McDonald’s Introduces Variety In The Quarter-Pounder Line
This week I reached out for a Bacon & Cheese Quarter Pounder, one of three new burgers in the Quarter Pounder franchise at America’s No. 1 burger barn, McDonald’s, with 14,000 restaurants practically everywhere. There’s one right down the street, in between two Subways.
McDonald’s has tinkered with its flagship Quarter Pounder line for the first time in 40 years. Joining the iconic Quarter Pounder and Quarter Pounder with Cheese are: Bacon & Cheese Quarter Pounder, the Bacon Habanero Ranch Quarter Pounder and the Deluxe.
This trio of new burgers replaces McDonald’s hoity-toity Third Pounder Angus Burgers, which were bigger burgers at a bigger price, nudging the $5 mark in some markets.
Here’s the Bacon & Cheese Quarter Pounder blueprint: a 4-ounce beef patty (that’s the precooked weight … it’s about 3 ounces post-cooked), American cheese, thick applewood-smoked bacon, crinkle-cut pickles, red onions, lettuce and tomato on a bakery-style bun.
Total calories: 600. Fat grams: 29. Dietary fiber: 3 g. Sodium: 1,440 mg. Protein: 37 g. Carbs: 48 g. Manufacturer’s suggested retail price: $3.99. Your mileage may vary.
Bottom line — and that’s what this is all about — McDonald’s is ditching its higher-priced, bigger Angus burgers and bolstering its array of smaller, more affordable Quarter Pounders to meet customer demands. The new blueprints are almost identical to the old Angus blueprints, just smaller.
This goes against our mantra in the drive-thru: Less is not more … more is more. At least McDonald’s shrunk the price along with the burger patty.
McDonald’s brags that its new Quarter Pounders are “new tastes with personalities as unique as the ingredients that top them off.”
Whaa? New? Bacon and cheese on a burger? Why, that’s a bacon cheeseburger. Thank you, Wendy’s and Burger King and every other burger joint in the good ol’ U.S.A. In fact, McDonald’s Bacon & Cheese Quarter Pounder is practically a Wendy’s Baconator, with less bacon. Imitation is the sincerest form of fast food.
A few noteworthy notes about the Bacon & Cheese Quarter Pounder: The bacon is definitely thicker, with a meatier flavor and texture than the old, paper-thin bacon McDonald’s used to use. The new bacon will be featured in all McDonald’s sandwiches that have bacon. Plus 2 points.
The new Quarter Pounders come on a new bakery-style bun that packs 8 grams of whole grains. Plus 3 points.
However (and ain’t there always a “however”?), the new Quarter Pounders have only one slice of American cheese, while the originals had two slices. Minus 6 points — see me after class.
(c) 2013 by King Features Syndicate.