McDonald’s Attempts to Bring Chick-Fil-A to Manhattan
While most typical fast food places (McD’s, BK, Wendy’s) are not considered for this site, there are a few chains that would be welcomed with open arms into the canon of acceptable Midtown Lunches if they were to decide to grace us with a franchise. In N Out Burger, Baja Fresh, and Panda Express would be my personal dreams come true, and I know for a fact that there are alot of you who feel the same way about Chick Fil A. As many commenters have mentioned, there is one in the NYU dining hall, but “technically” you need to be a student to check it out.
Last year, to steal business compete with Chick-Fil-A, McDonald’s introduced the “Southern Style Chicken Sandwich” to their menu, which stealsis supposed to replicate the Chick-Fil-A experience. Well, after months of trying the sandwich out in various markets, Midtown Lunch’er Andre Mika (who writes one of my favorite blogs- www.forkny.com) has brought to our attention that the sandwich has arrived in New York City. I haven’t had Chick-Fil-A in over 20 years (and I freaking hate McDonald’s), so to investigate this one, I’ve turned the case over to Andre, who is not only from the south (Louisiana), he is also a huge Chick-Fil-A fan. Here is what he discovered…
The premise was too good to be true. McDonald’s, king of the “clone and sell a billion” fast food culture had introduced their new “Southern Style” chicken sandwich. To those of us who understand the McDonald’s mentality, it meant one thing. They had knocked off the famous Chick-Fil-A sandwich.
So let’s cut to the chase…
How is it? Well, that depends on your out of control craving for an actual Chick-Fil-A sandwich. If you are like me, a New Yorker who at one time lived with a few miles of Chick-Fil-A, and had access to the champion of all chicken sandwiches whenever you pleased, the sandwich is damn fine. If you get your Chick-Fil-A fill whenever you want it, the sandwich is a solid but failed attempt to dethrone the champ.
BRASS TACKS:
What They Got Right- The bun is soft and chewy, if not a bit sweaty like a real Chick-Fil-A. They give you a swipe of butter on the top bun, and 2 dill pickle slices, just like the real smack daddy. All “Southern Style” sandwiches I have tried have been hot, which is essential in either the Chick-Fil-A or McDonald’s versions.
What They Missed- Instead of the hot “foil” bag, McDonald’s uses their cardboard box. On top of that, the image on the box is that of a girl and a guy on a swing, with the girl’s leg slung over the guy’s. Strike 1. The chicken filet itself isn’t odd shaped and thick in places… like the Chick-Fil-A breast. Strike 2. The marinade is so light that they don’t capture the flavor of the original. Strike 3.
Final Thoughts: You could do a lot worse at McDonalds. Even though the sandwich has it faults, it is way above average for the chain, and the closest knock-off I have ever tasted. But in the words of Marvin Gaye, “Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing Baby…”
Written by Andre Mika from http://www.forkny.com/
Posted by Zach Brooks at 2:46 pm, April 23rd, 2008 under Fast Food Chains.
39 Comments | RSS comments feed for this post
39 Comments
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Tried this chicken sando on Friday – was pretty good. Liked the bun and the consistenancy of the chicken breast – very juicy that is for sure. Its good but not great – worth trying though if you like simple fried chicken sandos.
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Having had McDonald’s version (btw in the south the original billboards for their southern style sandwich made a mention along the lines of “We’re open Sundays.” with their clonewich along with pickle protruding from the bun where displayed.
The sandwich, like much of crapdonalds (minus breakfast) sucks.
I was in SC this week and lived it up @ Chic-Fil-A two or three times. Glory.
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If you’re curious, but cheap, McD’s is offering the sandwich free with the purchase of a drink.
Local date may vary. Mine is sometime this week.
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Being a displaced Southerner in NYC and HUGE fan of Chick-Fil-A (always the first stop immediatley after leaving the airport in Birmingham), I was THRILLED when I saw that McD’s is finally bringing the Southern style sandwich AND sweet tea to NYC!!!
No it’s not Chick-Fil-A, but it’s a damn good substition :) Truth be told, I had it Sunday and Tuesday for lunch
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this might be a dumb question but….why isn’t there a chick fil a in NYC?
