Rostock's burger revolution: Jim Block opens in McDonald's location!

The McDonald’s restaurant in Rostock Schloss at the end of 2024, which led to questions about the future use of the location. According to the Nordkurier Block open a new branch at this location. Jim Block, known for his Premium-Burger, was founded in Hamburg in 1973 and currently operates eleven locations in Hamburg, Berlin and Hanover.

The new restaurant area at Kröpeliner Straße 71 will include a size of around 200 square meters. The branch will offer 70 inside and 50 outside seats. The opening is planned for the fourth quarter of 2025, whereby the new restaurant is to create 20 jobs. The location belongs to the E.B.K. Immobilien GmbH and is part of the entrepreneur family around Eugen Block. There is a branch of Block House next door.

Sale of the McDonald’s branches in Rostock

On the background of the closing of the McDonald’s restaurant in Rostock, Michael Wellmann, who opened the first McDonald’s restaurant in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in Lütten in 1992. Like the Ostsee-Zeitung reported, Wellmann sold all six restaurants to a new franchisee and returns to North Rhine-Westphalia with his wife Uta, where he took over 14 McDonald’s restaurants.

Wellmann described the sales offer as tempting and emphasized that they wanted to return to his wife's home. Uta Wellmann remains managing director of the L’Osteria in Rostock, while Michael Wellmann is still active in Kinderland in Roggentin. The redesigned McDonald’s branches in Rostock are transformed into a “restaurant of the future”, with digitization and reduction on two cash register. An investment volume between 300,000 and 400,000 euros is planned for each branch.

The new franchisee Joachim Fietz will lead the Rostock restaurants and is also the operator of branches in Wismar, Schwerin, Parchim and Schönberger Land. Norbert Bausszus takes over the McDonald’s in Güstrow and is also responsible for restaurants in goods and Wittstock. In Rostock, a total of 220 employees are affected by the change, whereby everyone is taken over.

Michael Wellmann looks back with satisfaction in Rostock, despite a decline in sales in 2013/14. In Germany, McDonald’s runs a total of 1,476 branches, 89 % of whom are managed by franchisees.