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Welcome to McDonaldski! Russian McDonald’s Rip-Off Holds Grand Opening
“The taste has stayed the same.”
We’ll probably never understand what it feels like to watch McDonald’s leave our country. One of the world’s biggest fast-food chains left Russia after Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Over 847 brands closed down per McDonald’s CEO Mike Kempczinski’s order, and more than 60,000 people lost their job.
But this means an opportunity for locals who were rushing to revive the company and bring back jobs to the employees.
Russian businessman Alexander Govor bought all the 847 former locations of McDonald’s outlets. He previously was in charge of 25 branches in Siberia.
And instead of the Big Mac, the new green McDonald’s has “Grandee.” The brand’s name is “Vkusno & tochka.”
Aside from that, customers could also order “Chicken Premiere” and “Fish Burger” menus that remind people of the former fast-food joint’s favorite. They may be knock-offs, but people gobble them up nonetheless as they taste virtually the same.
Alexander Merkulov cut the ribbon to the opening of Moscow’s branch at Pushkinskaya Square.
But you can’t really change everyone’s mind, such as this lad who held up the “Bring back the Big Mac” sign before he was escorted out.
Merkulove hasted the rebranding of the company, opting for green, orange, and red color schemes on the logo.
According to Merkulove, that is the logo of two french fries and one burger. The equipment used and burgers made are “identical” to what used to be McDonald’s.
Thousands queued for the new “M” fast-food joint that now uses the “Vkusno & tochka” name. Its slogan is “The name changes, love stays.”
Visitors are sharing their reviews. One 15-year-old guest shared, “The cola is different, but there really is no change to the burger. The taste has stayed the same.”
Most of the packaging was in white as the opening was rushed, with the sauce packaging black marked to remove McD’s logo.
Vkusno & tochka’s menu is currently limited but more affordable. The double cheeseburger went as low as 129 roubles before it was 160 under McDonald’s. The fish burger is also 21 roubles cheaper at 169 roubles.
McDonald’s has over 32 years of history in Russia, with thousands flocking to the first-ever store as the cold war ended.
32 years later, the crowd returned to the same spot for the same food, but under a different name.
Chief executive Chris Kempczinski wrote when it announced the brand’s exit from the country, “The humanitarian crisis caused by the war in Ukraine, and the precipitating unpredictable operating environment, have led McDonald’s to conclude that continued ownership of the business in Russia is no longer tenable.”
They added that the “dedication and loyalty to McDonald’s’ of employees and hundreds of Russian suppliers made leaving a difficult decision.”
“However, we have a commitment to our global community and must remain steadfast in our values, and our commitment to our values means that we can no longer keep the arches shining there.”
Vkusno & tochka CEO Oleg Paroev shared that they plan to do the same to 200 other closed outlets by the end of June. And by the end of summer, all former 850 outlets.
A manager from the Moscow branch that’s opening back in July shared, “For three months, we did not work. Everyone is very pleased.”
The business has reportedly brought back employment to over 51,000 people. The new chain owner Alexander Govor said, “The corporation asked me to, first of all, keep the headcount, to provide people with work. That’s what I’m going to do.”
McDonald’s joined Shell, BP, Renault, and other international brands that exited the country when war broke out.
While McDonald’s said that these are “temporary,” locals have found a way to start their own McD’s.
