There hasn’t been a McDonald’s in Russia since the start of the Ukraine war. With that, the popular Big Mac burger has also disappeared. How does the sequel taste?
Moscow – In response to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine Fast-food giant McDonald’s withdrew from Russia in March 2022. A few months later, a Russian businessman bought all 850 of the company’s branches in the country – and continued operations under the name “Vkusno i totschka” (English: “Delicious and point”). The popular “Big Mac” burger was one of the few McDonald’s products that was not adopted. Instead, the so-called “Big Hit” landed on the menu. What do customers in Russia think of the successor burger?
No more McDonald’s in Russia – how is the successor doing without “Big Mac”?
At the opening ceremony of the new chain “Vkusno i Totschka” in Moscow in June 2022, a demonstrator made it clear, very effectively to the media, that in his eyes a burger chain without a Big Mac is not the right thing to do. “Bring back the Big Mac,” read Russian on a sign the young man held up during the celebrations. He told local media representatives that he was demonstrating against this “injustice” by saying that there was no longer a Big Mac in Russia.
In fact, just like the “McFlurry”, the popular double-decker burger was not included in the Russian fast food chain’s range for the time being – in contrast to most other McDonald’s products, which were simply given a different name. In German Incidentally, since January 1st, McDonald’s branches have had to return them – what will change for customers as a result.
New “Big Hit” in Russia can’t keep up: “Miss the old Big Mac”
The new Russian CEO Oleg Paroev justified this as follows: “The Big Mac is McDonald’s sole success story. But we will definitely do something similar soon,” Paroev promised loudly T-Online in the summer of 2022, adding: “We will even try to make it better, so that our guests will like our dish more.”
But has this intention succeeded? “It tastes good. The sauce is smooth. The bun is cool. I like it,” a Russian tells n-tv about the new “Big Hit” burger. Another young customer doesn’t seem to agree entirely: “I’d say overall it’s not as good as a Big Mac. The sauce, which was the main thing with the Big Mac, is a little more sweet and sour,” explains the Russian in an interview with n-tv. In addition, the roll had gotten worse, softer, more insipid.
On the other hand, one student is of the opinion: “If you compare Big Mac and Big Hit – the Big Mac is the basis for the Big Hit. They completely redesigned him. They took more lettuce and changed the sauce,” the young man said. Nevertheless, he has to admit: “Basically it’s cool and different, but I still miss the old Big Mac.” So the verdict on the Big Hit is mixed – but Russians will have to get used to the new burger. Because the “Big Mac” will probably not be found on Russian menus any time soon.
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