That does, indeed, sound thoroughly disgusting. On the other, beef, cheese, and ranch dressing are like the three American food groups, aren’t they? You can put ranch and cheese on practically anything and it’ll pass a taste test. (God, I hate ranch.)
Back in 1993 when McDonald’s was pushing their Lobster Roll. I don’t know what it was. It tasted like real lobster (just not real good lobster). It was served on a hot dog roll. It was on the clammy side. But it wasn’t horrendous. It didn’t make me sick. And yet, it still bothers me…
I don’t think I’ve ever had a fast food hot dog from a non-dedicated hot dog place that ever tasted good. Carls Jr/Hardees did the same thing with “chilidogs” where the hot dogs were tiny and tasted like they were microwaved, and the chili was the most obvious canned chili I ever tasted. At that point you might as well get a gas station hot dog because at least you can add as much fake chili sauce as you want.
Burger King Japan has launched some pretty bizarre concoctions, including the Berry Whopper, the Black Whopper, the Apple Whopper, and the Angry Whopper, but none of them have been all that bad (ok, the Black Whopper wasn’t good).
But the only fast food item that got tossed in the garbage after the first couple of tastes was McDonald’s Shamrock Shake. Tasted like frozen toothpaste.
Anyone else remember McDonald’s experimenting with pizza in the early 90s? At the time I lived near a location that was testing them but I never tried it. Apparently there are at least 2 locations that still make it, possibly 3.
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The Black Whopper occasionally shows up in the US (like, around Halloween), and you can find the Angry Whopper here too.
And don’t go dissing the Shamrock Shake!
It’s not the ‘worst’, but the most disappointing was the Dorito-shell taco from Taco Bell. It seemed like it would be such a super junk food item, but it just tasted like a regular taco with some Dorito dust on the outside, it didn’t make me think “Doritos AND a taco together at last!”
I remember that too, and it really didn’t make much sense. The popcorn was completely out of the blue, it’s not something I associate with fast food or sit down places, just theaters and occasionally department stores. The sort-of table service didn’t really improve the experience and was just kind of confusing, and it didn’t fit with the ‘fast’ that most people are going for with fast food. It was odd, but I got free popcorn from it so it’s not really the worst. I think they were trying for the ‘high end fast food’ thing that chains like Chipotle are really good at, but tried to go high end on the service instead of the food, which doesn’t really work.
**Pantastic **. . . is that the name of a pizza gimmick?
McDonald’s Pizza was rolled out in Kingston, Ontario back in the early 90s. For reasons I don’t know, Kingston was commonly a test bed for new McDonald’s products; they also tried delivery there.
Anyway, it was okay, as I recall. It was like a common discount pizza, like, say, Domino’s, but not good enough you’d go out of your way to get some, as opposed to some other pizza joint.
McDonalds gloms on to whatever’s popular. When Taco Bell was on the rise with their “Run For The Border” campaign, they sold tacos. When Domino’s Pizza was hitting peak expansion, they tried pizza. More recently, they started the McCafe campaign in response to Starbucks, and don’t forget their jumping on the smoothie bandwagon to counter Jamba Juice. Their menu is pretty much the detritus of attempts to keep you going to other chains.
As far as menu gimmicks, around here Hardees is currently serving a cheeseburger with a slab of boneless ribs on top.
I managed a PH when they rolled out. They were an expensive and time-consuming disaster. They we’re trying to go “upscale” to counter the cheaper delivery places. Fail.
I liked the Deli Trio sandwich, too… sure, I could make a sandwich like that at home, but I wouldn’t be likely to keep all those ingredients on hand; I think I’d actually be MORE likely to have the makings for a cheeseburger before I’d happen to have panini bread, the italian dressing, and long-sliced pickles all in the fridge at the same time. And then I don’t have a panini press.
I liked the pannido version also, but the plain Deli Trio was ever better, I thought.
After years of avoiding Jack in the Box, I actually ate there fairly often when they had those. I was sad when they discontinued them.
I don’t remember what they called it, or if they still have it, but the KFC meals where they just loaded a bunch of gloppy shit into a bucket and fed it to you were some of the most unappetizing commercials I’ve ever seen, and I’m including anti-diarrheal ads in that.
KFC Famous Bowl. I’ve never had one, as I haven’t been to KFC in a couple decades, but I was oddly intrigued by it, and looked like something I might like, as I used to like eating something like that as a kid. (I liked to mix my potatoes, gravy, and peas and carrots or corn together, load it on a fork, and stab some meat with it, combining everything in one bite. Heck, what am I saying as a kid. I still do it in the privacy of my own home.)
Was that different than Pzones? Are Pzones still a thing?
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The Prizarro looks like their attempt at a Chicago deep dish pizza. The Pzone was just a Calzone.
They aren’t too bad. Just like a Thanksgiving dinner with chicken instead of turkey. After a bit all the neat piles of turkey, potatoes and veggies tend to mingle a bit.
Dennis
Sometime during the late 70’s McDonald’s introduced a shamrock shake for St. Patrick’s. I drank that and ate my burger and fries, then went to the order counter and threw it all up in front of several full order lines. Mom got us out of the there pretty quick.
We were in the test market for those back in '80-'81. They were good! But, I can’t be sure whether they were actually better, or whether my 20-year-old’s sense of taste just wasn’t fully developed.
Just had one Friday, and I disagree. Maybe it’s dependent on the franchise, but the one I had was a pretty good dog.
Probably the only time I ever ate at Jack in The Crack was when they had that monstrosity burger with what? five patties, 8 strips of bacon and ten slices of cheese (or so it seemed). Whatever it was, I called it the DeathBurger. I’m sure each one took a year off my life. I think they soaked the bun in burger drippings, too. It tasted awesome! And I plan on never eating another one.
I’ve tried a lot of the gimmicks, most I can’t remember but the Burger King Mac and Cheetos was horrid.
I try to like the Burger King classic dog but they never seem to get it right when I ask for no ketchup and LIGHT condiments.