It appears McDonald’s decided it was time to throw hands in this war of chicken sandwiches. Chick-Fil-A and Popeye’s had quite the fire fight. As always, Popeye seems to never bring enough ammo to finish the fights they start, and they run away with their tail between their legs. Now to be fair, McDonald’s has had chicken sandwiches for quite some time, just not always the ones that make me question my Chick-fil-A Loyalties. It appears Mickey D’s got jealous of being left out the fight. With Popeye’s attempting to reload for the next firefight, Mickey D’s has entered Nuketown with a weapon of their own.

Enter the Spicy BBQ Chicken Sandwich. I’m not gonna lie, I had pretty low expectations going into this one seeing as it’s McDonald’s. They’re like that musical artist who used to be the shit back in the day but lost their thunder when people realized how shitty they were. An yet, they’re still hip with those that want to remember the good old days.

I walked in expecting this shit to be sold out, but it turns out it isn’t as popular. Either that, or Mickey D’s has proven its efficiency in pumping out cheap meat. As I walked to my car, I could smell the sweet aromas of that distinct McDonald’s oil. I opened wide, took a bite, and…

Wow. This was actually surprisingly solid for a Chicken Sandwich from McDonald’s of all places. Unlike Popeye’s, they even remembered to put the damn pickles on the sandwich. Unfortunately, this still has the makings of a typical McDonald’s sandwich, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It just means you shouldn’t expect anything spectacular.

Presentation

This sandwich looked moderately close to the picture, which is saying a lot. Nothing I’ve ever gotten from McDonald’s looks even remotely close to the picture. Buying food from McDonald’s is sometimes like getting catfished on a date. You see this spectacular photo of a person in their prime only to be greeted by that same person who looks like they chain smoke 20 packs a day. The presentation wasn’t bad, but there aren’t many ingredients in the sandwich, so they didn’t really have to try that hard.

Texture

McDonald’s isn’t exactly known for juicy chicken sandwiches, and this sandwich is no exception to that rule. If you’ve had any of the other cheaper chicken sandwiches from Mickey D’s, then this one is no different in terms of texture. It isn’t bad, it’s just that if you frequent McDonald’s, you’re not going to get anything new.

Taste

This is most important part of anything that we shove in our mouths. Unfortunately, this sandwich is similar to the Popeye’s chicken sandwich where the sauce carries the flavor of the meat. Without the sauce, the sandwich is your typical McDonald’s slab of meat that is fried in that sweet old McCrack (A nickname my siblings and I have given to the McDonald’s oil that is used to fry/cook just about all of their food, aka the reason you keep coming back for more long after you’ve finished your meal). The BBQ sauce on its own is solid, it’s a shame that the meat itself lacks the oomph of some of the other chicken sandwiches I’ve enjoyed.

Overall, it’s a solid sandwich for those who need that quick fix. It sadly isn’t Chick-fil-A , Crack Shack, or Worthy Kitchen caliber. McDonald’s would have a huge leg up if they used the type of meat that they used back in the day to make the Chicken Selects. For those too young to remember, McDonald’s had these limited edition chicken strips called Chicken Selects. The meat in those strips was definitely premium grade because that shit hit differently than the rest of McDonald’s chicken products.

If McDonald’s made sandwiches with that type of meat, you’d at least give Chick-fil-A a worthy fight. Otherwise, this sandwich is as if you’re bringing sub machine guns into a gun fight against someone firing a Gatling gun at you. It’s a good start, but it’ll only get you so far. And the dude with the gatling gun has an unlimited amount of ammo. It’s still better than that time Popeye’s brought an M4, but it ran out of bullets.

Score: 7/10

It’s a solid sandwich for a quick fix, but it fails to come even close to what a better chicken sandwich can do for you. Mickey D’s is that quick fling that you think will fix that hole in your heart while Chick-fil-A and the other good sandwiches I’ve had are like that very long hug you get from your grandma after a terrible horrible no good very bad day. Followed by a enough food to feed a starving third world village. With an ice cream sundae, and some hot chocolate to wash it down. All while watching some old school 2003/2004 Toonami.

Stay classy…

 

Flemmings Beaubrun is an avid gamer and lover of music. When not working, Flemmings likes to spend his time whipping up dank beats for the masses. He also spends his weekends thrift shopping for rare video games and obscure electronics. Other times he’s in front of a TV with a giant bowl of cereal enjoying shows from the 90s.