Top three fast-food chains in Romania

McDonald’s, KFC, and Mesopotamia are the biggest fast-food chains in Romania, according to a 2021 ranking that measured the turnover and net profit of restaurants in the country.

McDonald’s is the world’s largest fast-food chain, and it also comes in first place in Romania. It operates 92 locations and 47 McCafé coffee shops in 28 cities, according to an analysis done by Risco.ro and cited by Economedia. Last year, McDonald’s Romania had a turnover of RON 1.1 bln (EUR 203.5 mln) and a net profit of RON 146 mln (EUR 29.7 mln), up 66% relative to 2020.

KFC takes second place, with 80 locations and a turnover of RON 734 mln (EUR 149.4 mln) and a net profit of RON 50 mln (EUR 10 mln). The fast-food chain has been present in Romania for roughly a quarter of a century.

Mesopotamia, the restaurant chain founded in 2010 by Romanian entrepreneurs Sebastian and Samuel Tataringa, comes in third. The brothers opened 17 new locations last year, reaching a total of 54 nationally, all manned by 551 employees. Mesopotamia’s turnover stood at RON 119 mln (EUR 24.2 mln) in 2021, with a net profit of RON 6.5 mln. The fast-food chain registered a net profit increase of 282%.

Active in Romania since 1994 and currently operating 23 locations nationally, Pizza Hut takes fourth place. The company had a turnover of RON 90 mln in 2021 and registered a net profit increase of 43%. Pizza Hut has 670 employees in Romania.

Nadenka, the company behind the pretzel shop brand Gigi, takes fifth place. The company runs 43 pretzel shops, five fast-food locations under the Panici brand, and a donut shop, employing 408 people. Founded in 2014 in Brașov, the company’s turnover grew yearly between 25 to 29%. Last year, its turnover stood at RON 63 mln, with a net profit of RON 4 mln.

(Photo source: Inquam Photos / Octav Ganea)