so tried them only once when I was really hungry and my stomach was a bit upset, it was ok but otherwise I would SO much prefer a Chinese restaurant over them.

I don't know on what level Wendys is pricing themselves in the US, but I guess at about the McDonalds level, while in Singapore, they're (relatively) expensive, with way better choices (like Caesar salad as side) and the burgers do taste great (and look like on the picture) - also the crew seems to be much nicer than what I know from fast food places in Europe/US.

So, in a nutshell: Yes, there are local differences about the fast food chains, but usually they're not THAT big. Pizza Hat is probably the "biggest" difference when comparing China to the US.

I remember eating KFC from a Canadian franchise as a child which served me a back piece... yes... the back... as in all bone no meat, battered and fried... WTH?