Nestled into the side of a desolate, snow-capped mountain, its servers wearing fur-lined uniforms and serving up reindeer burgers — that’s what you might envision when you hear the words “the world’s northernmost McDonald’s.”
The reality is a bit less exciting.
On a recent visit to Tromsø, Norway — home to the world’s most northern McDonald’s — I learned that the restaurant has a menu, ambiance, and service similar to a McDonald’s I could visit in the US.
Still, a trip to Tromsø, the northernmost city in the world, would not have been complete without crossing off a bunch of northernmost feats. The Tromsø area, which has about 79,000 residents, is located well above the Arctic Circle at nearly 70 degrees north latitude, higher than most of Canada, Russia, and Greenland.
Before the Tromsø location opened in 2024, the world’s northernmost McDonald’s was in Rovaniemi, a city along the Arctic Circle in Finland that hosts the Santa Claus Village. Upon its opening in 1997, Jim Cantalupo, then McDonald’s International’s president and CEO, quipped, “Since this restaurant is the closest to the North Pole, we hope this will become Santa’s favorite neighborhood restaurant.”
The title had previously belonged to Murmansk, a Russian city that lost its McDonald’s location in 2022 amid the invasion of Ukraine.
The Tromsø McDonald’s seats 140 guests and is on the first floor of an office building
The Tromsø location opened as part of McDonald’s initiative to add more McDonald’s locations in Arctic Norway. At the time of its opening, McDonald’s said it aimed to hire about 60 staff and would be open between 18 and 21 hours a day.
As someone who often seeks out hole-in-the-wall restaurants and local joints, eating at McDonald’s as my first meal in Norway didn’t sit right. (Note: I still got my reindeer burger, whale carpaccio, and elk salami at other points in the trip.)
Still, how many people could say they’ve eaten here?
Turns out, quite a few, as when I visited at noon, it was packed with tourists navigating the snowy streets and taking photos of the many signs indicating it’s “The northernmost McDonald’s in the world.”
I also saw a few locals stopping in for a workday lunch, including some students from the local university.
It took a few minutes to find an open screen to order — nobody was ordering at the counter — and five minutes to secure a table for five. Service was fast, and some staff delivered food to tables directly.
The interior was spacious, with about 30 or so tables, but it did not scream “Arctic” to me. I thought it resembled other McDonald’s we stopped at in Scandinavia.
The main dining room was bright, lit by bars of white lights, while its walls and the ceiling were a light brown.
The ‘Happy Fish’ and ‘McFeast’ were menu items I hadn’t seen before
With all the fanfare about the location, I expected the menu to have some location-specific items. While there were plenty of options you can’t find in the US, pretty much all of them are on the menus of other Norwegian McDonald’s locations.
Still, I was amused by items such as the homestyle hot chipotle burger, the “big tasty bacon” sandwich, the big chicken salsa, and the McFeast. Some of the sides were also compelling, including chili cheese tops, hot wings, and sweet potato fries, coupled with various spicy and sweet dips.
Given the location, I also expected more seafood options. They only had the fish McFeast — featuring lettuce, cheese, tomato, onions, pickles, and mayonnaise — a filet-o-fish, and a small fish sandwich they called “Happy Fish.”
There was a small vegetarian menu with a few sandwiches, a wrap, and a bulgar salad. Breakfast items felt similar overall to those in the US, with the exception of a McToast, a round ham-and-cheese toasted sandwich.
The drinks and dessert sections were the most distinct compared to a US McDonald’s. McFlurry flavors included cookie dough and regional chocolate candies like the almond-caramel-filled Daim and Non Stop, which are similar to M&Ms. I also enjoyed seeing cinnamon rolls, Oreo muffins, and different types of macarons and donuts.
Drinks that caught my eye, some of which were prepared at a different counter, included a banana milkshake, a Banoffee shake, various types of tea, and coffee varieties including a caramel latte and flat white.
Prices were in line with what I would expect: My McFeast, fries, and a drink were about $14, while my Daim McFlurry was about $3.50.
The food was good but similar to what I would expect in the US
The food tasted in line with any other McDonald’s I’ve been to in the US — the quality felt slightly better, though that could’ve been because of the novelty of the experience. The portions seemed about the same as the US.
The Big Mac BLT was an interesting combination that worked well, as the bacon wasn’t too overpowering. I thought the chili cheese tops, a crunchy cheese nugget with chili pieces, were very yummy, slightly spicy, and quite filling.
The McFlurry was excellent, though, and I loved the crunch from the chocolatey Daim.
Only one feature really set this McDonald’s apart from other locations
The one distinguishing factor at this McDonald’s was the postcards they sold that read “Welcome to the northernmost McDonald’s in the World,” featuring a golden arch jutting into the globe above Tromsø.
I felt the same way about the world’s northernmost Burger King, which had slightly more locals but overall had a similar menu to any other Burger King and a very standard interior.
The rest of our meals on the trip were much more exciting — we tried reindeer burgers and reindeer hotdogs at other places in town, whale in a fishing village a few hours away, Norwegian Chinese food, pizza that wasn’t significantly worse than a New York slice, and a surprising Eritrean meal.
Still, the McDonald’s will likely stick with me for a while, even if it felt gimmicky.
Sure, Tromsø is in many ways a culinary gem, featuring dozens of higher-end restaurants serving fine steaks and seafood, but for a cheaper lunch with a bit of novelty, I’d recommend stopping by at least for a McFlurry and picking up a postcard … and maybe saving your appetite for a reindeer hot dog down the street.
Read the full article here
