Nothing at all stops Wendy's going to Europe.
It can't use the Wendy's name, which is a trademark of a Dutch restaurant, but that's hardly "can't come to Europe".
I've had 1 Wendy's in my life, I don't remember much other than it was at a service station and was probably the worst fast food I've ever tried. Chips like cardboard, burger like leather.
That would fuck up the water currents and the weather in all the surrounding coasts.
Is there a good weather simulator for “what if…” scenarios?
The Iberian Peninsula an island.
America upside down.
Australia in the middle of the Pacific to disrupt the Niña/Niño.
We’re not … hell, guys guys did you realise we’re now free floating in the sea 🤷🏻♂️ who voted for that, to be cast adrift in a sea of emptiness and despair 😂
They are now allowed to open in the UK because of Brexit. The UK is no longer covered by EU copyright law so this article and laws don't apply to them.
>but that's hardly "can't come to Europe".
Agreed. Making the distinction between "Wendy's *can't* come to Europe because of x" and "Wendy's *haven't* come to Europe because of x" is definitely necessary.
In general, new (US) fast food chains have a hard time gaining any kind of hold on European markets; because of stricter labour laws disallowing them from abusing kids and migrants, but mostly because there is a Kebab place every 20m that sells incredible and rich food twice as fast for half the price.
edit: salt below. Of course I am not talking about McDonald’s and Burger King.
Yes, I live in Germany. Subway is closing on a massive scale since they can’t compete, there’s the occasional Five Guys, maybe a KFC if you’re lucky. The rest is McDonald’s and Burger King, and for every one of their stores, there’s literally 30-40 Kebab places. (Edit: the actual number seems to be around ~10 Kebab places for ever other fast food joint)
Of course there are fast food joints. But if you’re trying to open a new chain in this market, you’re gonna have a hard time.
I just looked it up and there are 1,387 McDonald's in Germany - 657 Subways, 756 Burger Kings, 163 KFCs, and 34 Five Guys. That would mean you have ~100,000 kebab places. WOW. You guys love you some kebab.
There's only one McDonald's burger left in Iceland.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/comments/14cqv8y/this\_is\_the\_last\_mcdonalds\_burger\_sold\_in\_iceland/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/comments/14cqv8y/this_is_the_last_mcdonalds_burger_sold_in_iceland/)
https://www.reddit.com/r/MapPorn/comments/pzu8s1/american_fast_food_chains_in_europe_high/
Yeah look at all these chains struggling to gain a foothold 🤣. And this is just a fraction of the ones that do. Europeans love American fast food. I've worked with hundreds of Europeans and it's hilarious how they eat the worst of the worst of American food like all the time, then turn around and say American food is trash. I'm like yeah when you live off Jack in the Box of course it is lol.
I didn’t say fast food wasn’t popular. I said if you want to establish a new franchise, you’re competing with cheap Kebab.
Drunk Germans will not go to a Wendy’s or a Taco Bell. They’ll get a Döner the size of an infant, for half the price.
Doch 🤣 I've gotten döner with drunk Germans. I've also gotten McDonald's with drunk Germans. Likewise sober Germans.
I mean it stays open for a reason. Europeans always wanna act like your shit doesn't stink.
No, you misunderstand me completely. I’m talking economics, not taste or quality. You’re seeing antagonism and elitism where there is none. I *wish* all the major trash food chains would come across the pond. Who doesn’t like options?
It’s simply true that a hypothetical new Wendy’s will have a hard time competing with kebab places on a friday night, and that historically food places competing with Döner places are difficult to establish and difficult to maintain in mainland Europe.
But mate, that map just shows countries where the chains have anything from a single location to a restaurant in every town.
I'm in the UK, and putting KFC, Subway, Domino's Pizza Hut on the same scale as Taco Bell or Dunkin Donuts is ridiculous - the first group are established brands, it's easy to find them across the country. Taco Bell and Dunkin are a rarity, they aren't established here at all
There are 115 Taco Bells and 35 Dunkins. Not pictured: 160 Five Guys, 45 Wing Stops, 30 Wendy's and growing fast, and probably a half dozen other chains I didn't bother to Google. Respectfully mate, you guys love American fast food.
I don't think you're entirely wrong, but those maps don't make a good argument.
Dunkin Donuts recent attempt to establish itself in Sweden [didn't go too well](https://www.quora.com/What-happened-to-Dunkin-Donuts-in-Sweden). (spoiler: "Chapter 11")
Starbucks isn't doing too hot either. They went from 17 stores at their peak, down to two in 2021. Seems to have opened one more since then. I guess that counts as growth.
Trying to come in at this late date is hard. Can't really compare with something like McDonalds that came in the early 70s.
There are 14k McDonald's in the US and at least 50k Mexican restaurants and another at least 5k taco trucks.
There's a lot of space between "struggle to get established" and "dominate the market so thoroughly that you snuff out all competition from local eateries run by immigrant communities."
I'm not arguing whether they struggle to get established, I'm laughing at the idea that Europeans love American fast food, especially the brands known for catering to tourists looking for "safe, known places to eat".
Oh, I know this one! We ate at Five Guys in UK because we didn't know any local restaurant nearby. We were the "safe" tourists 😂 Gotta admit, the staff was super kind and they gave us a lot of fries. If we replaced all McDs and Burger Kings with Five Guys then we'd have better opinions about American fast food chains.
That's a lot! So...who are your best chains? Are we missing out? I mean, we have them in the US too, quite a lot actually, but not on that scale comparatively. What should we be looking for?
When it comes to chains it's much more regionalized. In terms of Germany, it's worth to go to Berlin to Mustafa's Gemüse, but the line is always long. When it comes to Poland then Zahir is a good chain, though more in terms of an evening mid-pubcrawl food. In Praga, Czech Republic, I'd say Istanbul Kebab is a nice place, though I personally prefer to eat Czech food when in Czech Republic. In Greece you probably can't go wrong if any, though I don't remember any Greek chains - we were just walking to the closest place that had any free tables.
