# Fast Food Chains Big Elsewhere But Not In The USA **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 15, 2009, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128 "2009-04-15T00:09:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/81 "2009-04-18T01:52:33Z")
> [@Imasquare](#): > > There was actually a Denny’s in North Parramatta (western Sydney suburb) about 10 years ago. I used to live about 5 minutes walk from it. It was open 24 x 7 but closed after a couple of years. I think it may have closed because of brisk competition from City Extra in Parramatta which is also open 24 x 7 and very popular. Interesting. Well, if the one in Parramatta fell over then you’d think they could try again somewhere with no competition (Brisbane? Adelaide?), but then again, someone at corporate HQ will probably say “Nah, we tried that in Australia 10 years ago and it didn’t work, so we’re not bothering again.” Certainly in Brisbane, there’s a serious lack of places to eat after 10pm unless you want McDonalds or Truckstop Cafe style food, so an IHOP would do really well up here I think. ---
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/82 "2009-04-18T07:01:00Z")
Maybe, as a collective, the Gerrman Schnell Imbiß or Imbißchen. Currywurst und Linseneintopf, sosse frites, und pizza. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/83 "2009-04-18T07:11:22Z")
> [@I\_Am\_The\_Lorax](#): > > There are more Timmy Ho’s in Western New York than there are Dunkin’ Donuts, by a long shot. Which is a really interesting phenomenon, because Buffalo tends to have far fewer chains – restaurant and general retail as well – as other peer metropolitan areas. Locally, the phenomenon is called “everywhere but Buffalo”, where a chain store or restaurant will have a location practically everywhere in the country, Great Lakes region or even upstate New York except Buffalo. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/84 "2009-04-18T07:37:09Z")
Whenever I visited Canada, I noticed not only the presence of US restaurant chains (many of which incorporated maple leafs into their logos), but also Canada-only chains that seem like alternative universe versions of some US chains. For example: Harvey’s: Canadian Carl’s/Hardee’s Second Cup: Canadian Starbuck’s Kelsey’s: Canadian Ruby Tuesday’s Montana’s: Canadian Texas Roadhouse East Side Mario’s: Canadian Olive Garden Pizza Pizza: Canadian Little Caesar’s ---
**Author:** ![MichaelQReilly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@MichaelQReilly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelQReilly)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2009, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/85 "2009-04-18T14:40:27Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > Interesting. Well, if the one in Parramatta fell over then you’d think they could try again somewhere with no competition (Brisbane? Adelaide?), but then again, someone at corporate HQ will probably say “Nah, we tried that in Australia 10 years ago and it didn’t work, so we’re not bothering again.” > > Certainly in Brisbane, there’s a serious lack of places to eat after 10pm unless you want McDonalds or Truckstop Cafe style food, so an IHOP would do really well up here I think. Is there not even a late night pizza joint or taco bell? What do you guys when you stumble out of a pub at 1 in the morning and really need to eat something? ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/86 "2009-04-19T00:38:09Z")
> [@MichaelQReilly](#): > > Is there not even a late night pizza joint or taco bell? What do you guys when you stumble out of a pub at 1 in the morning and really need to eat something? No Taco Bells _anywhere_ in Australia and whilst there are a few late-night pizza places, it’s not the same as getting an actual _meal_ at 2am because you’ve just finished a late shift or whatever. Usually the “stumbling out of the pub at 3am” crowd (who are generally in the centre of town anyway) head to McDonalds/Burger King or a late night pizza-by-the-slice or Kebab placce, FWIW. Outside the CBD there’s generally nowhere open after 10pm for food that isn’t Maccas or Petrol Station/7-11 Pies, sausage rolls, and sandwiches. ---
**Author:** ![maplekiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@maplekiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maplekiwi)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/87 "2009-04-19T00:49:54Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > No Taco Bells _anywhere_ in Australia and whilst there are a few late-night pizza places, it’s not the same as getting an actual _meal_ at 2am because you’ve just finished a late shift or whatever. > > Usually the “stumbling out of the pub at 3am” crowd (who are generally in the centre of town anyway) head to McDonalds/Burger King or a late night pizza-by-the-slice or Kebab placce, FWIW. Outside the CBD there’s generally nowhere open after 10pm for food that isn’t Maccas or Petrol Station/7-11 Pies, sausage rolls, and sandwiches. NZ has a few Dennys. In Auckland people with (the munchies" late at night may go to a “pie cart” (old name they no longer sell pies) called the White Lady. > **[New Zealand: The White Lady (Auckland)](http://portlandhamburgers.blogspot.com/2008/11/new-zealand-white-lady-auckland.html)** > > Portland transplant TheCheeseTease shares the gospel and shows us the way: I have never found a burger that parallels this. This is from a... ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/88 "2009-04-19T00:56:58Z")
> [@maplekiwi](#): > > NZ has a few Dennys. That was the thrust of my earlier argument, NZ of all places has several profitable Denny’s stores, but Australia- a country with six times the population and a big “road trip” culture- can’t support even one? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/89 "2009-04-19T02:03:02Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Malaysia’s [Big Apple Donuts & Coffee](http://www.bigappledonuts.com/) just came to Thailand. Have not tried them yet, but they have a lot of fans in Malaysia and been called the best donuts in the world. We have now tried Big Apple Donuts & Coffee, or Bapple for short, and really like them. Two locations in Bangkok: 4th floor of Siam Center and 1st floor of seacon Square. They’re almost twice the cost of Dunkin’ Donuts and Mr. Donut, but they have unique flavors and don’t feel as heavy. They seemed to be doing a good trade when we were there. We’ll be back. ---
**Author:** ![Wolverine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba9def/32.png) [@Wolverine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolverine)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/90 "2009-04-19T05:44:48Z")
I found one of the Beard Papa’s here in Beijing yesterday by accident and tried them on the recommendation of this thread. There ok but nothing too special. I’m still looking for good donuts here in China. The packaged Bimbo ones are surprisingly good, but I want a freshly baked, cream-filled donut. They are probably here somewhere, but I haven’t found them yet. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/91 "2009-04-19T08:14:05Z")
Dunkin’ donuts??? BTW, in Shanghai and never heard of a Diko’s Chicken. Never seen one on my travels in China. :dubious: Yonghe, which has tofu milk, breadsticks, dumplings, and other assorted breakfast/snack type food is at least big in Shanghai/Yangzi River valley area. Yoshinoya Beef Bowl is a listed company on the Japanese Stock Market. Can’t think of any other ubitquitous chains in China. There are a lot of smaller chains but a nationwide thing is led by McD’s, Pizzabutt and KFC. ---
**Author:** ![Wolverine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba9def/32.png) [@Wolverine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolverine)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/92 "2009-04-19T13:54:48Z")
> [@China\_Guy](#): > > Dunkin’ donuts??? There might be some in Beijing but I haven’t found one yet. I mostly haunt the Haidian District in the north. One problem with always taking a bus is that you get into a comfortable route and usually don’t take other streets. There could be one within a couple of kms and never know it. I just found some articles ([here](http://www.usatoday.com/money/world/2008-01-25-dunkin-shanghai_N.htm)) about Dunkin’ Donuts opening 100 stores in Shanghai in 10 years starting in 2008. No mention of Beijing. Maybe you’re tripping all over them, but they’re pretty scarce around here. ---
**Author:** ![Sri\_Theo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f04885/32.png) [@Sri\_Theo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sri_Theo)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2009, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/93 "2009-04-19T14:05:34Z")
Would you guy’s count Wetherspoon’s? Massive pub chain in the UK, has identical menu’s and stuff so I guess it counts as a chain even if the locations look different. I reckon it could do quite well in the US… ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/94 "2009-04-20T14:47:16Z")
> [@Wolverine](#): > > They do have french fries and ice cream cones. Oh, wait… you meant served at a KFC in the States. In that case I have to agree with you. Yeah, KFC in China is almost a complete oxymoron, it’s mostly not fried, it’s mostly not chicken and it most certainly doesn’t have anything to do with Kentucky. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/95 "2009-04-20T19:18:48Z")
> [@Leiko](#): > > Isn’t there a fried chicken chain that’s popular in the Middle East? I’m going off a half-remembered episode of No Reservations, so maybe it was just a localized KFC, but I thought it was something unique to the region. Coming in late but it’s “Al Baik” in Saudi Arabia and nearby. IMHO far better than KFC; larger birds, hotter fat [crisper], light-years better fries. Always first choice when I worked in the Kingdom for two years. ---
