Bring Me Home.
- Alice Seah
- Jan 2, 2016
- 3 min read
It's New Years (Happy New Year, by the way!), my friends and I had a late night doing the countdown celebration. I was hungry, as usual, and there was a McDonald's nearby. We were close to hopping on a friend's car to go to McDonald's, but had decided not to because the buses were close to not operating at those late hours.
But it did not stop me from craving my all time favourite Spicy Chicken McDeluxe.
"What is that?" – that's probably what you're thinking.
I come from Malaysia, and we are (if you read my previous posts, you should know already) THE food heaven, and a nation of spices. Spicy ingredients (chili, curry, etc.) are common and pose no threats to our taste buds (thankfully), at least for the majority of the population. Spicy Chicken McDeluxe is one of the chicken burgers available, and best burger (limited to my own opinion only) on McDonald's menu in Malaysia. Although only paired with simple ingredients: mayo and lettuce, its spice gives a nice kick in the crunchy chicken. And what's more, you can get it for only RM9.95 (equivalent to about CAD$ 3.30), with fries and a cup of pop.
Prior to coming to Canada, I did some research, and found out that there wasn't Spicy Chicken Mcdeluxe in McDonald's menu here. I was ultimately disappointed, but not surprised. Of course, on the day I left Malaysia I decided to have Spicy Chicken McDeluxe as my "last" meal at the airport. With tears in my eyes I bit into that tender yet crunchy, fiery chicken, in between those fresh buns and refreshing lettuce...
Okay, moving on.
Chapter 14: Cultural Influences on Consumer Behaviour gives us an understanding on how culture differentiates oneself from another. Culture is said to be a society's personality. A personality with shared meanings, rituals, norms, and tradition. Evidently, I have an emotional attachment to the Spicy Chicken Mcdeluxe because I grew up with it, and it suited best to my taste growing up in a country of spicy food, and what is known as our food culture. Anyone from Malaysia would probably understand this because it is part of our crescive norm: a norm embedded in one's culture, inclusive of an aspect called conventions (conduct of everyday life – in this case, the commonality of spice in our everyday meal). If it was introduced to the Canadian market, it would not have been a greater hit than it would other burgers that promote the Canadian/North American culture (e.g. simple and standardized, or the use of local beef and ingredients). Hence as mentioned earlier, it didn't turn out as big as a surprise that it wasn't served on the menu.
Clearly, McDonalds, although still pretty standardized in terms of its offerings, started looking into customized burgers in each country to better serve the consumers, and to obtain competitive advantage in regards to its competitors like A&W, Burger King or Wendy's.
In Taiwan, there's a Honey Curry Pork Fillet Burger, to satisfy the frequent pork-meat eating population:
In Japan, there's a Ebi (Shrimp) Filet-O Burger, to satisfy the seafood/fish (aka sushi) eating population:
And in Norway, there was a JubileumsBurger, made of Jarlsberg cheese (originated from Norway), probably loved by the population:
I don't know about you, but I'm starving, and I'm off to grab some snacks. Bye!
Sources:
Brand Eating. "Around the World: McDonald's Norway Celebrates 30 Year with Anniversary Burger." News, August 24, 2013. http://www.brandeating.com/2013/08/news-mcdonalds-norway-30th-anniversary-burger.html.
Lowyat: Malaysia's Largest Online Community. "New McDonalds Product in Asia (Part 2)." https://forum.lowyat.net/topic/3515516/all, accessed January 2016.
McDonalds Japan. "Menu." http://www.mcdonalds.co.jp/quality/basic_information/menu_info.php?mid=8564, accessed January 2016.
McDonalds Malaysia. "Which Spice Expert Are You." McDonalds Malaysia News Highlight, August 20, 2015. http://www.mymcd.com.my/highlights/which-spice-expert-are-you/.
Solomon, M., White, K., and Darren Dahl. Consumer Behaviour: Buying, Having, and Being, Sixth Canadian Edition. US: Pearson Canada, 2013.
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