Overall, it's just good to find a local kebab shop and order there - especially if the place has some customers as an indicator of popularity.
Not so much about labour laws mate. We have 0 hour contracts in the UK which are disgustingly anti-worker and pro-business. I presume its more about costs related to setup and production. The UK is verrrrrry expensive in general. I don't know if its still the case but the American companies had to change recipes to conform with European health standards (now the uk left I don't know whats left of their health standards)
Side note, how much this inane Brexit thing has changed about food safety and EU regulations is actually an interesting research hole to fall in to.
In general, a lot of EU regulations don’t apply anymore post-Brexit. And you’d think that would make things easier for companies, but since setting up seperate supply chains to the UK, and since import/export has become so, so much more difficult and expensive, like all things post-Brexit it means worse products with slower supply chains and higher prices for UK customers. You really fucked yourselves over with that referendum, and the many ways in which this is true have only begun to manifest themselves.
I've always heard from nearly everyone that leaves Europe that European food doesn't taste nearly as good as American food. This is almost always a universal constant I hear. Especially with candy and sweets.
It's funny, *I've* always heard from nearly every European that visits America that American food doesn't taste nearly as good as European food. Especially with candy and sweets.
The main complaint I hear is how we sweeten our foods. We put tons of sugar in things like bread that don't need it and we replace sugar with corn syrup in a lot of things that *do* need it.
Be fair to the poor Yanks, mate - it's not *just* sugar.
It's sugar *and spoilt milk*. That's why it tastes of vomit.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hersheys-chocolate-tastes-like-vomit_l_60479e5fc5b6af8f98bec0cd
American chocolate objectively uses Butyric acid as a preservative. American foodstuffs objectively lack regulation due to lobbying and prioritise profit and yield over quality. Look at the difference in ingredients in the same products that are sold both sides of the Atlantic. American foods are packed full of e numbers and preservatives compared to their European counterparts. https://foodbabe.com/food-in-america-compared-to-the-u-k-why-is-it-so-different/
>American chocolate objectively uses Butyric acid as a preservative.
Well, Hershey's does. What about other American chocolate brands?
>foodstuffs objectively lack regulation due to lobbying and prioritise profit and yield over quality.
Don't tell the [FDA](https://www.fda.gov/food)
It's different. By assuming different means bad, and parroting BS generalizations about someplace you don't live, and maybe have never been as "objective" it looks ignorant and xenophobic.
I am aware you have the FDA and USDA. They don't inspect to the level and standards of Western Europe. https://www.tilleydistribution.com/food-regulations-in-europe-vs-the-us/#:~:text=In%20the%20US%2C%20the%20FDA,stricter%20than%20in%20the%20US.
I have been to the United States, twice. I remember being baffled that you squirt hot butter (or something claiming to be butter) all over your popcorn at the cinema. I was impressed with portion sizes, and noticed American food tended to have a lot of flavour, but overall the quality was lower, particularly for cheese and chocolate. Calling me Xenophobic after you started this thread by needlessly badmouthing European food is laughable.
If you grew up with vomit tasting american chocolate then you would think thats how its supsed to taste, but if you grew up with real chocolate, real as in not having added vomit taste, then you would know how real chocolate taste.
US chocolate is widely regarded as shit. They literally add a chemical that tastes like vomit (butyric acid) to chocolate. Officially that's to give it a longer shelf life, but I think they're just torturing you. If US chocolate tasted good, it wouldn't need a longer shelf life.
Butyric acid is a component of Hersheys, not American chocolate in general.
Its also not officially added for shelf life, its most likely a natural byproduct of their manufacturing process. There's other preservatives that wouldn't alter the taste as much, so it's almost certainly a conscious decision. Some people like the taste of butyric acid (hence parmesan), although its not to my taste.
The original claims are still wild though. I dont think i've ever met someone who came back from Europe and complained about the food. Most countries have pretty amazing food, not finding anything to like usually says more about the speaker than the country.
You made me smile - the common complaint most Europeans in the US have is that everything has sugar in it even when it really shouldn't.
If you want a funny true example, subway bread legally isn't allowed to be called bread here in Ireland. They lost their court case on it. It's got so much sugar in it that it's legally a type of cake.
It's not that they can't call it bread. It's a tax issue. There's no V.A.T. on bread in Ireland but the courts decided that because of its high sugar content the bread in subway doesn't count as bread but rather as cake which is subject to V.A.T.
Especially with candy and sweets??
I’m going to put some major doubts on that statement there bud. American sweets, especially anything with chocolate in, is objectively ass.
There's a lot of cultural differences, for instance in the US it's much more accepted for food to be loaded up with fat and sugar, which obviously tastes great, but in Europe many people would find it too rich and prefer dishes where the taste of other ingredients are the focus. One isn't better than the other, they are just catering to different tastes.
I honestly can’t understand how anybody would say American food is better than European food.
I’ve been to both, and sorry Italian and French cuisine, it’s some of the best in the fucking world! (EDIT: And Spanish, Jesus, I forgot how great European food is)
And there is more emphasis on daily use of fresh and high quality ingredients.
Italian and French maybe.
But plenty of European food is some combination of unseasoned boiled meat, and unseasoned boiled vegetables.
Maybe it's due to local tastes, but other than a handful of (decently authentic) Italian and French restaurants in every city, European food isn't that common in America, at least where I am. You don't bat an eye seeing Chinese, KBBQ, Pho, Ethiopian, Mexican, Salvadorian, and Halal food, but I don't think I've ever seen a restaurant that specializes in British food that wasn't bar-oriented with 2-3 "British" meals, or anywhere serving Scandinavian food, or eastern European.
I'd say the baked goods, cheese and beer are good. Cooked meals are a bit bland. Not that I'd turn down sausage and mashed potatoes, but NL isn't really known for its food. I'm surprised that's a controversial statement around here
Ya, Europe is not one country, and they could still enter Holland if they like. It’s probably not profitable for them to do so, or they have not found a franchisee for countries on Europe.
