Mc World

BEFORE YOU READ

What do you think of fast-food restaurants like McDonald’s? Read this article about the largest fast-food chain in the world.

McDonald's golden arches

          I‘ll have a big Mac, a large fries, and a medium soda.” The language may change, but you can expect to hear this order in more than 100 countries all over the world. Fast food has become almost synonymous with McDonald’s^TM, the best known of all multinational fast food restaurant chains. At the moment, Antarctica is the only continent that doesn’t (yet!) have a McDonald’s. And the numbers keep growing. In the United States alone, most McDonald’s customers need to travel less than four minutes to arrive at the next pair of golden arches.

McDonald's Restaurant in India

          Dining on fast food has become a way of life for millions and millions people from Illinois, U.S.A. (the first McDonald’s location) to Colombo, Sri Lanka (a more recent opening). What is it about eating on the run that so many people find appealing? Of course, the most obvious answer is that, true to its name, fast food is fast. In today’s hectic society, people don’t want to waste time. But apart from the speed of ordering and getting served, satisfied customers talk about convenience, price, and, yes, even good taste.

Teriyaki is one kind of variation found in Japan

          Many people also like the familiarity and reliability that fast food chains provide. You can count on getting the same thing every time, every place. McDonald’s has started to introduce some local variety, though. For example, in the New England region of the United States, you can get a lobster roll; in Japan you can order teriyaki McBurger; and in India, you can have a Maharaja Mac or a Vegetable Burger. And although most McDonald’s restaurants resemble one another, some try to adjust to the surroundings. In Freiburg, Germany, one McDonald’s is housed in an historic building more than 700 years old, and in Sweden, there’s even a McSki lodge.

          Not everyone is in favor of fast-food restaurants’ spreading over the globe. In fact, a lot of people are fed up with seeing the same restaurants wherever they go. “Walking down the Champs Elysées just isn’t as romantic as it used to be. When I see McDonald’s or KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) everywhere I go, I feel that the world is shrinking too much,” complained one traveler. But there are more serious objections.

One of McDonald's restaurant in Japan

          Nutritionists point to the health consequences of eating fast foods since they are generally high in calories, fat and salt, but low in fiber and nutrients. In a word, they are unhealthy. Sociologists complain that fast-food restaurants may prevent families from spending quality time together around the dinner table. Social critics condemn fast food chains for introducing unhealthy foods to other countries and for underpaying their workers. Then there is the issue of the environment Those Big Macs and Quarter Pounders use a lot of disposable packaging and this, in turn, creates a lot of waste. It’s a high price to pay for convenience.

But like it or not, it’s easy to see that fast food restaurants like McDonald’s aren’t away. From Rovaniemi, Finland, in the north; Invercargill, New Zealand, in the south; Tokyo, Japan, in the east; and Vancouver, Canada, in the west, the sun never sets on the golden arches.

Fast Facts

• The average adult in the United States visits a fast-food restaurant six times a month.
• Hamburgers are the most popular fast food in the United States.
• Tacos are the second most popular fast-food choice in the United States, followed by pizza and chicken.
• Men are more likely than women to order a hamburger.
• Lunch is the most popular meal at a fast-food restaurant

AFTER YOU READ

Write T (true) or F (false)

1.         The number of McDonald’s restaurants is increasing.
2.         You can order exactly the same type of food at each McDonald’s.
3.         Everyone loves fast-food restaurants
4.         Fast-food restaurants don’t pay their workers enough.