American visits McDonald's in China and is not prepared for how different the menu is

As Americans, many grew up with the consistency of a McDonald's menu: Big Macs, Egg McMuffin, and only on special occasions, the McRib. Since their first store opened in California 85 years ago, they've got the formulas down pat, so whether you're in Los Angeles or Wichita, you essentially know what you're getting when you put in your order.

McDonald's could not be contained to just California. After first expanding to Canada and Puerto Rico, the food chain now has "over 36,000 restaurants in over 100 nations," according to their corporate website. And each nation is just a tiny bit different, adding their own cultural "flavor" so-to-speak to the menus.

A popular travel blogger, Christian Grossi, was absolutely over-the-moon when he visited a McDonald's location in Shanghai, China. In a TikTok video, he looks at the menu and notes, "This is a lot to take in." He then points to a photo of "The Black Gold Moon" burger and adorably, with perhaps a dash of ADHD, immediately points out the "Salted Egg Yolk McFlurry." He asks his TikTok followers, "Do we try that?"

He then points out other burgers, many also named the "black gold moon," and then moves over to the curly fries, which he excitedly points out costs just over an American dollar. "This is not fair," he says, shaking his head. "Why don't we have this in the U.S.?"

He quickly moves over the desserts, specifically the McFlurry flavors. "They have toffee. They have Hojicha. They have Mochi. They have McDonald's Toffee Cheese Flavored Pie" (which he notes doesn't sound as appealing).

Then it's on to the plethora of coffee options. "Wait, hold on. Is that cheese-flavored coffee?" That seems a must-order because next up, Grossi is holding the cheese-coffee and the McDonald's curly fries. He admits, "Because I'm terrified of the coffee, and I'm doing that for you, we're gonna start with the curly fry." He adds for some personal context, "Contrary to popular belief, I hate McDonald's regular fries. So curly fry…" —he takes a bite— "Oh my God, so much better!" He gives it 8.5 out of ten stars, even though, as he points out, he's eating it on "the side of a Chinese road."

Tichina Arnold Eating GIF by CBS Giphy

Next up? The cheese coffee. "I tried to ask the lady at McDonald's, 'what is this exactly?' She spoke zero English, so we didn't get so far. Anyway." He takes a sniff and reiterates, "Cheese coffee from McDonald's." He takes some pretty big gulps and exclaims, "I can feel it in my bones. You wanna know what this tastes like? It tastes like you put creamer in your coffee. And then, as soon as it gets down your esophagus, it tastes like spreadable cheese from the can."

Not a fan, it seems, he questions "what chef or barista thought this was a good idea?" He then theorizes, "they probably thought if an American saw this, they would pay money for it, so I guess they were right." He gives the coffee three stars.

Before we get to the comments, are you wondering where the "black moon" references come from? On Mr. Vaughn's YouTube page, he points out that the "Black Castle Moon Burger" is a "limited edition item." According to the narrator, this burger is "inspired by the monkey king, from the Chinese novel, Journey to the West and the Black Myth: Wukong video game, which perhaps is a corporate tie-in. He further explains that the whole theme honors a Chinese festival "celebrating the Harvest Moon."

- A traveler tries McDonalds in China. www.youtube.com, Mr. Vaughn

He then gives it a try, picking up the sesame-seeded black buns sandwiching the McDonald's twist on "moon cakes." He claims it's usually referred to as the black gold moon cake, but that the "black castle" nickname "likely nods to the game's mythical aesthetic."

Back to Grossi's comments, it seems his travels inspire a lot of people to follow in his footsteps. One writes, "Your videos of China have convinced me of visiting there. I never realized how behind we are in the US."

Another clears up the cheese-coffee confusion. "Chinese person from NYC here. Cheese foam topped teas and coffees are very popular in Asian cafes. Typically, they taste like a sweet and salty cheesecake. I'm not that into it, but a lot of people are." And this person notes, "Every McDonald’s in every country caters to the things that country likes." This is so true.

Another traveler hits up a McDonald's in Paris and is greatly impressed by how fancy it is. As she points to the digital menu, she reports the cheese and ham options, but is also excited by the veggie alternatives. But cheese, it is France after all, is always an option—even cheddar cheese on the fries.

She too is floored by the dessert options including cheesecake and macarons, the latter of which she finds too hard to chew. And over in the McFlurry section, she points out a candy she's unsure of but "would love to try." She does opt for the cheesecake dripping in M&Ms and hot fudge, and that, she says, is "pretty good."

Not everyone in the comments is equally impressed by the Parisian Micky Ds. "Spoiler alert, McD's in Paris is even worse than US and you have to pay to use the bathroom." Though others feel quite the opposite. "Literally so mad they don’t have the veggie McChicken/nuggets in the US."

I can personally attest to the culture influence on the McDonald's menu. I lived in Tel Aviv for a bit and happened to be there when they got their first McDonald's in 1993. I was so intrigued by how different the menu was—and not just because it was in Hebrew. It sported lots of falafel sandwiches and other Middle Eastern spins and spices on traditional McDonald's fare.

Other Upworthy colleagues shared their experiences. In Vienna, Austria, writer Annie Reneau shares, "We discovered they had gluten free burgers! And gorgeous Viennese desserts. And we had to pay for ketchup packets. A very different experience."

And writer Denise Quan notes, "Even in Hawaii, they have unique local favorites on the menu, like Spam and Portuguese sausage. And saimin (aka ramen.)"