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I actually asked that same question to the VP of Marketing at Chic-fil-A during an unrelated business meeting (very professional of me, huh?). He said he’s been asked this question a zillion times and that there are several factors involved. One main problem is that Chick-fil-A is a christian organization and all of their franchises are required to be closed on Sunday–this, coupled with the high cost of real-estate in NYC lowers cost-effectiveness. They are also concerned about keeping their standards of quality in tact. I’ve got to say, they are a nice company (except for the one guy at the drive through who laughed at my order of a large chicken sandwich combo, fudge brownie, mayo, and DIET COKE–glad he found that amusing and I’m not bitter at all) and, back in TN, I saw them put several friends through college.
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I tried the southern style chicken sandwich from McDonald’s yesterday when they were offering a free sandwich with the purchase of a large sweetened ice tea. I must say that as a former North Carolinian and fan of Chick Fil A, the sandwich came pretty close. With a packet of McDonald’s Real Mayonnaise it was even better. The only thing missing was a cup of cole slaw on the side. I think it would be in McDonald’s best interest to do away with the Crispy Chicken sandwich (Yuck) and make this a permanent menu item. That’s just my opinion.
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I tried the sandwich in midtown, thought it was great. I tried it again in Queens, and it had cheese on it. Regional difference in the boroughs, perhaps? :P
BTW…the cheese was NOT a welcome addition.
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I tried it a couple weeks ago and it’s a pretty good sandwich, but alas, nothing like Chick-Fil-a. The reason it will be a long time coming in NYC is the same reason we don’t have any here in the San Francisco area (although there are several in Sacramento and the closest is in Fairfield, CA). Remember, that they are closed on Sunday and try making it being down one day a week in a high cost location.
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I tried this today. It doesn’t really satisfy the Chick-fil-A craving, but it’s the best chicken offering at McD’s (not that it’s saying much). The bun and general consistency of the chicken are good and close to the original. The marinade is not right and is much more bland than the original. I think they forgot the pickle juice. I’m also sure these are not fried in peanut oil like the original; this version is soggier and greasier. There’s a somewhat unpleasant aftertaste of grease that you don’t get with the original.
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Maybe it’s because I’ve never had Chick-fil-A, or maybe it’s because I love McDonalds (sans the filet-o-fish), but this baby was money…I had it on a road trip to Vermont this past weekend, and I was so pleased with the sandwhich that I stopped at another Mickey D’s an hour later to have one more…and I never stop twice. Anyway, for those who have never had Chick-fil-A, I suggest you try it out.
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On Thursday, customers who buy any medium or large drink at McDonald’s 14,000 U.S. restaurants can receive a free Southern-style sandwich or breakfast biscuit.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/chi-tue-mcdonalds-chicken-may13,0,3875055.story
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As an Atlanta ex-pat living in NYC, I too was intrigued by the “Southern style” chicken sandwich. I kept saying to myself, “Southern style? Really?”, knowing that it must be a full-blown blitz at Chik-fil-A, a noncombatant in the 5 boroughs. And I had a free coupon, so what the hell. Know what? Not bad. If Chik-fil-A rates a 10 (and btw, they do), then I give McD’s a 7. Will I have it again? Sure. Would I ever have one in the South? No way.
But I must say, it’s been a few hours since lunch and I still can’t shake that McDonald’s aftertaste. Eww…
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Mcdonalds can never even hope to stand against Chick Fil A,at least not down here.I too have tried the Mcdonalds version (I was in Pennsylvania at the time,so don’t call me a sellout),and it was,well,what you’d expect from Mcdonalds.One of the things that I really hated,it wasn’t handcut like Chick Fil A,and besides that,it tasted nothing like what I was used too (and there was no honey mustard to put on the sandwich,well there was,just not Chick Fil A honey mustard).I would not reccomend it to anyone.
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I work for a subcontractor of Mcd’s and from what i am to understand the Chicken for the SS Chick Sand is from the same vendor Chick-fil-a gets their chicken….Makes you think huh?
I wasted my money. It didn’t taste bad, it just was very basic and not worth the price. And it tasted nothing like the real thing. And I only got 2 pickle chips! And they didn’t have the sweet tea at the location I went to. Grrr.