Why One McDonald's Has Blue Arches Instead Of Gold

There's a reason why McDonald's is colloquially called "the Golden Arches" — the trademark "M" outside each restaurant is a brilliant shade of yellow. Currently, there are over 40,000 McDonald's restaurants distributed amongst 100 countries on Earth, and the overwhelming majority of them are decked out with the familiar golden arches. Only one location in the world, however, has blue arches ... turquoise, to be exact. It's located in gorgeous city of Sedona, Arizona, where the distinct colorway is meant to blend more harmoniously with the breathtaking natural scenery surrounding the building.

Sedona is a tourist mecca, with about 3 million visitors arriving each year to hike amongst the famous red rocks, stargaze beneath endless skies, and indulge in locally-grown wines. In short, it is widely beloved for the beauty of its landscapes and pristine desert vistas. The blue arches of the McDonald's there (which was built early in the 1990s) were meant to appease Sedona's city planning commission and harmonize with the earthy, serene aesthetic that the city planners were aiming for.

It may surprise you to know that, on the inside, the Sedona McDonald's looks just like any other location of the fast food franchise. Other than corresponding blue on some of its disposable cups and packacging, there is no special reference to the Pueblo-style architecture or the teal "M" outside. You can still order all your favorites from the menu and even pull off internet-famous McDonald's hacks like the protein-packed "land, air, and sea burger."

Interestingly, the Sedona McDonald's is not the only location in the world that bucks the traditional store design when it comes to the Golden Arches. The Champs-Elysees location in Paris has a more subtle white arch sign, and a historic edifice housing a Mickey D's in Bergen, Norway has no arches at all! Also in the American Southwest, the Roswell, New Mexico McDonald's is shaped like a UFO. In comparison, blue arches really aren't that far-fetched after all. Of course, in some countries, McDonald's is basically illegal, so there are no arches, golden, blue, or otherwise, to be found in other spots around the globe.