Holy Grail

You might recognize this. This is the McRib by McDonalds; the famed and fabled Mcsandwich of legend. Today, Alec and I each consumed one of these godsnacks. Alec seemed less than thrilled but I will let him talk about that if he'd like to. Personally, I found it to be a pleasant surprise. Given, my expectations were very low; just look at that picture, or even just imagine what it is. Still, I think without any anticipation of how it would taste, I would have enjoyed it.

It has something that very few other things at McDonalds have- a flavor that is discernibly of the meat of the creature from which it comes. Take the Chicken McNuggets, or,"McNuggs," if you were to simply taste them without knowing that they were McNuggs, I do not believe you would naturally assume that they are of a chicken. Even the hamburger straddle the line that divides manufactured flavors from those that occur in nature. Other than the McRib's pork patty, only the Angus series and items that include cuts of chicken breast meat taste much like real meat. Though this doesn't say much about how tasty it is, I think it is a commendable quality of the McRib. As far as tastiness goes, there is much in the McRib; it's as tangy as they say, and the sauce is of a pleasant spicyness that leaves a light tingling over the whole of the tongue, as the sandwich o'erfloweth with tangy-sweet-spicy bbq sauce.

I am something of an onion fan, so of course the onions provide a welcome variance to the unfortunately textured patty, and a nice, organic crunch that makes the manufacturedness somewhat less apparent- likewise with the pickles.

The McRib cannot hope to live up to its hype because people's expectations are damningly misinformed. The fame of the McRib comes not from its taste but from its nostalgia value-the sandwich sold poorly enough in its time to be removed from the menu. Its return is a callback to the 80s, to birthday parties, and to the wonderland that McDonalds once was, replete with ballpits and intricate plastic structures. Now, these are the memories of another generation, but maybe I'll one day feel the same thing for Sprite Remix, or some other treasure that has been lost in a sea of cost-cutting corporate greed. In the meantime, I look forward to eating a few more of these before they go away again. Thanks for reading.

Daniel

Oh, and if you haven't, listen to Alec's songs. Both rock but I am really big on Sweater Bed.