# Why is McDonald's so blah/icky? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 19, 2011, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359 "2011-08-19T19:20:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/81 "2011-08-24T20:29:04Z")
> [@typoink](#): > > Funny, I know both my wife and I would say the Angus stuff is our least favorite – to me, their Angus burgers taste like a bad “real” hamburger. Whereas a Big Mac or double cheeseburger tastes like a good “McDonalds” hamburger. The Angus has a different bun and they use mayo (and no ketchup). This makes the sandwich taste utterly different. My mom was big on mayo (no ketchup) burgers, the flavor was not unfamiliar. THose not exposed to that from an early age will get different mileage. ---
**Author:** ![freep5637](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/cdc98d/32.png) [@freep5637](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freep5637)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/82 "2011-08-24T20:36:26Z")
> [@Cardinal](#): > > I know someone will come in here and say they love McDonald’s, but I think most people agree that it’s near the bottom of the chain burger joints in the “fresh wholesome taste” index. Is it just because the meat has been frozen? It’s almost like an alien approximation of a good burger. It’s a very good attempt, but something’s wrong. The secret at McDonald’s is to special order everything. Then you get it hot fresh and delicious. Everyone that I’ve told this to has done it at some point and literally called me up to tell me that their whole opinion of McD’s has done a 180. Try it sometime. ---
**Author:** ![gwendee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@gwendee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwendee)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/83 "2011-08-24T20:56:14Z")
Part of the blandness is that I believe that they microwave cooked patties. In my early McDonald’s eating days they cooked frozen patties on a flat top. Everything else I might have said has already been posted. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/84 "2011-08-24T21:08:23Z")
> [@freep5637](#): > > The secret at McDonald’s is to special order everything. Then you get it hot fresh and delicious. Everyone that I’ve told this to has done it at some point and literally called me up to tell me that their whole opinion of McD’s has done a 180. Try it sometime. You might have something there–that might be the reason why I still don’t hate McD’s even though they’re drier and saltier than they used to be. From the time I was a little kid, I always ordered my burgers plain. Just meat, cheese, and bun. I still remember those little paper slips they included in the styrofoam box before everything was computerized. My parents used to get a little annoyed sometimes when they were in a hurry, but I got to bypass all the burgers stacked up in the hopper and get a fresh one. (That’s not why I did it–I just don’t like all the stuff they put on burgers.) The other thing I really like, but this isn’t something you can exactly ask them to do, is when they put onions on the burger, realize you didn’t want them, and then scrape them off. When I worked at McD’s briefly in college I used to make myself burgers that way. The slight oniony flavor really made the burger “pop” for me, but the actual onions were icky. Do they still use those little diced-up onions? I don’t think I’ve noticed in years. ---
**Author:** ![Billy\_Baroo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/76d3ee/32.png) [@Billy\_Baroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy_Baroo)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/85 "2011-08-24T21:16:33Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > Their fries and hash browns are dipped in beef broth during processing. I don’t think this is true anymore. They used to use beef tallow during processing for extra deliciousness but they stopped. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/86 "2011-08-24T22:38:24Z")
> [@Billy\_Baroo](#): > > I don’t think this is true anymore. They used to use beef tallow during processing for extra deliciousness but they stopped. It’s true. It’s not beef fat but beef-containing (and other ingredients) “natural flavoring.” McDonald’s [nutrition page](http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/food_quality/nutrition_choices.html) has a link to their [ingredients list](http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/nutritionexchange/ingredientslist.pdf) (PDF warning), which lists fries and hash browns as having “natural beef flavor [wheat and milk derivatives]\*”, with the \* indicating “(Natural beef flavor contains hydrolyzed wheat and hydrolyzed milk as starting ingredients).” ---
**Author:** ![Billy\_Baroo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/76d3ee/32.png) [@Billy\_Baroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy_Baroo)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/87 "2011-08-25T16:51:28Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > It’s true. It’s not beef fat but beef-containing (and other ingredients) “natural flavoring.” I stand corrected. To maintain that level of vegetarianism, you have to eschew sugar because of bone char. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/88 "2011-08-25T16:55:56Z")
> [@freep5637](#): > > The secret at McDonald’s is to special order everything. Then you get it hot fresh and delicious. The secret to this secret is to special order your burgers _without_ something. Order extra onions and they’ll take a burger off the rack, throw extra onions on it and send it off. ---
**Author:** ![Saltire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saltire/32/553_2.png) [@Saltire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saltire)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/89 "2011-08-25T17:33:43Z")
One of the major ways McDonald’s assures consistency probably also leads to a unique flavor: Their beef is different. They use meat from retired dairy cattle rather than beef cattle. Since this beef is extremely lean, they add in fat to match their corporate standard ratio. That probably makes it taste different to those with precise senses of smell and taste. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/90 "2011-08-25T18:06:00Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > I always get a good chuckle out of the fact that any time McD’s is mentioned, everyone swears they never, ever eat there because it’s just so terrible and gross and so much worse than every other place. > > And yet McD’s somehow manages to sell billions of burgers around the globe every year. I myself dislike to come across as one of those people with a sneering disdain for McDonalds, but I do have a grudge against them for being ubiquitous all out of proportion to their actual deliciousness. Meanwhile, I have to drive to another state to get a delicious Checkers burger. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/91 "2011-08-25T18:33:34Z")
I prefer Burger King (not that its that great either). Most fast food burger chains will make me ill if I get something more meal sized than snack sized. But in small doses they are all okay, particularly for the cost and convience. But I do have to give McDonalds credit on their 1 dollar spicey chicken sandwich. The breading is decent. The chiken is moist enough. There is a decent amount of meat in there. And, most importantly, it ACTUALLY IS spicy. Not OMG spicey but certainly way better than your average fast food “it taste like XYZ!!!” food product where you almost have to side by side taste test with the “normal” version to tell that the special version is actually different. ---
**Author:** ![Billy\_Baroo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/76d3ee/32.png) [@Billy\_Baroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy_Baroo)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359/92 "2011-08-25T19:13:41Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > And, most importantly, it ACTUALLY IS spicy. Not OMG spicey but certainly way better than your average fast food “it taste like XYZ!!!” food product where you almost have to side by side taste test with the “normal” version to tell that the special version is actually different. Have my taste buds suffered lasting damage, or did the Wendy’s spicy chicken used to be a hell of a lot spicier? I have this debate with myself every time my wife talks me in to splitting one of these, which suggests that my memory is shot along with my taste buds. On your recommendation, I’m making a note to self to try the Scottish offering. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-mcdonalds-so-blah-icky/593359.md?page=4)