BUCHAREST -- The Big Mac finally makes it to Bucharest this week when McDonald's opens its first restaurant years after most other Eastern European cities.


Triple-digit inflation and the burdens of developing regional markets kept McDonald's away until now, according to McDonald's Romania SRL managing director Paul Booth.


"We had regular fact-finding tours to Romania to get a feeling of the market but a combination of factors, including 300 percent inflation in 1993, kept us back," Booth said.


Inflation is forecasted at 29 percent this year, down from 62 percent in 1994.


The already established Eastern European McDonald's network will help the move into Romania. Beef will come from neighboring Hungary, while cheese and other ingredients from Germany. Bread, milk and salad will come from Romania.


The first store, opening on Friday, is in the sprawling state-owned Unirea SA department store in central Bucharest. Booth hopes the 910 square meter store will serve 14,000 orders on the opening day and normally an average of 7,000 a day in the Bucharest market of 2.3 million people. With 23 million people Romania is the second largest Eastern European market after Poland.


McDonald's plans a further two stores in Bucharest by the end of this year and expects to open restaurants in Ploiesti, north of Bucharest, and Brasov in Transylvania .


The Romanian company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of McDonald's Corp.


Booth said the Unirea store had cost $1.2 million to develop and that total investment would rise to around $4 million when the next two Bucharest stores open this year.


Other big brand-name fast-food retailers have been equally cautious in coming to Romania. A Pizza Hut franchise opened its first store last year.