McDonald’s menu now includes a slew of new items, including not one, but three crispy chicken sandwiches.
On top of that, the franchise also re-introduces two fan favorites, the Spicy McNuggets and the Orange Hi-C.
I don’t know about you, but I was personally super excited to get my hands on these different items and try them. Especially after the whole Popeyes vs McDonalds drama, I wanted to see what the hype was about.
The HI-C
Discontinued in 2017 as the result of business dealings, McDonald’s brought back the bright orange drink. Quite frankly, it was probably the best decision ever.
If you grew up in the 90s and early 2000s, you may remember the iconic drink. I know I certainly did! It would always accompany my Happy Meals when I was a kid.
The first sip tasted just like I remembered. Sweet, sugary goodness that tasted like an artificial orange just hit your face. Suddenly, I was back in Mcdonald's as a five-year-old, slurping down a drink I knew was bad for me, but didn’t care. And for someone who is often disgusted by artificial orange tastes, I enjoyed it immensely.
Definitely get this on your next McDonalds run, you will not regret it.
The Spicy McNuggets
I often get wary whenever a company launches a menu item that claims it’s spicy because more often than not, it’s not. The amount of times places will say “New Spicy ___!’, they just mean a few dashes of cayenne and paprika.
But I was seeing videos of people reviewing these Spicy McNuggets, and saying they were out of this world, so I decided to give them a try.
From looks alone, it does look ok and appealing, even. The hue of it is slightly red, though it still has that characteristic McNugget golden-brown color, as well.
I’m not going to lie, I was a little excited to see what it tasted like.
To say I was disappointed is a wild understatement.
From the way people were reacting, I expected something that was actually spicy. Like ‘tear up, runny nose, makes your ears hurt’, spicy. But this was just...not it.
It was just like your normal McNugget, except with a little more flavor. Other than that, there was nothing special to it.
The Spicy McNuggets do come with dipping sauces, just like any other Chicken McNugget, and if anything, I’d recommend getting the Mighty Hot Sauce.
The sauce itself is just like any generic hot sauce you might have, and it does add that touch of heat the nugget itself is missing. So if you do order these, make sure to get the sauce as well.
The Crispy Chicken Sandwich
Finally, we get to their new chicken sandwiches. Is the hype worth it? Has Mcdonald's entered into the “Chicken Wars” that dominated the chicken sandwich scene two years ago?
Yes...and no.
As I unveiled the sandwich from the bag that it came in, I was surprised that it looked so...meh.
It was a little flattened and just...boring looking. It looked like any other chicken sandwich out there.
But appearances can be deceiving, so not wanting to judge it on looks alone, I took a bite.
Immediately, I was drastically underwhelmed.
To me, it tasted almost exactly like Chick Fil’ A’s chicken sandwich. Meaning it was fine but dry and nothing new (don’t come at me).
I mean, McDonald's really did just hit copy and paste, because if you put their two sandwiches in front of me, I could not tell you the difference.
So while Mcdonald's has technically entered a contestant into the “Chicken War”, it is a contestant we’ve already seen.
The Deluxe Crispy Chicken Sandwich
After trying the regular Crispy Chicken, I wasn’t too excited to try the deluxe version of it. But I’d already bought it, so what was the harm, right?
I opened the box and...wow.
Underwhelmed. Again.
It looked a bit messy and falling apart. Granted, that probably happened on the car ride home, but still.
I peeled the top off to see that it had the pickles that the regular one had, a smattering of lettuce, two tomato slices, and that mayo that’s on the McChicken Sandwich.
All in all, it didn’t look like the most appetizing thing.
But was the taste ok?
Yeah, surprisingly, it was. I’d even go so far as to say it was marginally better than the regular.
The sauce did add back some of that missing moisture that was lacking from the regular sandwich, but honestly, it kinda made it taste like a McChicken.
Maybe that’s why I liked it, I don’t really know. But my final verdict is if you’re going to get any of the new sandwiches, this one’s your best bet.
The Spicy Crispy Chicken Sandwich
This one, I was mildly excited for. Being a big fan of the Popeye’s Spicy Chicken Sandwich, I was hoping to finally find a decent contender.
But when I unwrapped it, that turned out to be just a dream.
It wasn’t just flat, it was dinky.
The chicken patty was small and when I took off the bun, there was only a small squirt of the spicy sauce (as well as those two sad-looking pickles).
My hopes now wildly tamped down, I tried it, and my god.
It was...so dry.
I don’t know if it would’ve been better hot, but dear god, that sauce was not helping anything.
It didn’t seem to add any flavor at all, and it wasn’t making the sandwich juicy (like the Popeyes one seems to do).
And to top it off, this sandwich wasn’t even spicy! It was just the regular Crispy Chicken Sandwich with a little red coloring in the crust.
I’d say if you want a chicken sandwich that actually packs a little punch, the Popeyes one is where it's at.
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Overall, I’d have to give everything a 1/10 (except the Hi-C).
Nothing was so good that it made me want to go back and get more of these items.
As I’ve said, for a lot of these, you’d be better off going to another restaurant and getting a better version.