**Author:** ![Leiko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Leiko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leiko)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2009, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/96 "2009-04-20T21:59:08Z")
> [@smithsb](#): > > Coming in late but it’s “Al Baik” in Saudi Arabia and nearby. IMHO far better than KFC; larger birds, hotter fat [crisper], light-years better fries. Always first choice when I worked in the Kingdom for two years. That sounds delicious! Thank you for reminding me of what it was. ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/97 "2009-04-21T00:04:21Z")
[QUOTE=Wendell Wager] Martini Enfield writes: \> To be honest, I find the chain pizzas- more specifically Eagle Boys- to be a lot \> nicer than the “Gourmet” stuff that’s usually vastly overpriced and full of “weird” \> toppings. I presume that Eagle Boys is an Australian chain. If you’ve got a pizza chain in Australia that does good pizza, that’s nice. My point is that just because Pizza Hut and Domino’s are big chains that have expanded outside the U.S. doesn’t mean that Americans like their pizza more than other pizza places in the U.S., anymore than the fact that McDonalds and Burger King are big chains that have expanded outside the U.S. means that Americans like their hamburgers more than other hamburger places in the U.S. This is what I need to explain to foreigners carefully. Average Americans don’t get a vote on what restaurant chains expand outside of the U.S. The businessmen who own those chains don’t take polls among Americans to determine the best pizza or the best hamburgers in the U.S. and then expand the chain serving those foods to other countries. They expand chains outside the U.S. for the same reason that they expand chains inside the U.S., because they’ve figured out a successful business model where enough advertising and a method of running the restaurant cheaply will make them a lot of money. Average Americans are no more to blame for McDonalds, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Domino’s, etc. than Australians are to blame for Outback Steakhouse. [/QUOTE] Mmm, not sure I agree with you here. It seems pretty clear to me that if Pizza Hut/Dominos/Papa Johns/etc. are as popular as they are in the US, it’s because a lot of people think they give pretty good pizza for the price. Same goes for the burger joints. And if those chains successfully expand outside the United States, it’s because people outside the US have decided that they like the food, too. What’s controversial about that? Americans - and non-Americans - _are_ voting which chains succeed, by eating at them and making them worthwhile business ventures. Am I missing something? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/98 "2009-04-21T00:42:59Z")
Rodgers01 writes: \> Originally Posted by Wendell Wager Could you explain to me how you managed to misspell my name? That’s not even supposed to be possible, is it? I thought that when you hit the “Quote” button, it just copied down the poster name automatically. ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/99 "2009-04-21T01:02:50Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > Rodgers01 writes: > > \> Originally Posted by Wendell Wager > > Could you explain to me how you managed to misspell my name? That’s not even supposed to be possible, is it? I thought that when you hit the “Quote” button, it just copied down the poster name automatically. Huh. I’m not sure why, but for some reason I copied and pasted your post and put it in the Quote brackets, rather than hitting the “Quote” button. And then I guess I wrote your name wrong. That’s all. ---
**Author:** ![maplekiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@maplekiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maplekiwi)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2009, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128/100 "2009-04-21T01:12:32Z")
> [@Rodgers01](#): > > Mmm, not sure I agree with you here. It seems pretty clear to me that if Pizza Hut/Dominos/Papa Johns/etc. are as popular as they are in the US, it’s because a lot of people think they give pretty good pizza for the price. Same goes for the burger joints. And if those chains successfully expand outside the United States, it’s because people outside the US have decided that they like the food, too. What’s controversial about that? Americans - and non-Americans - _are_ voting which chains succeed, by eating at them and making them worthwhile business ventures. Am I missing something? 😕 High powered advertisng campaigns have a lot to do with it, especially McD’s who target the kids quite heavily. I think they have just regulated what they can show in ads during children’s viewing time ( in NZ) for that very reason. I know if I had a choice between Burger Fuel & any American burger chain I would choose Burger Fuel every time [http://www.burgerfuel.com/bf\_light/menu.php](http://www.burgerfuel.com/bf_light/menu.php) There drinks are ridiculously expensive though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fast-food-chains-big-elsewhere-but-not-in-the-usa/493128.md?page=6)