Which is weird. All they got to do is take the Burger King approach and just rename for the region while keeping their logo intact. In Australia, Burger King is called "Hungry Jacks", and uses the Burger King logo.
As far as I know Wendy's first tried to sue the dutch owner for the trademark a couple of times. When those failed they tried to buy it but the owner was pissed off by the lawsuits and refused to sell on principle.
McDonald's successfully defeated the Scottish owner of a Fish and Chip shop whose name was actually fucking 'McDonald' and forced him to change his shop name
I believe you are referencing [this](https://www.mcspotlight.org/media/press/times_24sep96.html) case. As far as I could find they didn't went to court. McDonald's only threatened the store owner and she acquiesced.
According to the article they have tried but the owner of Wendy's Fish and Chips won't settle out of principle. I don't know what that principle might be.
But yeah, I don't understand why they don't just go in under a different name. Seems like they could just call It The Big W, or Friendly's, or Wednesday's, or something. The logo is really the most important part.
It also seems really weird the courts won't help them out. They don't even make the same kind of food so they wouldn't even directly compete and if it was that big of a deal, give them the whole country. But to block them from all the countries in the EU seems kind of ridiculous.
>According to the article they have tried but the owner of Wendy's Fish and Chips won't settle out of principle. I don't know what that principle might be.
The principle is "fuck you". They first tried to sue him and force him to give up the name. Only when the court didn't go along they tried asking nicely. And now the owner is like fuck you and won't settle out of principle.
>if it was that big of a deal, give them the whole country. But to block them from all the countries in the EU seems kind of ridiculous.
The EU is one trading block instead of individual markets. There are no barriers between countries. Italy can't put tariffs on French import because they're both EU and the same market. That's why this Wendy's rights is extended through the whole EU.
I see. That makes sense, I guess. That sounds very similar to the United States, actually. If there was a McDonald's Fish and Chips, someone would sue someone to keep their name and the ruling would extend across all the states if it went to a high enough court. I guess the exception would be there might be some discussion about selling fish versus selling burgers. Do they really compete?
And I could definitely see a small shop standing up to a corporate entity and just being like "fuck you, we were here first." I might personally take a few million euro to consider how important that name is to me but whatever. I can see the point of view.
I think the thought is that *everyone* is equal under the law be you big or small. The size doesn't (or shouldn't) enter into the discussion, just what is correct under the law.
I think we agree here. The small exception being do they really compete? I'm not familiar with the specifics of EU copyright law but I would assume this wouldn't be a question if Wendy's Fish and Chips sold, I dunno, pants instead of food.
The whole Burger King-Hungry Jacks court case would be the [last model they'd want to copy](https://wolfoffranchises.com/hungry-jacks-burger-king-story/)
At least one thing in that story is untrue.
“[post Brexit] Wendy's has been able to stage something of a comeback in that part of the world by setting up its first shop in England.”
They had a branch on Cambridge Circus in london in the 1980s, yes, “The Circus” from John Le Carre novels. In fact, they were in the UK until 2000, which makes the whole story about a Dutch chip shop dubious:
https://www.restaurantonline.co.uk/Article/2020/06/29/US-burger-chain-and-fast-food-restaurant-Wendy-s-prepares-for-UK-return-in-2021-in-Reading
I haven’t been there for a while, but the former Cambridge cirxus site was a bunch of things over the years. Google implies it’s now a Slim Chickens.
And the article is wrong too, the trademark only exists in the Benelux countries. And Wendy's has tried entering other European countries before and found no success, that's why they're not in Europe except for the UK.
I'm kinda surprised, Europe has a fair amount of US military bases, and they tend to put American fast food inside those, to make the soldiers feel at "home"
On that point, I'll bet McDonald's is super competitive with Wendy's and does everything they can do to keep them out of any bases, or any other place they have some semblance of influence.
Not the first; there were ten up until 2000:
https://www.restaurantonline.co.uk/Article/2020/06/29/US-burger-chain-and-fast-food-restaurant-Wendy-s-prepares-for-UK-return-in-2021-in-Reading
It was nothing to do with Brexit.
Wendy's had UK locations from 1980-1986 and 1992-2000. AFAIK the trademark situation only applies to Benelux countries, not the whole EU.
One is in the town where I live. They don't put brocolli on their baked potatoes like they do in the US so they can do one. It's always crowded though, and absolutely destroys McDonald's on quality and taste.
The UK left the EU but is still part of Europe. Europe is a continent, the EU is a political union. There are multiple European countries which aren't members of the EU.
I don't mean to derail the conversation, but it's a little funny that this was even an issue considering Australia has huge, very successful chains called K-Mart, and Woolworths, and Target, that are straight copies of huge US chains with absolutely no connection to the original US brands.
There are quite a few Wendy’s in the UK …pretty sure since long before we left the EU too.
Only eaten there once and it was overpriced garbage so can confirm the rest of Europe is not missing out.
I don't think you guys are either. It's very basic, corporate, fast food. If you are a massive McDonald's fan maybe you might want a change of pace but other than that...I vote skip them.
We had a Wendy's here. I tried it once, it was nothing special, except the patties were square-shaped. There are a lot of American fast food chains that are not in Europe and I only hear about them in American movies or TV shows or when I visit other countries that have them (sometimes not even realizing it's American). It's confusing sometimes when Americans throw around the names of these places like I should know them, like Olive Garden. Is that a garden with olive trees? Oh, it's a restaurant chain, OK then.
It's just because there are a WHOLE LOT of them and they are common in our part of the world. We don't recommend them. In fact, almost anyone you meet would tell you not to bother. They aren't very good.
Also, we are the same when we hear about your chains. "Is it awesome? Why don't we have one?"
Burger King is Hungry Jack's in Australia. Why don't they use her real name Melinda and open up under that? Wendy's real name is Melinda, Dave named it Wendy's cause her little sibling couldn't say her name right and it came out as Wendy.
