McDonald's Snack Time

There used to only be three meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Then McDonald's decided to invent a new one: The Snack. Only a restaurant that has the size and power of McDonald's could invent a meal time and then convince the entire world that during this new meal time we should all eat at McDonald's.

An executive from McDonald's was in the restaurant at 3pm one day and thought, "Wait a second....no one is in here eating right now....maybe we should invent a new meal to sell."

Hence the creation of: The Snack Wrap.

When is it appropriate to eat The Snack Wrap? In theory, anytime. However, McDonald's wants you to enjoy this tasty fried treat between 1:30pm-4:30pm - the ideal snack time. It's slightly after lunch but not close enough to dinner. You need a break away, you feel like eating something but you don't want a whole meal. Maybe you'll pull out a Fruit Roll Up, Gushers, or the traditional cheese and crackers. OR, you could go to McDonald's and get a Snack Wrap.

I found myself last weekend driving the "scenic" route back from south Florida to Tampa. We had eaten a big breakfast so skipped lunch. There was nothing along this scenic route besides trees and after about 2 and half hours of driving my stomach started to rumble.

Suddenly as if by scenic route magic we came through a little "town" with a Wendy's, Taco Bell and McDonald's. Choices, choices. We weren't hungry enough for an entire meal but, we did need a snack.

Then I remembered that McDonald's had chicken Snack Wraps. We went immediately, got in the drive thru lane and now needed to make some decisions. How big is the Snack Wrap? How many do I need? Will it make me too full or not full enough? Should I get fried or grilled? What sauce should I get on it? Never has a fast food decision been so complex.

I was worried about it being too small so I went with two fried chicken wraps with Chipotle (BBQ) sauce. Cost? $1.29 each. Personally, a little over priced since I can get a cheeseburger for half that price.

My initial thought after biting in was - good. But wow this would be a lot better if it had a Chick-Fil-A chicken strip in it. McDonald's southern style chicken sandwich and chicken strips taste completely different. The strips are a little dry and more crunchy or as they would say "crispy".

However, I must tip my hat to McDonald's for their food innovation. All they did was take their strip, sprinkle some cheese and lettuce on it and roll it up in a tortilla shell with a side of BBQ sauce. For a snack it was definitely good, but not something I crave or "have to have."

If you're going to eat it for a meal you definitely need to get two (or three) but for a snack one is probably enough.

Bottom line is that McDonald's knows what they're doing. Invent a new meal for the day, take one of our current products and repackage it, then sell to the public.

I don't want to recommend that this is a bad thing, but if you're looking for a snack the 100 calorie pack in your cabinet might just be as good.