While Burger King has been willing to use the Whopper name as a way to drive interest in new products, McDonald's has been incredibly protective of its signature sandwich.
Aside from offering the Big Mac in different sizes, McDonald's has resisted leveraging the name. Burger King has used the Whopper name on a plant-based sandwich, the Impossible Whopper, and has used the name with dozens of burgers.
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Some of those have honored the chain's signature sandwich while others have been silly publicity stunts. That's a strategy McDonald's has been very careful about.
The fast-food giant has been very protective of its biggest brands for a very good reason.
"Core menu items – like the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, Chicken McNuggets, and World-Famous Fries – are truly the core of this business, representing about 65% of systemwide sales and driving profitable growth," the company says on its website. "Seventeen classic McDonald’s menu items are billion-dollar brands in their own right, beloved by customers around the world."
McDonald's (MCD) has only rarely launched new versions of its classics. That's about to change as the chain is bringing a new take on the Big Mac to the U.S.
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Image source: McDonald's
Chicken Big Mac coming soon
McDonald's has been very protective of the Big Mac brand. It has offered it in various sizes, but it has not played with the core formula. The chains has never sold a plant-based Big Mac or served the sandwich on orange buns for Halloween.
The chain has, however, offered worldwide a version of the sandwich with two fried chicken patties instead of hamburgers.
Yet America has never seen the Chicken Big Mac offered nationally. The sandwich made a cameo in the U.S., tested briefly in some Miami locations in summer 2022, but it was never rolled out on a wider basis in the U.S. That's about to change.
"McDonald's is finally bringing the Chicken Big Mac to the U.S. this year and I am really curious to see what everyone thinks!" the popular Snackolator Instagram page reported. "It was revealed by the CEO of @mcdonalds in a recent video that the Chicken Big Mac would be joining the OG at stores in the U.S. although he did not give a specific date."
The Chicken Big Mac is a Big Mac but with crispy-fried seasoned chicken patties in place of beef. It offers the two chicken patties, Big Mac sauce, lettuce, processed cheddar cheese, and pickles on a toasted sesame seed bun.
"This was so popular in the UK and Australia that they had to pull it from the menu due to supply issues (remember the Popeye's Chicken Sandwich launch?), so it will be very interesting to see how this does nationwide," Snackolator added.
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The Big Mac has been an even bigger hit
Earlier this year McDonald's made subtle changes to its burgers, including the Big Mac, as part of its "Better Burger" campaign. The idea was to make small changes to improve its burgers without fully revamping them.
Chief Financial Officer Ian Borden talked about the impact of those changes on the Big Mac during his company's first-quarter-earnings call.
"In the U.S., where we're now fully deployed across the country, we celebrated the national launch of Best Burger with an iconic character at the center of our advertising," he said. "Tapping into the nostalgia of the hamburger, the campaign drove a significant lift in the Big Mac category and contributed to record customer satisfaction scores in the market."
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The chain plans to continue to make changes to its burger lineup. Most will be small, but another big plan is in the works.
"We'll continue to showcase that small changes can add up to deliver big improvements to both taste and quality by scaling Best Burger to nearly all restaurants by the end of 2026," Borden said.
"And as we look to further build on our leadership in beef, our team of chefs from around the world have created a larger satiating burger. We'll be testing this burger in a few markets later this year, ensuring that it has universal appeal before scaling it across the globe."
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