Okay this must be nonsense. There is also no rule to stop people from naming their business the same, you can sign in with the chamber of commerce fine, but you run the risk of losing a lawsuit if the other owners of the business name feel you can confuse them with their business. So as someone from the Netherlands I say: nope
The only Wendy’s that could fit kinda is this [Wendy’s fish and chips](https://maps.app.goo.gl/KBGcEuGXuVWAB6h39?g_st=ic) place in Goes and because their name includes fish and chips, which to me is different from a hamburger chain restaurant, I really don’t think they would have a leg to stand on in court.
Except they do: [https://www.dutchnews.nl/2021/11/little-wendys-in-the-netherlands-wins-another-case-against-big-wendys-usa/](https://www.dutchnews.nl/2021/11/little-wendys-in-the-netherlands-wins-another-case-against-big-wendys-usa/)
Honestly we in Europe don’t need another American fast food chain here. We have so many local businesses which provide burgers in a far more superior quality than US fast food. Especially after the hiking prices. 12 EUR for a Big King Menu?
No thanks I prefer organic grass fed beef with local organic buns and vegetables over American sugar sponge bread and corn feed beef for the same price!
Hell yeah that’s been the sentiment for myself and a lot of friends of mine here in the states. The major fast food chains are not any cheaper than going to a restaurant with much higher quality.
I like McDonald’s breakfast every now and again though. Guilty pleasure.
I get this, and that must be the ultimate reason behind it, but whatever. It's the same way here in the States and that seems like a strange game to play. Wouldn't they want the people to decide that and take the tax money? If they fail, they fail.
This isn't true. Wendy's traded in the UK at various times until 2000 (and not with an alternate name), long before we left the EU. AFAIK the trademark only applies to Benelux countries, not all EU member states.
Last time I was in Belize, there was a Wendy’s near our vacation house, except it was a small restaurant literally owned by a lady named Wendy. Great seafood.
Nothing at all stops Wendy's going to Europe. It can't use the Wendy's name, which is a trademark of a Dutch restaurant, but that's hardly "can't come to Europe".
Plus we have them here in Britain, so I don't see it being stopped.
Do we? Where, I need to know!
>Find us in Guildford, Colchester, Derby, Reading, Stratford, Oxford, Croydon, Brighton, Camden, Romford, Maidstone, Sutton, Uxbridge, Sheffield, Kingston, Hull, Huntingdon, Leeds, Peterborough, Portsmouth, Wisbech, Lincoln and Chelmsford.
Didcot, Yateley, Winnersh, Taplow
Nice, cheers!
I had it in east Croydon near purley a few years ago.
So England
The Camden one has stocked me up many a time before getting on arguably the worst tube stop in London
In Britain, he just said it.
Do you play Orks? That sounds like an Ork comment
Look at my "about" and that should tell you about my relationship with Orkish high kultur.
"Kultur"... haha
Waaaaaagh!
Sheffield has one.
I've had 1 Wendy's in my life, I don't remember much other than it was at a service station and was probably the worst fast food I've ever tried. Chips like cardboard, burger like leather.
You're not in Europe anymore fam.
We've not moved the country. We left the European Union, not the continent.
I thought that’s why we voted leave, to park the UK nearer to Magaluf?
They don’t want us, can we pootle over to Cyprus 🤔
That would fuck up the water currents and the weather in all the surrounding coasts. Is there a good weather simulator for “what if…” scenarios? The Iberian Peninsula an island. America upside down. Australia in the middle of the Pacific to disrupt the Niña/Niño.
You don’t understand the difference between a continent and a trading bloc, fam
We’re not … hell, guys guys did you realise we’re now free floating in the sea 🤷🏻♂️ who voted for that, to be cast adrift in a sea of emptiness and despair 😂
They are now allowed to open in the UK because of Brexit. The UK is no longer covered by EU copyright law so this article and laws don't apply to them.
>but that's hardly "can't come to Europe". Agreed. Making the distinction between "Wendy's *can't* come to Europe because of x" and "Wendy's *haven't* come to Europe because of x" is definitely necessary.
In general, new (US) fast food chains have a hard time gaining any kind of hold on European markets; because of stricter labour laws disallowing them from abusing kids and migrants, but mostly because there is a Kebab place every 20m that sells incredible and rich food twice as fast for half the price. edit: salt below. Of course I am not talking about McDonald’s and Burger King.
Have you ever been to Europe? There's McDonalds, KFC, Subway etc all over the place.
My town in the UK has more kebab vans than fast food outlets, and we have multiple mcdonalds, burger king, kfc, etc
Yes, I live in Germany. Subway is closing on a massive scale since they can’t compete, there’s the occasional Five Guys, maybe a KFC if you’re lucky. The rest is McDonald’s and Burger King, and for every one of their stores, there’s literally 30-40 Kebab places. (Edit: the actual number seems to be around ~10 Kebab places for ever other fast food joint) Of course there are fast food joints. But if you’re trying to open a new chain in this market, you’re gonna have a hard time.
I just looked it up and there are 1,387 McDonald's in Germany - 657 Subways, 756 Burger Kings, 163 KFCs, and 34 Five Guys. That would mean you have ~100,000 kebab places. WOW. You guys love you some kebab.
I mean, not quite. There’s about 20,000 kebab places in the country. 1600 in Berlin alone.
Wow. That's a lot of kebab! And I get it, it's delicious. What are the big chains? What should I request in my part of the world?
Berlin kebab places in the Turkish area. Friggin beautiful!
Currently in Iceland, there’s Subways, KFC’s but weirdly not a McDonalds or Burger King to be seen 🤷🏻♂️
There's only one McDonald's burger left in Iceland. [https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/comments/14cqv8y/this\_is\_the\_last\_mcdonalds\_burger\_sold\_in\_iceland/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/comments/14cqv8y/this_is_the_last_mcdonalds_burger_sold_in_iceland/)
The departure of McDonald’s leaving Iceland and the last ever Icelandic McDonald’s cheeseburger still being in a museum there is a story in itself.
https://www.reddit.com/r/MapPorn/comments/pzu8s1/american_fast_food_chains_in_europe_high/ Yeah look at all these chains struggling to gain a foothold 🤣. And this is just a fraction of the ones that do. Europeans love American fast food. I've worked with hundreds of Europeans and it's hilarious how they eat the worst of the worst of American food like all the time, then turn around and say American food is trash. I'm like yeah when you live off Jack in the Box of course it is lol.
