The Surprising Reason One McDonald’s Uses Turquoise Arches

The bright yellow letter M for McDonald’s is one of the most recognizable logos in the world. It adorns McDonald’s restaurants across the globe, to the point where “The Golden Arches” has become all but synonymous with McDonald’s itself.

However, there’s one McDonald’s that forgoes that famous yellow color in its logo in favor of a light bluish-green. In Sedona, Arizona, the only arches you’ll see are turquoise!

Don’t worry, there’s a reason for the color change—and it’s pretty funny. The city of Sedona, located in the center of Arizona, is famous for its stunning natural beauty—namely, its mountainous landscape of red rock. Because of said landscape, there are rules in place for buildings in Sedona to make sure that no structure intrudes too much on the surrounding natural scenery. When the McDonald’s was built there in 1993, city officials believed that a bright yellow M would do just that. They claimed that gold would clash with the surrounding red rocks, and opted for a more pleasing blue. You read that right—the arches are blue because gold didn’t match the city’s (natural) decor. Employees may not know the reason, but here are these things McDonald’s employees won’t tell you.

Whatever the reason, though, the color-change certainly makes this McDonald’s stand out. In fact, these unique not-so-golden arches have become an essential tourist destination for Sedona travelers.

In every way besides the giant M, though, this McDonald’s is just like any other—full of guilty-pleasure burgers, Happy Meals and addictive fries. Want to why McDonald’s fries are so good? Here’s the secret.