It’s weird how the memories flow. I’m back on old plots, on Pushkin Square in the center of Moscow. There, McDonald’s opened its first hamburger restaurant in 1990. Recently, this and the chain’s many other burger shops were sold to a Russian company. For McDonald’s found that it was impossible to continue operating in Russia after the war in Ukraine started. The Western sanctions against Russia also make business in the country very difficult. It seems that the opening of the new Russian chain has taken place at full speed. WITHOUT YELLOW M: Burgers are still sold in the restaurant on Pushkin Square in the center of Moscow. Photo: Yuri Linkevich / news The restaurant on Pushkin Square opened its doors on June 12, which is officially called “Russia Day”, a kind of Russian national day. Some Russians believe that the country’s political leadership put pressure on the new company to get started on this very day. For the new owners have not yet managed to get their brand name on the drinking cups. How good? Inside the restaurant, most things are as before, but McDonald’s yellow M and other logos are gone. The new chain is called «Vkusno i totsjka». It is a bit difficult to translate into Norwegian, directly translated it means “Good and full”. Maybe “Simply good” will be about right. STILL POPULAR: Good with people, but not crowded. Photo: Yuri Linkevich / news There are a lot of people inside the restaurant, but it is not crowded, it only takes a couple of minutes from the order until the food is ready. I sit at a table outside, because it is nice and warm in the Russian capital just this day. The hamburger seems to have been made in the same way as McDonald’s, just as the original tastes quite small, and the meat is rather dry. SIMILAR: The fast food is still made in the same way as at McDonald’s even though the logo has been removed. Photo: Yuri Linkevich / news The deep-fried potatoes are ok, quite crispy and good in taste, and surprisingly, original Coca-Cola is still sold at this place. This is strange, since this company is leaving Russia due to the war in Ukraine. Maybe the stock of Coke is still large. Burger King and KFC continue in this country, but they have switched to traditional Russian drinks. Thousands lined up January 31, 1990 was a holiday in the Soviet capital, when the first Mækkern opened. Thousands of people lined up to try this American phenomenon. CROWD: This is what it looked like when McDonald’s opened its first hamburger restaurant in Moscow on January 31, 1990. Photo: Anonymous / AP And there was no day fly, people continued to stand in line for many hours to buy hamburgers. I started working as a correspondent in Moscow six months after the opening, when the communist-ruled Soviet Union still existed. There were few restaurants, you had to quarrel in a restaurant, because the staff was not interested in having customers. They served the same whether people came by or not, and the service was as lousy as the food often was. Fast food was a rather unknown concept. Saved me from starvation In politics, a lot happened at that time, and I was often on the go. When hunger began to gnaw, McDonald’s was often the solution. Young men benefited from standing in the queue that wound through Pushkin Park, and they were able to offer fast delivery of burgers at an additional cost. When I could not stand more fast food, I could buy a cinema ticket. Because in most cinemas in Moscow there was a small cafe that served simple sandwiches. FRESH CORRESPONDENT: At work in Moscow in the summer of 1991. Photo: Anatoly Kuprianov / news But for most Muscovites, it was not just the American fast food that was fascinating, it was just as exciting to see how the new restaurant worked. McDonald’s employed young people who had not previously worked for Soviet employers. They attended courses and learned that they should be polite to customers and not scold them. In addition, they had to work quickly, so that customers got their food as quickly as possible. The contrast to the rest of Soviet society was stark. Optimism between East and West In the communist Soviet Union, the state owned virtually everything. But after Mikhail Gorbachev became the country’s leader in 1985, softening and reforms were launched. East and West collaborated on disarmament and much more. By New Year 1991, the Soviet Union disintegrated, and Russia became an independent country under President Boris Yeltsin. The transition from state control to a more capitalist system was, to put it mildly, difficult. But for McDonald’s, there were good times, they were first in the Russian market, and the Russians continued to press the burgers to their chests. The chain was constantly opening new restaurants. The optimism was great, as was the belief that Russia would open up and become an important member of the international community. A surprise on New Year’s Eve On New Year’s Eve 1999 itself, President Yeltsin announced his resignation. An unknown man named Vladimir Putin was to take over as prime minister, and after a short time he was elected president. UNKNOWN: Vladimir Putin took over as Russia’s leader after Boris Yeltsin. Photo: Alexander Zemlianichenko / AP He proved to be a strong and energetic leader, and a strong defender of Russia’s interests. Thanks to high oil and gas prices, Putin had considerable economic room for maneuver, and the Russians fared significantly better economically. It was especially visible in the big Russian cities. But in 2014, something dramatic happened. Russia then occupied and annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine. Western countries responded with economic sanctions against Russia, and relations between East and West gradually deteriorated sharply. The devastating war The Ukrainian authorities wanted the country to join NATO. President Putin demanded that this not happen, and wanted guarantees from the West. THE PARTY IS OVER: McDonald’s famous logo was recently removed from restaurants in Russia. Photo: ALEXANDER NEMENOV / AFP He did not get it, and Russia gathered large forces along the border with Ukraine. The war started on February 24, and no one knows how long it will last. The West introduced sanctions that the world has not seen before, and very many Western companies have either withdrawn from Russia or are in the process of doing so. Back to the burger Thus, I am back where I started, namely at the hamburger. McDonald’s is gone, but the burger tastes about the same as before because it is produced at the same facilities. This fast food is not the most difficult to make, although the production lines will need spare parts eventually. The main point is that Russia and the Russians are becoming increasingly isolated in relation to other countries, and especially the Western ones. NO CHANGE: Many young Russians have not experienced any other leader than Vladimir Putin. Nor does anyone know when a new one may come. Photo: Yuri Linkevich / news Many Russians I talk to say that the optimism from previous decades is gone. I sit here at the restaurant in Moscow and munch on the now all-Russian fast food, and the hamburger has more or less followed me all these years here in Russia. But now for me it has become a symbol of hope that disappeared and all that went terribly wrong in this country that had every opportunity.
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The burger that has become a symbol of what went wrong in Russia – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
