I’m from Mexico. The difference with the US is that in Mexico we actually season our food ( :P ).
But yes, I believe the difference was that I was actually expecting something more than just “edible” in Europe. I bought a beelinese in fucking Berlin, for God sake, and it was the most boring piece of bread I’ve tasted, and I got it in Berlin! Where the bread is from! And it taste like cardboard. I found a nice beelinese in Switzerland, though, and the best part is that I bought it at a convenience store lol.
I tried Currywurst as well, and it was just a sausage with ketchup and curry powder?!? WTF it reminded me to the cheap food I had to eat while being a broke college student. How in the hell is Currywurst something people want to eat?!? There was a queue and the place was a well-known venue… For a freaking sausage with ketchup!
I also had the worst pasta I’ve ever had in Europe. I can’t believe that being so close to Italy their pasta is so bland. I tried a local Italian “restaurant” to treat my and my SO, and lol the food was bad. It was ok for us, though. It was a hot meal for once, and the portions were great, but by no means I could call it “Italian food”.
At some point we got tired of wasting our money on “eating local” and opted for what we knew for a fast meal…
I can understand if other people had different experiences with McD: in the same trip I tried to buy KFC: in London to be precise, and it was the worst experience ever. The food was salty, and the place was so freaking dirty, loud and unpleasant. Still I find McD the most consistent fast food choice. That, and maybe Burger King.
I’ll be visiting Japan next year. My opinion may change after that.