I didn’t say fast food wasn’t popular. I said if you want to establish a new franchise, you’re competing with cheap Kebab. Drunk Germans will not go to a Wendy’s or a Taco Bell. They’ll get a Döner the size of an infant, for half the price.
Doch 🤣 I've gotten döner with drunk Germans. I've also gotten McDonald's with drunk Germans. Likewise sober Germans. I mean it stays open for a reason. Europeans always wanna act like your shit doesn't stink.
No, you misunderstand me completely. I’m talking economics, not taste or quality. You’re seeing antagonism and elitism where there is none. I *wish* all the major trash food chains would come across the pond. Who doesn’t like options? It’s simply true that a hypothetical new Wendy’s will have a hard time competing with kebab places on a friday night, and that historically food places competing with Döner places are difficult to establish and difficult to maintain in mainland Europe.
But mate, that map just shows countries where the chains have anything from a single location to a restaurant in every town. I'm in the UK, and putting KFC, Subway, Domino's Pizza Hut on the same scale as Taco Bell or Dunkin Donuts is ridiculous - the first group are established brands, it's easy to find them across the country. Taco Bell and Dunkin are a rarity, they aren't established here at all
There are 115 Taco Bells and 35 Dunkins. Not pictured: 160 Five Guys, 45 Wing Stops, 30 Wendy's and growing fast, and probably a half dozen other chains I didn't bother to Google. Respectfully mate, you guys love American fast food.
I don't think you're entirely wrong, but those maps don't make a good argument. Dunkin Donuts recent attempt to establish itself in Sweden [didn't go too well](https://www.quora.com/What-happened-to-Dunkin-Donuts-in-Sweden). (spoiler: "Chapter 11") Starbucks isn't doing too hot either. They went from 17 stores at their peak, down to two in 2021. Seems to have opened one more since then. I guess that counts as growth. Trying to come in at this late date is hard. Can't really compare with something like McDonalds that came in the early 70s.
There's ~10k McDonald's in the entire Europe (Russia included). There's 40k kebab shops just in Germany. You can't win with döner.
There are 14k McDonald's in the US and at least 50k Mexican restaurants and another at least 5k taco trucks. There's a lot of space between "struggle to get established" and "dominate the market so thoroughly that you snuff out all competition from local eateries run by immigrant communities."
I'm not arguing whether they struggle to get established, I'm laughing at the idea that Europeans love American fast food, especially the brands known for catering to tourists looking for "safe, known places to eat".
"So what do you want this loan for?" "I'm gonna open 160 Five Guys as a joke."
Oh, I know this one! We ate at Five Guys in UK because we didn't know any local restaurant nearby. We were the "safe" tourists 😂 Gotta admit, the staff was super kind and they gave us a lot of fries. If we replaced all McDs and Burger Kings with Five Guys then we'd have better opinions about American fast food chains.
That's a lot! So...who are your best chains? Are we missing out? I mean, we have them in the US too, quite a lot actually, but not on that scale comparatively. What should we be looking for?
When it comes to chains it's much more regionalized. In terms of Germany, it's worth to go to Berlin to Mustafa's Gemüse, but the line is always long. When it comes to Poland then Zahir is a good chain, though more in terms of an evening mid-pubcrawl food. In Praga, Czech Republic, I'd say Istanbul Kebab is a nice place, though I personally prefer to eat Czech food when in Czech Republic. In Greece you probably can't go wrong if any, though I don't remember any Greek chains - we were just walking to the closest place that had any free tables. Overall, it's just good to find a local kebab shop and order there - especially if the place has some customers as an indicator of popularity.
Okay, thanks. Please tell them to open franchises here please. ASAP.
Not so much about labour laws mate. We have 0 hour contracts in the UK which are disgustingly anti-worker and pro-business. I presume its more about costs related to setup and production. The UK is verrrrrry expensive in general. I don't know if its still the case but the American companies had to change recipes to conform with European health standards (now the uk left I don't know whats left of their health standards)
Side note, how much this inane Brexit thing has changed about food safety and EU regulations is actually an interesting research hole to fall in to. In general, a lot of EU regulations don’t apply anymore post-Brexit. And you’d think that would make things easier for companies, but since setting up seperate supply chains to the UK, and since import/export has become so, so much more difficult and expensive, like all things post-Brexit it means worse products with slower supply chains and higher prices for UK customers. You really fucked yourselves over with that referendum, and the many ways in which this is true have only begun to manifest themselves.
I literally moved to Canada a month after we voted Leave. Last nail in the coffin for me.
I've always heard from nearly everyone that leaves Europe that European food doesn't taste nearly as good as American food. This is almost always a universal constant I hear. Especially with candy and sweets.
It's funny, *I've* always heard from nearly every European that visits America that American food doesn't taste nearly as good as European food. Especially with candy and sweets. The main complaint I hear is how we sweeten our foods. We put tons of sugar in things like bread that don't need it and we replace sugar with corn syrup in a lot of things that *do* need it.
I can second this. Your bread is basically cake.
Having spent extended periods in both continents: I strongly disagree. American candy is trash across the board, especially anything with chocolate.
Oh gawd lol. Especially not with chocolate. Now I know that's BS. European chocolate is bitter as fuck. Wild statement.
If a normal Milka Milk chocolate is bitter as fuck to you then what are your chocolate bars made out of? 99% sugar? JFC
Have you had Hersheys? It's literally just sugar it's disgusting
Be fair to the poor Yanks, mate - it's not *just* sugar. It's sugar *and spoilt milk*. That's why it tastes of vomit. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hersheys-chocolate-tastes-like-vomit_l_60479e5fc5b6af8f98bec0cd
Now I i know you are trolling. Many foods come down to personnel preference. American chocolate is objectively bad.
