Quick Burger

It's lunchtime, you're in a hurry, your supply of euros is dwindling, and you crave a fast-food fix. Yet the idea of greasing up at "McDo" or Burger King is repugnant, and not just because of the food. "I'm in France," you tell yourself. "I should be eating in a French restaurant." And so you can, by joining the Gallic crowds at Quick.

ABOVE: The food is McDo-nothing quality, but the Quick Burger Restaurant's outdoor tables on the Champs-Élysées are a paradise for bargain-hunting burger buffs.

Quick is a French and Belgian fast-food chain that exploits Europe's dirty little non-secret: a taste for American-style franchise burgers and freedom fries.

With more than 300 outlets in France, Quick is very much a part of the local culinary landscape, so you needn't feel guilty about queuing up for a double cheeseburger with fries and cheesy rings. If you'd like to venture beyond Quick's knockoffs of the Big Mac and Whopper, other menu options are available--among them, rustiques (a spicy version of steak fries), a roll chevre mozza (a wrap containing a mixed marriage of French and Italian cheeses), and a grande assiette nordique salad with shrimp and salmon.

(Disclaimer: Menu items are subject to change, and some may have been replaced by other nouveautés by the time you read this article. Try not to be disappointed if you're unable to buy the "Donut Simpson" or the "Love Giant," a hefty burger on a heart-shaped bun.)

Tips:

• Don't expect Michelin star-rated cuisine. Quick Restaurants are fast-food outlets, not cozy little bistros where Grandmaman or Chef Louis from The Little Mermaid presides over the kitchen. (For budget dining that's a notch up from fast food, try Flunch.)

• In Paris, the best Quick location is on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées between Rue Balzac and Rue Washington (see photo at top of page), where you can carry your plastic tray to a  table on the boulevard for café atmosphere at fast-food prices.

For more information, see:

Quick Restaurants
The "quality burger restaurant" chain has more than 400 stores in France, Belgium, and Luxembourg. Languages on its Web site include French and Dutch.

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