Globalization

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For the most part, qrssfing a . successful international menu requires having parElers who are familiar with the region and can offer constant. feedback. McDonaldls, for one, has stores in 94 countries and treats each region as its own test kitchen.

"Most U.S. companies don't go abroad by themselves-they donlt take tleir employees from Toledo and sNp them out to Bei- jing," says franchise coach arid author Rick Bisio.'({hey're goulg

to havg ,a

Chinese partner if they expand into Chin4 saying Tlere! what we need to do-, "' In some regions, franchise menus are guided in large part by dietary restrictions.'Iadia,s Iarge Hindu population, which traditionally considers cattle slaughter taboo, has given rise to some particularly creative varia- tiohs. At McDonald,s, one can nn9

" Chicken Maharaja Mac,

which resembles a Big Mac but ._t.

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will a double Iayer of gxi[ed crucken patties and a smokey. saute.

Pangel, a cheese commonly served in curry dishes, also makes for a popular substitute. McDonald,s offers the Mcpaneer Roydle-seared with French herbs and served withjatapeflo . peppers on. .cornmeal_dusted bu-ns-while papa John,s serves a ?apa's Paneer,, Duza. :

Nearly a third of the 180

McDonald's locations in Israel are kosher, meaaing they don,t serve milk-based products (some have separate booths for milk- based desserts) and close on Jewish holidays and Shabbat. While falafel was taken off the menu several years agq custom- ers can still find kebabs and Is- raeli salad, served with olive oil and lemon.

Elsewhere in the Middie East, most fast-food franchises serve

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on]y halal food, which .*it .on- tain pork or blood and must pass through several Islamic customs. McDonald,s Arabia emphasizes chickerl with items like the

. McArabia Chicken wrap and the Chicken Mega Mac, served with four chicken patties.

--'tf you go to t}re Middle East,

all the oil will be different-they use pure vegetai,le oil and the taste is differen!,,says Mr. Bisiq a former director of interna- tional development for popeyes Louisiana Kitche4 Cirurabon and others. "You can,t operate in

. those countries without making those adjustrnents.,,

Have it your lvay Another corlmon tactic is to

ingorporate local ingredients rnto core items, says Chris Young, director of global menu strategy at McDonatd,s. For in- stance, '.Ilance plays'off their dreese heritage,,, says Mr. young, noting that burgers have feil tured selections 'like Chewe, Camembert and Comtd. lhefve even created a sandwich with the crusty bottom.of fohdue.,, - Stores in neighboring Itaiy have their own variation, witir slices of parmesan cheese on their burgers.

- BotI McDonald,s and Burger

King, meanwhile, have intro- duced black burgers in Japan. Americans may mistake,tlen for a-meal Ieft on the grill too long_ the buns, cheese and,sauce are pitch black-but they,ve actually been colored by squid ink. . Even in Canada-much closer

culturally to the U.S. than, say, the Middle East-food gets its

; own Iocal gloss. For instance, : nearly every chain has a poutine

iterL The dish, which originated rn Quebec, consists of french fries topped with cheese curds aad gravy. pizza Hut has a cheesy poutini pizza on the menq complete with all t}!e top- p-ings, including fries. furger King and McDonald,s- offei a poutine version of their fries, sometimes topped with bacon.

The tocal adaptations ertend beyond eore menu items to areas Iike condiment selectioru. ln ad- dition to ketchup and mustard, many Thai franchises keep s.weet chili sauce on their shelves,

while Peruvian McDonald,s stoi* aji a spicy sauce made of hot peppers.

A common flavor at some Chi_ aese locations is mal4 which is made from Sichuan peppercorns 3nd carries a "numbing heat,. Mr. Youag says.

Dessert also gets the ],ocal treatment. While ice cream and cookies .might satisfy American sweet tooths, international fran-

. chises tweak their dessert offer- ings by adding local candy or fla- vors. In Switzerland, for irutancg you can find McFlurries made wit} Toblerong the Swiss chocolate bar with nougat, aI- polds q!_d honey. In HongKong, McDona]d's customers can order taro-root pig which has a sweet, yamlike flavor, while in Ihailand you can try a more savory corn pie.

Another item featured in Italy and many European nations is alcohol. People over 18 years old in- France can pair their Royals (the metric version of the euar- ter Pounder) with wine, while Germans can opf for beer.

A cook's tour But itt hard to pred.ict what

will work in new markets, and occasionally items turn out to be duds-or lose out to local play- ers. For instance, McDonaldt quickly discontinued its IsraeU McFaIafeI after it launched in 20[ citing competition with cheap traditional falafel stalls that are ubiquitous in the coun- try.

Sometimes, thougtL itbms not only succeed but get big enough to cross borders. For instance, t}te McWrap, a McDonald,s sandl wich that features vegetables and chicken wrapped in a torti- lla, was origi4ally introduced in Polaad in 2004, and made its way to North furierica later on.

"If an item does well in one sp-ot and people really enjoy it, other countries tend to pull from it," says Mr. Young, who person- ally hopes that China,s spicy items go global.

Mn Janofslgt is.a staff reporter in The Wall Street Journal,s New York bureau He can be r e a c he d at a d amj an o fstcy @ dowlones.com.