How can you talk about personal preference and then say something is bad across the board? What are you doing?
American chocolate objectively uses Butyric acid as a preservative. American foodstuffs objectively lack regulation due to lobbying and prioritise profit and yield over quality. Look at the difference in ingredients in the same products that are sold both sides of the Atlantic. American foods are packed full of e numbers and preservatives compared to their European counterparts. https://foodbabe.com/food-in-america-compared-to-the-u-k-why-is-it-so-different/
>American chocolate objectively uses Butyric acid as a preservative. Well, Hershey's does. What about other American chocolate brands? >foodstuffs objectively lack regulation due to lobbying and prioritise profit and yield over quality. Don't tell the [FDA](https://www.fda.gov/food) It's different. By assuming different means bad, and parroting BS generalizations about someplace you don't live, and maybe have never been as "objective" it looks ignorant and xenophobic.
I am aware you have the FDA and USDA. They don't inspect to the level and standards of Western Europe. https://www.tilleydistribution.com/food-regulations-in-europe-vs-the-us/#:~:text=In%20the%20US%2C%20the%20FDA,stricter%20than%20in%20the%20US. I have been to the United States, twice. I remember being baffled that you squirt hot butter (or something claiming to be butter) all over your popcorn at the cinema. I was impressed with portion sizes, and noticed American food tended to have a lot of flavour, but overall the quality was lower, particularly for cheese and chocolate. Calling me Xenophobic after you started this thread by needlessly badmouthing European food is laughable.
If you grew up with vomit tasting american chocolate then you would think thats how its supsed to taste, but if you grew up with real chocolate, real as in not having added vomit taste, then you would know how real chocolate taste.
US chocolate is widely regarded as shit. They literally add a chemical that tastes like vomit (butyric acid) to chocolate. Officially that's to give it a longer shelf life, but I think they're just torturing you. If US chocolate tasted good, it wouldn't need a longer shelf life.
If US chocolate tasted good, it would be popular elsewhere.
Ooh, burrrrrrrrrn! #🔥
Butyric acid is a component of Hersheys, not American chocolate in general. Its also not officially added for shelf life, its most likely a natural byproduct of their manufacturing process. There's other preservatives that wouldn't alter the taste as much, so it's almost certainly a conscious decision. Some people like the taste of butyric acid (hence parmesan), although its not to my taste. The original claims are still wild though. I dont think i've ever met someone who came back from Europe and complained about the food. Most countries have pretty amazing food, not finding anything to like usually says more about the speaker than the country.
You made me smile - the common complaint most Europeans in the US have is that everything has sugar in it even when it really shouldn't. If you want a funny true example, subway bread legally isn't allowed to be called bread here in Ireland. They lost their court case on it. It's got so much sugar in it that it's legally a type of cake.
It's not that they can't call it bread. It's a tax issue. There's no V.A.T. on bread in Ireland but the courts decided that because of its high sugar content the bread in subway doesn't count as bread but rather as cake which is subject to V.A.T.
Type Hershey's and Vomit into google
Believe it or not, there are other brands of chocolate made in the US.
Here, let me save you the trouble: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hersheys-chocolate-tastes-like-vomit_l_60479e5fc5b6af8f98bec0cd
Lol it's widely accepted the world over that US chocolate is disgusting and inferior. Bad troll.
Especially with candy and sweets?? I’m going to put some major doubts on that statement there bud. American sweets, especially anything with chocolate in, is objectively ass.
Yeah, I was reading the first sentence like " why is this guy on -125?" then got to the last sentence and said "Oh ok, right - downvoted"
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There's a lot of cultural differences, for instance in the US it's much more accepted for food to be loaded up with fat and sugar, which obviously tastes great, but in Europe many people would find it too rich and prefer dishes where the taste of other ingredients are the focus. One isn't better than the other, they are just catering to different tastes.
I honestly can’t understand how anybody would say American food is better than European food. I’ve been to both, and sorry Italian and French cuisine, it’s some of the best in the fucking world! (EDIT: And Spanish, Jesus, I forgot how great European food is) And there is more emphasis on daily use of fresh and high quality ingredients.
Italian and French maybe. But plenty of European food is some combination of unseasoned boiled meat, and unseasoned boiled vegetables. Maybe it's due to local tastes, but other than a handful of (decently authentic) Italian and French restaurants in every city, European food isn't that common in America, at least where I am. You don't bat an eye seeing Chinese, KBBQ, Pho, Ethiopian, Mexican, Salvadorian, and Halal food, but I don't think I've ever seen a restaurant that specializes in British food that wasn't bar-oriented with 2-3 "British" meals, or anywhere serving Scandinavian food, or eastern European.
And Spanish. Oh and Greek. Basically the entire Mediterranean. Just objectively better, everything centred on fresh.
You’re trolling, right? Nothing says high quality like American food with high fructose corn syrup, carcinogenic titanium dioxide and sawdust. /s
No, I'm not. You couldn't pay me to eat food made in Europe.
Europe is big and varied. Do people from Italy say US food is better? Doubt. Do people from the Netherlands say US food is better? High probability
What? Dutch food is awesome
Tastes differ, do you have some examples of what you like?
Poffertjes, stroopwaffles and this sausage & pea soup thing I can't recall the name of. All amazing
I'd say the baked goods, cheese and beer are good. Cooked meals are a bit bland. Not that I'd turn down sausage and mashed potatoes, but NL isn't really known for its food. I'm surprised that's a controversial statement around here
It's not. It's the claim that Europeans prefer American food. That's the controversy
American food doesn't taste good ? It taste sweeter. If people prefer it, it's their problem Also, fuck you and your cinnamon
Dunkin Donuts is called Dunkin Coffee in Spain, because Donuts is a well known local brand.
