Bonn Parliament Says No to Big Mac
The West German Parliament has declined an offer from the McDonald’s fast-food chain that had threatened to spark an East-West gastronomic conflict.
A spokesman said that Parliament Speaker Philipp Jenninger has turned down a proposal from McDonald’s to put an outlet in the Bundestag (lower house).
Jenninger wrote to a McDonald’s official, Walter Rettenwender, that all catering concessions for the Bundestag, which is undergoing extensive renovation, were already under long-term contract, the spokesman said.
The McDonald’s bid had prompted immediate resistance and a novel counter-proposal from the radical Greens party.
Greens spokeswoman Claudia Roth said: “No way. And if they get away with it, then we’ll insist on a borscht parlor to maintain the superpower balance.”
Borscht is a traditional Russian dish.
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