In Pulp Fiction, Jules Winnfield discusses a “Royale with Cheese” when comparing American and French hamburger terminology.
Samuel L. Jackson delivers the speech as Jules, who explains to Vincent Vega that a McDonald’s Quarter Pounder is called a Royale with Cheese in France because the metric system is used there. The conversation takes place while the two hitmen drive to a job, creating an intentionally ordinary discussion beside the film’s criminal plot.
The line is sometimes remembered as a real French menu item, but it is a fictionalized name created for the film’s dialogue. McDonald’s has used different menu names in different countries, yet the quotation’s cultural importance comes from its memorable explanation of measurement and branding.
Pulp Fiction was released in 1994 and directed by Quentin Tarantino, who co-wrote it with Roger Avary. The film won the Palme d’Or at Cannes and the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.