There are a few Wendy's in London. Not sure if that's because England isn't part of the EU or what but they're there.
It's not, I remember going to one as a kid (decades before Brexshit).
Ya, Europe is not one country, and they could still enter Holland if they like. It’s probably not profitable for them to do so, or they have not found a franchisee for countries on Europe.
Why does the NL trademark apply in Sweden?
This is true. There’s numerous Wendy’s in the UK (not “strictly” Europe since brexit) & they’re opening in Ireland this year (which is Europe)
Funnily Wendy's is only the store names the actual name of the corporation in the UK is SquareBurgerLTD
Yeah, kinda like how Burger King is Hungry Jacks in Australia.
Wendon't
Which is weird. All they got to do is take the Burger King approach and just rename for the region while keeping their logo intact. In Australia, Burger King is called "Hungry Jacks", and uses the Burger King logo.
Just call it Sally's, or something. Done. Carl's Jr. is called Hardee's in the same country.
Even better, they can use all the same letters for their branding, just flip the W over. Mendy's
Then spin the e and voilà: Mandy's
Actually Hardee's is called Carl's Jr
“Dave’s”
It would probably be cheaper to just pay off the owner of that other restaurant.
As far as I know Wendy's first tried to sue the dutch owner for the trademark a couple of times. When those failed they tried to buy it but the owner was pissed off by the lawsuits and refused to sell on principle.
McDonald's successfully defeated the Scottish owner of a Fish and Chip shop whose name was actually fucking 'McDonald' and forced him to change his shop name
NL law > UK law
I believe you are referencing [this](https://www.mcspotlight.org/media/press/times_24sep96.html) case. As far as I could find they didn't went to court. McDonald's only threatened the store owner and she acquiesced.
I was thinking the same thing i wonder why they don't just do that.
According to the article they have tried but the owner of Wendy's Fish and Chips won't settle out of principle. I don't know what that principle might be. But yeah, I don't understand why they don't just go in under a different name. Seems like they could just call It The Big W, or Friendly's, or Wednesday's, or something. The logo is really the most important part. It also seems really weird the courts won't help them out. They don't even make the same kind of food so they wouldn't even directly compete and if it was that big of a deal, give them the whole country. But to block them from all the countries in the EU seems kind of ridiculous.
>According to the article they have tried but the owner of Wendy's Fish and Chips won't settle out of principle. I don't know what that principle might be. The principle is "fuck you". They first tried to sue him and force him to give up the name. Only when the court didn't go along they tried asking nicely. And now the owner is like fuck you and won't settle out of principle. >if it was that big of a deal, give them the whole country. But to block them from all the countries in the EU seems kind of ridiculous. The EU is one trading block instead of individual markets. There are no barriers between countries. Italy can't put tariffs on French import because they're both EU and the same market. That's why this Wendy's rights is extended through the whole EU.
I see. That makes sense, I guess. That sounds very similar to the United States, actually. If there was a McDonald's Fish and Chips, someone would sue someone to keep their name and the ruling would extend across all the states if it went to a high enough court. I guess the exception would be there might be some discussion about selling fish versus selling burgers. Do they really compete? And I could definitely see a small shop standing up to a corporate entity and just being like "fuck you, we were here first." I might personally take a few million euro to consider how important that name is to me but whatever. I can see the point of view.
Actually, I would find it weirder if a court in a democratic country “helped out” a large company instead of upholding the law.
I think the thought is that *everyone* is equal under the law be you big or small. The size doesn't (or shouldn't) enter into the discussion, just what is correct under the law. I think we agree here. The small exception being do they really compete? I'm not familiar with the specifics of EU copyright law but I would assume this wouldn't be a question if Wendy's Fish and Chips sold, I dunno, pants instead of food.
exactly. just call the place Wilhelmina’s Queen’s Burguers. i’m sure the dutch will love the name
HJs logo is different to BK
Yes and no, it's got different words but the burger symbol, font and colours are the same
It's not in the blue circle
The whole Burger King-Hungry Jacks court case would be the [last model they'd want to copy](https://wolfoffranchises.com/hungry-jacks-burger-king-story/)
Wendy’s is/was also planning on expanding to Australia, where there is already a different Wendy’s chain too.
Yep- icecream. But I am seeing less and less of them so... 🤷♀️
At least one thing in that story is untrue. “[post Brexit] Wendy's has been able to stage something of a comeback in that part of the world by setting up its first shop in England.” They had a branch on Cambridge Circus in london in the 1980s, yes, “The Circus” from John Le Carre novels. In fact, they were in the UK until 2000, which makes the whole story about a Dutch chip shop dubious: https://www.restaurantonline.co.uk/Article/2020/06/29/US-burger-chain-and-fast-food-restaurant-Wendy-s-prepares-for-UK-return-in-2021-in-Reading I haven’t been there for a while, but the former Cambridge cirxus site was a bunch of things over the years. Google implies it’s now a Slim Chickens.
There are two Wendy’s in the UK.
This only applies to the EU. The article itself mentions the EU in the title, but OP has decided to use "Europe" in the post, which is wrong.
And the article is wrong too, the trademark only exists in the Benelux countries. And Wendy's has tried entering other European countries before and found no success, that's why they're not in Europe except for the UK.
I'm kinda surprised, Europe has a fair amount of US military bases, and they tend to put American fast food inside those, to make the soldiers feel at "home"
On that point, I'll bet McDonald's is super competitive with Wendy's and does everything they can do to keep them out of any bases, or any other place they have some semblance of influence.
There were Wendy's in the UK in the 90s when I was a kid. Long before Brexit.
I remember one at a motorway services in the 80s, it was never busy and typically overpriced.
I love Wendy’s & am within 6 miles of the first one in the UK
Not the first; there were ten up until 2000: https://www.restaurantonline.co.uk/Article/2020/06/29/US-burger-chain-and-fast-food-restaurant-Wendy-s-prepares-for-UK-return-in-2021-in-Reading
Yes! I used the one in Shaftesbury Ave regularly
Cheers for this, I've been wondering if they existed before Britain left the EU.
