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Burger King has a history of being inspired by the menu items of their long-time adversary McDonald's. In the '90s, BK revamped their old soggy French fries with a crispier recipe that suspiciously resembled the ones at the Golden Arches. It was also during that decade that BK blatantly ripped off McDonald's Big Mac with the introduction of the short-lived Big King -- a hamburger that also contained two all-beef patties, a special sauce-like Thousand Island dressing, lettuce, cheese, pickles, and onions on a sesame seed bun. Now, with the introduction of their new Chicken Tenders, it seems that BK is at it again -- this time looking to the McNugget for inspiration, and attempting to do more than just drop the "Mc." Here's how they rate:
The Claims: BK's new Chicken Tenders are "tender," "crispy," and contain "white meat." They come in servings of four (190 calories), eight (380 calories), or twenty (950 calories). If you do the math, you'll find that each piece is 47.5 calories, but that adds up when you dip it in any of the six sauces: Zesty, Honey Mustard, Ranch, Buffalo, Barbecue, or Sweet & Sour.
The Price:$1.00 for four; $1.99 for eight; $4.99 for 20. (Prices may vary at participating locations.)
The Verdict: C. Gone away are the crown-shaped chicken pieces of the past; at a glance, these new Chicken Tenders look just like McNuggets (albeit a tad smaller) -- they have the same colored batter and even come in peculiar shapes like the ones at Mickey D's. The batter is crispy and starchy, like the McNuggets', with little to no herbs or spices to be tasted other than salt and a little pepper. The inside texture is just like the McDonald's counterpart: white meat that is ground, pressed, processed, and formed into nuggets. The taste is also similar, but not exactly the same. If it was BK's intention to simulate their rivals' chicken offering, they've missed the mark; what they have is drier and leaner-tasting, as opposed to the slightly fattier and softer texture found at the Golden Arches. (When I'm in the mood to order processed fast food chicken nuggets, I already know what I'm getting into, and prefer the latter.)
Perhaps these new Chicken Tenders have a flat taste by themselves because they are merely vehicles for the six dipping sauces available. However, those are nothing to rave about either: The light orange Zesty sauce is generically tangy; the Honey Mustard tastes like no-frills honey mustard; the Ranch merely maintains its status quo; the Buffalo is slightly spicy, but still sort of flat; the Barbecue has that sweet, factory-engineered smoky flavor; and the Sweet & Sour tastes like the kind you might get at a generic Chinese take-out place. Each sauce inherently enhances the chicken a tad, but that isn't saying much when you don't have something exciting to begin with. If this was BK's attempt to best Chicken McNuggets, like they tried to do with French fries, I'd advise them to try again -- or just stick with their signature items and improve upon them, instead of trying to emulate their rivals' food.
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4-03-2011 @9:03PM isoroku said... You worked in Iowa? I guess that explains your post.
3-29-2011 @11:49PM DennyBeMe said... I have breakfast every morning at BK with friends. If it weren't for the friends there, I'd find another place. They should also do a review on BK coffee... They call it Seattle's Finest, but Seattle must have the worst tasting coffee in the World... It's bitter, and has an aftertaste. I can imagine their chicken nuggets would be bad too - but I don't eat chicken at these places.... to me, the only chicken is dark meat. White meat is too dry and doesn't have any taste.
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3-30-2011 @1:14AM old enough to remember said... I agree with you about the sludge they call coffee at BK. Years ago, Seattle's Best was milder, but they wanted to taste more like Starbucks. I have complained to the managers at the BKs I have gone to and they all say the same thing. They get a lot of complaints about the coffee. They should bring back the stuff they used to serve. Btw, not a fan of the chicken pieces, so review makes no difference to me.
3-29-2011 @9:34PM kb said... I make em....yep...a fact. They are a quality nugget, all white meat chicken. If you've not had an opportunity to try the new BK Nugget....I would suggest you drop a buck and find out for yourself.
A home run indeed.
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3-30-2011 @10:51AM Michael Gallagher said... I just had some of the "New" C. Tenders at BK. For my taste, they were better and I preferred the Honey Mustard dipping sauce. I am not crazy about Fast Food Restaurants, but I think BK is doing a far better job with all of their meat and fish products.
As for breakfast - neither can compare with Wendy's.
My thoughts,
MG
3-30-2011 @4:01PM BettydcookII said... I think the NEW Chicken Nuggets at BKare great. Like them better than Micky d's. And they are new. I eat with friends every day for lunch at BK and these are new. Thats what I eat when I go and they started serving them about two or three weeks ago.
I also love there fries.
3-29-2011 @9:53PM dave said... Mcdonalds mcnuggets are gross.............like breaded chicken fat. nasty stuff........
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3-29-2011 @10:04PM J V L said... Ah...chick-fil-A. Jeff Foxworthy is right...what they serve is so good that, if you put a piece on your head, your tongue will beat your brains out trying to get to it. Their whole-grain wheat bread chicken salad sandwich is the best. Love that place almost as much as El Pollo Loco.
