Cabinets and partitions in frosted glass and orange plastic make the smallish space feel more like a tv studio than a working kitchen. On the counter in the middle of the room stand two baskets – one brimming with bright and eager heads of lettuce, the other full of crispy ciabatta. Next to them sits a big chunk of Emmental.

I am in Munich, southern Germany, standing in McDonald’s European test kitchen with some of the company’s regional executives – although only the familiar smell of grilled meat coming from the cardboard box in front of me offers any clue that hamburgers are being made here. No anaemic iceberg lettuce, no processed cheese, no spongy-sweet rolls. Just three men explaining how McDonald’s Europe spent three years reinventing the hamburger. The result, called “Der M” in Germany and “Le M” in France, was launched in April. (The burger is also being market-tested in other European countries, including the UK.)