There’s a New Bird In Town – Introducing the McDonald’s Chicken Burger

I had a new foodie adventure recently courtesy of my relationship with McDonald’s Tampa Bay. I got a backstage pass to check out the newest member of the Mickey D’s roster, the McDonald’s Chicken Burger.  I received my meal free of charge in exchange for sharing about my experience with my audience. Full Disclosure.

Would you like to know a secret?  The inspiration for bringing this new creation to McDonald’s is none other than my most favorite place for brunch, Oxford Exchange.  How can that be? The Caspers Co. owns both McDonald’s Tampa Bay and the Oxford Exchange.  According to Stephen, the general manager of the location I was visiting, the CEO, Blake Casper, thought that since the chicken burger at Oxford Exchange was so successful, then a McDonald’s version could also be just as popular.  So lucky us, Tampa Bay gets to be the lucky test market.  We’re special.

So what do you need to know about this new Mc D’s Chicken Burger? It’s not chicken nugget meat or mystery meat.  It’s 1/3 lb of ground chicken, half dark meat and half white meat.  There are 2 versions.  The classic features the seasoned Chicken Burger , lettuce, tomato, red onion, and ranch. The signature has the seasoned Chicken Burger, lettuce, tomato, and grilled onions.  Both are served on the new fancy pants potato roll.  The classic is around 390 calories and the signature is 400 calories.

My honest thoughts? I admit I was skeptical.  Ground poultry meat can be really really good or really not depending on preparation.  I opted for the Signature Chicken Burger for my first taste and I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised. The potato bun was good. The meat was seasoned.  They were generous with the onions and the signature sauce. I love the signature sauce. It’s kinda tangy kinda sweet. They wouldn’t tell me what was in it but I liked it! My initial impression is that the Chicken Burger was a win.

Now even though this was a sponsored experience, you know how much I value my readers so I have to keep it trill (true and real for my not so hip friends). While I honestly did enjoy my first experience, I have to tell you that your experience could vary from location to location as is with most any chain restaurant.  I’m not sure if there are protocols to be followed but if you get one of the Chicken Burgers at a location that doesn’t use quite as much TLC as the Wesley Chapel location I went to the first time, it might not live up to my great first experience.

My mom was in town to visit this past weekend and since she doesn’t eat beef I was excited to have her try the new Chicken Burger.  We visited the location closest to us in my neighborhood and they usually provide great service and I’ve never had an issue there.  But, they didn’t make our Chicken Burger the same way that I had it the first time.  There was only a dollop of sauce, not nearly enough for such a large patty. Also I had a 3rd less amount of grilled onions and there wasn’t enough seasoning on the ground chicken.  Ground chicken without seasonings equals tasteless meat blob. That’s no bueno. The sauce, the seasoning, and the onions essentially make the sandwich so if the location misses the mark on all three then it’s going to ruin the sandwich.

I would still say it’s worth a try but it’s really important that they get the creation right so that it’s just as tasty for everyone. Better safe than sorry so if you order one be sure to tell them you want plenty of sauce, plenty onions, and to make sure it’s a well seasoned patty. If it’s not be sure to tweet them @McDTampaBay because they would love to know if they aren’t meeting your expectations for sure.   Remember this is a test, and there are bound to be some bumps in the road on the way to perfecting a new product.

BONUS:   Check out the video of the live behind the scenes footage and my live on camera tasting!

 

Have you had a chance to try the new Mc Donald’s Chicken Burger yet? Let me know about your experience. If you don’t live in the Tampa Bay market would you like to see the Chicken Burger come to your town?

Lauren G. , Outdoorsy Diva™

“Adventure is a lifestyle.”

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