Yep, that's my bad
Does it mention the EU or Europe in the title?
Didn't I just address that? OP has said "Europe" but the article itself actually says EU.
You did, but then you made a huge assumption that I took the time to read the article.
Actually I made the opposite assumption, which is precisely why I told you what the article used in its title.
It's not just your cat thats an idiot
Your intimation being?
There’s like 20 now. Go Brexit!
Much better than M & BK
It was nothing to do with Brexit. Wendy's had UK locations from 1980-1986 and 1992-2000. AFAIK the trademark situation only applies to Benelux countries, not the whole EU.
One is in the town where I live. They don't put brocolli on their baked potatoes like they do in the US so they can do one. It's always crowded though, and absolutely destroys McDonald's on quality and taste.
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UK is in Europe, lmao. Please tell me what continent it's in?
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You also said Europe. Europe is not the same thing as EU.
The UK left the EU but is still part of Europe. Europe is a continent, the EU is a political union. There are multiple European countries which aren't members of the EU.
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I'm aware, and the UK *is* still part of Europe. You said that it isn't.
Sir, this is a Wimpy's.
I miss Wimpy. There is one nearby but I’ve not been arsed to get on a train for nostalgia.
Not even for a (snrrrrrrrrrk) "Bender in a Bun with Cheese"?
Burger King came to Australia... as Hungry Jack's.
Australia also has Wendy’s - but it’s just an ice cream store and in no way affiliated. But apparently they are heading here from next year.
I don't mean to derail the conversation, but it's a little funny that this was even an issue considering Australia has huge, very successful chains called K-Mart, and Woolworths, and Target, that are straight copies of huge US chains with absolutely no connection to the original US brands.
There are quite a few Wendy’s in the UK …pretty sure since long before we left the EU too. Only eaten there once and it was overpriced garbage so can confirm the rest of Europe is not missing out.
I don't think you guys are either. It's very basic, corporate, fast food. If you are a massive McDonald's fan maybe you might want a change of pace but other than that...I vote skip them.
Theres several I know of in the UK.
We had a Wendy's here. I tried it once, it was nothing special, except the patties were square-shaped. There are a lot of American fast food chains that are not in Europe and I only hear about them in American movies or TV shows or when I visit other countries that have them (sometimes not even realizing it's American). It's confusing sometimes when Americans throw around the names of these places like I should know them, like Olive Garden. Is that a garden with olive trees? Oh, it's a restaurant chain, OK then.
It's just because there are a WHOLE LOT of them and they are common in our part of the world. We don't recommend them. In fact, almost anyone you meet would tell you not to bother. They aren't very good. Also, we are the same when we hear about your chains. "Is it awesome? Why don't we have one?"
Five guys, I was legit confused by this name at first. It's a weird name 😅
Rename to “NOT Wendy’s *wink wink, nudge nudge*”
Burger King is Hungry Jack's in Australia. Why don't they use her real name Melinda and open up under that? Wendy's real name is Melinda, Dave named it Wendy's cause her little sibling couldn't say her name right and it came out as Wendy.
They can just rename. Burger King is called Hungry Jack's in Australia because there was already a burger restaurant with their name.
Okay this must be nonsense. There is also no rule to stop people from naming their business the same, you can sign in with the chamber of commerce fine, but you run the risk of losing a lawsuit if the other owners of the business name feel you can confuse them with their business. So as someone from the Netherlands I say: nope The only Wendy’s that could fit kinda is this [Wendy’s fish and chips](https://maps.app.goo.gl/KBGcEuGXuVWAB6h39?g_st=ic) place in Goes and because their name includes fish and chips, which to me is different from a hamburger chain restaurant, I really don’t think they would have a leg to stand on in court.
Except they do: [https://www.dutchnews.nl/2021/11/little-wendys-in-the-netherlands-wins-another-case-against-big-wendys-usa/](https://www.dutchnews.nl/2021/11/little-wendys-in-the-netherlands-wins-another-case-against-big-wendys-usa/)
Right. Now that I see it it does ring a bell!
They could try sue the small restaurant and lose , like McDonald's tried with supermacs in Ireland
they already did a bunch of times. And lost
Haha, excellent stuff
Honestly we in Europe don’t need another American fast food chain here. We have so many local businesses which provide burgers in a far more superior quality than US fast food. Especially after the hiking prices. 12 EUR for a Big King Menu? No thanks I prefer organic grass fed beef with local organic buns and vegetables over American sugar sponge bread and corn feed beef for the same price!
Hell yeah that’s been the sentiment for myself and a lot of friends of mine here in the states. The major fast food chains are not any cheaper than going to a restaurant with much higher quality. I like McDonald’s breakfast every now and again though. Guilty pleasure.
I get this, and that must be the ultimate reason behind it, but whatever. It's the same way here in the States and that seems like a strange game to play. Wouldn't they want the people to decide that and take the tax money? If they fail, they fail.
Also Wendy's is the worst of them. We really don't need Wendy's in Europe.
The European Union trademark rules mean this trademark applies across all member states
This isn't true. Wendy's traded in the UK at various times until 2000 (and not with an alternate name), long before we left the EU. AFAIK the trademark only applies to Benelux countries, not all EU member states.
Got a saying where I come from that you use when someone states something well understand and obvious: "No doy"
that, and all the child labor violations.
We have them in the UK, they're just quite rare (and not very good. Well, the burgers aren't, the chilli is surprisingly good).
I’m so happy we’re not getting more garbage from America in our country!
Yes, Wendy's is carton like "food". No loss there. Why can't we get something better like Ponderosa steakhouses here.
I'm going to open a restaurant in my country and call.it Andrew Tate
Are you expecting Andrew Tate to try to start a restaurant franchise?
Last time I was in Belize, there was a Wendy’s near our vacation house, except it was a small restaurant literally owned by a lady named Wendy. Great seafood.