Visit to restaurant of Mak.by chain

Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko went to a restaurant of the Mak.by chain on 8 March.

Aleksandr Lukashenko had previously noted that he would be interested in visiting this chain. During a working trip to Kirovsk District in August 2025 he said that he would do that under one condition: if he gets treated to a dish that is made only out of Belarusian foods. Back then the President admitted that he had never sampled anything on Mak.by’s menu.

The Mak.by fast food restaurant the head of state came to is located in the First National Trading House. The restaurant was opened in late 2025 and is located on the first floor of the shopping center. The place can seat 139 people. Just like in the other Mak.by chain outlets, this one offers all the key innovations: self-service kiosks, digital menu boards, an interactive gaming zone for kids, separate zones for taking orders and for getting the ordered food.

The head of state recalled that after the McDonald’s fast food chain stopped operations in Belarus, he gave instructions to make a domestic analog on par with the U.S. fast food chain. Some time later the local restaurants changed their names to Mak.by and started using an overwhelming majority of Belarusian ingredients to cook the food.

Aleksandr Lukashenko also talked to the personnel employed by the restaurant. Mainly young people work there but some of the restaurant’s personnel stayed with the Mak.by chain after McDonald’s withdrew from Belarus. The President wondered whether working conditions in the restaurant with the new name had changed. The workers, who had started working there under McDonald’s management, admitted that they had seen no difference after the withdrawal of the U.S. brand.

“In other words, we did the right thing: if you go away, feel free to leave. But you’ve stayed. The people, who know how to do everything. To bring equipment was the only task. Although equipment was not the point. The task was to get down to business and get things done. Over 96% is fully Belarusian now,” Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed. “This is how we should proceed. We should focus on our own.”

“And now Americans can come here and take a look. If they come to me, you should definitely bring them here,” the head of state told First Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Snopkov. “Tell them: we are going to McDonald’s. Belarusians work. Belarusian equipment. Belarusian products.”

The President stressed that not only Belarusian foods but also Belarusian software plays an important role in the restaurant’s operation. The same is true for other spheres, including agriculture, where automation is necessary. “We face the same factor everywhere: software. Otherwise, it even hurts my feelings when I wonder why I created this [Hi-Tech] Park, why I promoted IT professionals. In order for them to try to turn the country upside down in 2020? This is why Belarus should rely on its own products so that they would make and sell on their own. Our products are appreciated in Russia, in China, everywhere. Their brains are highly appreciated. Americans have told me many times that Belarusians can make incredible things. Indians [can make] the impossible but Belarusians [can make] the incredible,” Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed.

The Belarusian leader also spoke about the high quality of Belarusian foods. The decision made by Aleksandr Lukashenko in the first few years of his presidency to keep Soviet government-mandated standards in Belarus was one of the significant factors behind the accomplishment. And although organic food were more expensive than analogs from other countries, soon after that wages and prices leveled off and people appreciated the decision to keep the old standards. “I said: have patience, in a year or two people will sort it out. They will buy organic foods. And we will preserve government-mandated standards everywhere. The Chernobyl catastrophe also gave me a nudge. After all, back then people still remembered that the Chernobyl catastrophe happened and the rest. We will preserve the government-mandated standards and will feed organic food to the people. Have patience and we will sort out things later. So our time has come,” the head of state noted.

Aleksandr Lukashenko also talked to the visitors and wondered where they had come from. It turned out that they were from Minsk and regularly visited restaurants of the Mak.by chain. The guests confessed that after the switch to Belarusian ingredients the dishes became even more delicious. “It was my demand: we will take away everything from Americans… Although why should we take it away? They abandoned it and went away. They expected us to flop. But Belarusians are smart people, after all,” the Belarusian leader said. “And they restored everything the way it was under McDonald’s management. But I wanted it to be converted to Belarusian things. I want everything to be Belarusian. And I want us to forget about this McDonald’s. But the food should be just as tasty.”

After talking to Mak.by personnel and the visitors the President personally sampled the diverse menu of the restaurant. He made an order via a self-service kiosk. He ordered a burger, French fries, chicken, coffee, and dessert. “Keep in mind that it is the first time I have been to Mak.by. I guess I have been to restaurants three times over the course of my life. In conventional restaurants, Soviet ones,” the head of state admitted.

The President also had a heartfelt conversation and shared his order with reporters, most of whom were girls. “We have the prettiest girls. I speak sincerely,” the head of state noted.

After sampling the restaurant’s food Aleksandr Lukashenko received a commemorative gift. It symbolizes the first burger made by the Mak.by fast food restaurant chain using only Belarusian ingredients.