McDonald's to open its first restaurant in the city

McDonald's does not yet have a presence in the city of Zug. But the first restaurant will soon be opening in a prime pedestrian location - creating a veritable fast -food mile in the centre of Zug.

Zug residents who fancy a Big Mac, a Cheeseburger Royal or a McChicken still have to travel to Baar or Sihlbrugg at the moment. There are McDonald's branches there - but there are not yet any in the city of Zug itself. McDonald's direct competitors, on the other hand, have had well-frequented outlets in prime locations in Zug city centre for some time now: Burger King at Baarerstrasse 25, Subway on Baarerstrasse and The Butcher in Metalli.

Clear location requirements
It is well known that McDonald's is always on the lookout for new locations. The aim is to increase the number of restaurants worldwide from 41,000 to 50,000 by 2029. But there are clear criteria that must be met for restaurants in cities: city centre locations with high footfall, for example near railway stations or public transport hubs, and a minimum size of 180 square metres.

A location has now been found in Zug that fulfils all of these criteria perfectly: McDonald's is opening a restaurant at Baarerstrasse 41, right next to Zug railway station. This has now been confirmed by McDonald's Switzerland. Press spokeswoman Nadine Zürcher writes: "Yes, we want to be there for guests from the Zug region with a second restaurant. The restaurant in the centre of Zug perfectly complements our very popular restaurant in Baar." The restaurant in Zug is due to open at the end of 2024.

Until recently, the restaurant at Baarerstrasse 41 was home to the Pier 41 bar, which was operated by EVZ Gastro AG, and is now closed. The reason given for EVZ Gastro's withdrawal is "declining sales figures and sharply rising maintenance and operating costs".

The location fulfils the Group's criteria perfectly  
Until recently, the Pier 41 bar was located here at Baarerstrasse 41. A McDonald's branch will soon open here
The new McDonald's restaurant in the city of Zug will look like this.            Photos: Kristina Gysi

Planning application has already been submitted
McDonald's is now building a restaurant there. A corresponding planning application has already been submitted, as the company reports. The application also includes "a tried and tested anti-littering concept". The future restaurant in Zug will be run by local licence holders, and will have 110 seats and 60 seats on the terrace. Almost 90% of the ingredients will come from Swiss suppliers.

For the interior design, McDonald's in Zug is focussing on a style called "Ray". "The design will use high-quality materials such as wood and glass, with a wide variety of seating options and warm lighting elements to invite you to linger," writes McDonald's.

McDonald's wants more branches in Zug and central Switzerland
The new branch in the city of Zug will not be the only one to open in Central Switzerland in the future. "We are evaluating new locations throughout Switzerland, because in the medium term we want to be there for our guests in 200 locations. The canton of Zug and Central Switzerland are naturally very interesting for us. Our latest project, the restaurant in the centre of Zug, is evidence of this," continues Nadine Zürcher.

McDonald's currently has a total of 180 restaurants in Switzerland.