No, Really. This Was An AWESOME McDonald’s. In Sicily.
I’ve got a ton of posts to crank out on our family vacation to Sicily and Salzburg. I’m hoping to get my butt in gear. Here’s a quick peek at what I expect to cover:
- Getting There. Connecting In Rome And Using Hertz Gold Plus Rewards Points Overseas
- Hotel Review: Sheraton Catania, Sicily
- A Return To Taormina, A Beautiful City On A Hill
- Our Favorite Part of Taormina
- Exploring Mt. Etna
- Walking And Eating In Downtown Catania
- A Day In Siracusa
- Priority Pass Lounge At Catania Airport
- Mess after Mess. airberlin To Salzburg
- Hotel Review: Sheraton Grand Salzburg
- Sound of Music Tour
- Walking Around Salzburg
- L’Osteria Restaurant
- Salt Mines at Berchtesgaden
- Cable Car at Untersbergbahn
- Tasty Donuts, Salzburg
- Train To Vienna
- Hotel Review: Park Hyatt Vienna, OMG
- Park Hyatt Vienna Review, Part 2
- Riding The U-Bahn Subway In Vienna
- Schmetterlinghaus: The Imperial Butterfly House
- Haus des Meeres: Aqua Terra Zoo
- Austrian Airlines Lounge, Vienna Airport
- Austrian Airlines VIE-IAD, Business Class Review
- Wrapping Up
It’s funny. I just got through saying “I don’t expect McDonald’s service at Morton’s (the moderately upscale steakhouse), and I don’t expect Morton’s service at McDonald’s” in the most recent post of this series. That’s what made me remember that I needed to write about our Sicily McDonald’s experience.
I generally try to hit a McDonald’s when overseas. That may sound like blasphemy, but in many cities they feature menu items you don’t find in the US. While some of them have been duds, others are quite tasty (spicy wings in Barcelona). The McDonald’s in Sicily was probably one of my favorites. As I mentioned in my post about the Sheraton Catania, the breakfast at our hotel was challenging. We grabbed what we could one morning but it wasn’t enough to fill the kids’ bellies. So, we swung by McDonald’s to grab some chicken nuggets for Charlie to snack on. Boy, were we surprised.
First, it was modern and shockingly clean. Large touch screens allowed you to scroll through the entire menu. And, the bathrooms were spotless. Once you placed your order, the staff would bring it to where you were sitting.
There was also a large kids play area, a fairly imaginative one. There were two stationary bikes the kids could race on with video screens tracking their progress. And, there was also an obstacle course with timers and a scoreboard. Needless to say it took a lot of prodding to get Charlie to leave.
What About The Food?
If you can believe it, the most underwhelming thing we ate were the donuts. They were colorful and imaginative in their toppings. Similar to Dunkin Donuts in texture and flavor, but just a bit less appealing. There were probably other items in the pastry case that would have been more appealing.
I was able to grab some chicken wings that were pretty darn good. Meanwhile, Michelle had a Quinoa (?) salad that she absolutely loved.
For beverages, there was no soda at our table (though you could certainly order a Coke). Instead my wife had a great cappuccino. I ordered a fresh-squeezed orange juice (!) and Cat had fresh pineapple juice.
Definitely not an American McDonald’s experience. It left me shaking my head at what McD’s could be in the US.
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We waited out an insane rain storm in Pisa at the McD and I was equally surprised as you. Had 2 wonderful hot beverages and clean restrooms for 5 euros total I think.
Phil, totally different experience at most foreign McDonald’s I’ve been to
I also go to McDonald’s in foreign cities. The standouts for me was Pavlova in Sydney and Lobster Rolls in Bologna, Italy. In Copenhagen, since everything was so expensive, we would go to McDonald’s and purchase a salad for our meal.
Air, Pavlova? I can’t believe I missed that in Sydney!!!!
Beer at Champs-Élysées is absolutely FAB, 1/4 of price of any road side cafe.
Louis, haven’t tried that. Good beer?
Ed, its not only that it is a better experience overall, but McD has a veggie burger in many European countries (Switzerland,Austria, Germany, UK) and it isn’t the Morningstar crap that burger king serves up. In France, the McCafe near Versailles had some of the best macaroons, which was not what I was expecting.
Grabamile, we didn’t get a chance to try the macarons. My wife would have probably enjoyed the veggie patty. Me, not so much. 🙂
My mom and I made our last stop on a trip to Italy in Milan. Stayed at the Park Hyatt (thanks Chase Hyatt credit card!) All the restaurants nearby were quite expensive, but I spotted a McDs on the next block. Most fun I’ve ever had at a McDs! I couldn’t resist taking a couple of pics of the chocolate covered cream puffs I got for dessert. So yummy! But it sounds like the one Sicily trumps that!
I also like to check out the foreign McDs on trips. Just got back from a trip to Spain and also found out that Sevilla has a Costco! So had to check that out as well.
Cynthia, glad I’m not the only one who hits foreign McDs. You should share that cream puff pic via Twitter or FB!
Oh, and Costco….
Costco actually looked similar to USA, except, of course, all the signs were in Spanish. A lot of the products were the same too. They even had the big chocolate cakes in the bakery, and I got a frozen yogurt at the food court. There were some uniquely Spanish items too.
Cynthia, it’s the unique items I would have had some fun with!
If you’re ever in Seoul, try the bulgogi burger. It’s pretty awesome. Assuming you like bulgogi, anyway.
Christian, I do like bulgogi. I haven’t been to Seoul yet, but it’s on the list. Thanks for the tip!
I wonder how many of the readers who visit McD internationally visit when home. The McD in Hong Kong was working on create your taste when I was there last. You have the large wall menu and you build your burger with a wide assortment. Interestingly the only thing that was not good when served was the fries, they arrived in a wire basket and just were not that good. Domestically they have been rolling out a limited version of create your taste although they call it something different.
Leonard, I rarely visit McDs in the US. Only really when my son needs nuggets and there’s no Chick-Fil-A
I enjoyed the very best cappuccino while in Germany at a McDonald’s in Wurtzberg , It beat out all the Italian places and was cheaper. 2:20 Euros a cup with saucer and real silverware. The US has a way to go.
William, cup and saucer with real silverware? That’s impressive! My wife enjoyed her specialty coffees at McD’s in Europe as well.