The ironic reincarnation of McDonald’s on Russia Day

Today is Russia Day. A muted affair compared to the pompous and bellicose displays seen on Victory Day, today is the day Russia commemorates no longer being a part of the Soviet Union and becoming the Russian Federation instead.

Unlike other patriotic holidays in the country, most ordinary Russians pay little attention to its significance. The end of the Soviet Union and the ensuing ‘Perestroika’ period was filled with economic hardship and upheaval, and is therefore a time many would prefer to forget.

Today, for most Russians, is just a nice day off, filled with wholesome family activities, the odd bit of cultural indulgence in museums and the like, and a lot of socialising with family and friends, nothing more.

However, there is one entity that is trying to encourage and capitalise on the muted patriotic feeling of the holiday, ‘Tasty - and that’s that’. McDonalds’ slightly depressing, Russified reincarnation is flinging open the doors of its first premises in exactly the same location in Moscow as McDonald’s did 32 years ago.

McDonald’s ceased to operate in Russia on March 14 in response to the invasion of Ukraine. The chain’s 850 Russian restaurants were sold to businessman Alexander Govor in May, who agreed to reopen them after a rebrand.

That rebrand has been heavily teased in the Russian press. In an exclusive scoop, the broadsheet Izvestiya claimed that as many as eight names were in the mix, including the thrilling-sounding ‘The Same One’ and drool-inducing ‘Free Checkout Till’.

On Friday, the chain’s new logo was released: a nondescript red circle next to two orange batons on a green background. According to the enthusiastic minds in the new chain’s press office, these represent a burger and two chips, while the green background represents continuity in the quality of food and service customers are used to. Sure, why not?

The decision to launch ‘Tasty - and that’s that’ on Russia Day is significant. Right down to opening their first store in the same place as McDonald’s did in 1990, it's clear that the chain’s new owners are trying to appropriate the significance of the golden arches for the country: the new ‘McDonald’s’ will be a truly Russian one.

However, the irony of McDonald’s reincarnation as ‘Tasty - and that’s that’ on Russia Day is not lost. The entry of McDonald’s into the Russian market three decades ago epitomised Russia’s embrace of capitalism. The country had shrugged off its Soviet mantle and was keenly entering the Western fold.

That Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has symbolised its retreat from the world stage, and a self-inflicted isolation so severe it has no choice but to fall back on its own resources sits in stark contrast to the image it is trying to push on its own people.

Just as McDonald’s did before it, the arrival of ‘Tasty - and that’s that’ too marks a new chapter in Russia’s world standing. It’s just not the one they would like everyone to believe.