Rebranded former McDonald’s outlets open in Russia

Russian owners unveiled several rebranded former McDonald’s restaurants in Moscow on Sunday, part of an effort to convert all 850 locations into a new brand after the international fast-food chain pulled its business out of the country in March.

The former McDonald’s restaurants are now called Vkusno & tochka, which translates as “Tasty and that’s it,” and sport a new logo inspired by the fast-food chain: two potato fries hanging over a burger bun, according to the Russian news agency TASS.

Around 200 of the former McDonald’s restaurants will re-open under the new name and logo by the end of June, with all 850 locations set to re-open under the new branding by the end of the summer, Reuters noted.

McDonald’s first opened in Russia in 1990 following the collapse of the communist Soviet Union, serving as a symbol for Russia’s re-emergence into the international market and world.

But McDonald’s closed its stores in March, joining dozens of international companies in pulling business and services out of Russia after it invaded Ukraine in late February.

The fast-food giant eventually sold its restaurants to businessman and former franchise operator Alexander Govo, who then re-opened the shuttered stores with Vkusno & tochka CEO Oleg Paroev.

The rebranded stores can no longer sell the Big Mac, the McFlurry or the McChicken, but Paroev said at a news conference the goal is that customers don’t “notice a difference” in the taste, according to Reuters.

A new slogan for the company reads:  “The name changes, love stays.”