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3-29-2011 @10:05PM Rob said... I go to Burger King four to five nights a week to get the dollar side salad for me and the chicken tenders for my English Bulldog Mona. Mona is pissed they don't look like a crown anymore. The crown is what seperated them from all the other places and tasted better for some reason. GOOD GOING BURGER KING!
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3-29-2011 @10:28PM Rich Tapper said... You know, it's really too bad. BK used to make a good chicken tender product -- with, if you can believe it, minimal processing. It was actual white meat, the actual TENDERS. Yes, Virginia, there really is a part of the chicken called the tender, and it has nothing to do with a food processor. So I'm disappointed, all around. A part of me -- once vegetarian for a few years, and now strictly organic, or mostly so -- would absolutely LOVE to eat a good product at a fast food restaurant. C'mon guys, can't someone cook something decent for the masses? I feel like I'm living in a SciFi movie -- they're PEOPLE!!
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3-29-2011 @10:15PM Jane said... Burger King lost my business when they stopped focusing on families and geared their marketing to obnoxious teenage boys. Their food has been going downhill along with their common sense. Burger King used to be my favorite fast food chain but now they are my least favorite. McDonalds, Wendy's, Hardies, etc.... You name just about any fast food chain and they all have Burger King beat.
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3-29-2011 @10:19PM randy said... Although I prefer McDonalds food as a rule, I ventured into the local Burger King last week. I looked at the pictures behind the people waiting on me at the counter at the beautiful, fully loaded Whopper that appeared to be about 3 inches tall where you could literally see every item (meat, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, etc...) on the sandwich. What I received was a very flat Whopper where all you could see was the 2 pieces of roll that came together hiding the rest of the ingredients they so proudly displayed in their photos. Being an expensive sandwich and being fed up, I told them I wanted 3 Whoppers...and I want each one to look exactly like the ones in their photos! The girl said they can't do that and called the manager. I repeated the request and although he hesitated he realized I was VERY serious! Well it took almost 15 minutes to make my whoppers look like those advertised, the help coming out from the kitchen area 4 times to look at the photo. Needless to say, I brought home the BEST Whoppers we had ever eaten! What was really funny was, the guy behind me hearing what I had done, looked the girl right in the face and said loudly..." I'd like 4 Whoppers and I want them to look just like that", pointing at the same picture that I did. Next time you're in Burger King ask them to make your sandwiches to look like the ones they advertised! They MUST do it to avoid false advertising, and you will finally get your money's worth! I'm not usually like that but in todays world I am so tired of being ripped off!
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3-30-2011 @2:13AM Becky said... What do they use to glue together the "chicken" to make nuggets? I don't think I have ever eaten one. It's not something found in nature. Don't eat this sh*t, it's bad for you!
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3-29-2011 @10:28PM atomic said... The only thing BK has EVER done right is hamburgers....everything else on their menu blows goat!
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3-29-2011 @10:41PM Pam J said... I don't like McDonald's nuggets and I haven't tried Burger King's. I like the original chicken sandwich at BK (actually, I love it), and I really like the southern-style chicken sandwich at McDonald's. I like BK's burgers more and their fries have gotten better. I don't know why it's so hard for fast food restaurants to get the nuggets right. Chick-Fil-A is best, but also the most expensive.
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3-29-2011 @10:46PM Jackie said... omg people its all crap and people wonder why america is over weight stay at home and cook
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3-29-2011 @11:41PM yea said... THIS IS LIKE COMPARING POO TO PEE. GROW YOUR OWN FOOD,
ARE FOOD HERE IN THIS COUNTRY IS POISONED.
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3-29-2011 @11:42PM Jim said... I tried these today...It was a mistake. I was hoping they would not taste similar to McNuggets; but, they did. McDonald's upgraded its own McNuggets to Chicken Tenders/Strips...much better. The only reason I go to McDonalds is for their French Fries, which have also gone down hill since they stopped using animal fat based oil in their deep fryer. Somebody, here, wrote about Chick Filet-A...They are great; and, I love their Chick Filet-A Sauce. In California, we have Carl's Jr.. They have excellent hand breaded Chicken Strips. I'll have to force myself to go to Carl's Jr. for their excellent $6 Burgers. Jack in the box burgers have disappointed me since they stopped using regular hamburger buns years ago; but, they have some tasty new sandwiches, and their supreme croissants are redeeming, enough to get me to go there sometimes. Unfortunately, Burger King has defintely gone down hill lately. I grew up on Whoppers; and have always prefered them to any McDonald's or, Jack in the box burgers. I'm thinking that Burger King is on its last legs, and getting dseparate...They should have stuck with their ribs that tasted great; but, were not only "too expensive;" but, also available for only a limited time...even when they were supposed to be "Available for a Limited Time Only!" ... It seems they couldn't cook them fast enough, or keep them in stock, because they kept running out.
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3-30-2011 @12:05AM Thomas Swist said... I tried the chicken fries and they were soggy breading with mystery chicken (?) in the middle. The crown shaped nuggets were so bad my dog wouldn't eat them. It's either Micky D's or White Castle chicken rings for processed chicken, but Wendy's for the tastiest.
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3-30-2011 @12:40AM Wanda said... Wasn't it Burger King that recently sold to Brazil?
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