Burger King’s most iconic menu item has received an upgrade. I am not referring to the Crossan’wich or those greasy French toast sticks—which are perfect as they are—but rather the Burger King Whopper. You can now “have it your way,” provided your way is, I suppose, “better.”
What exactly is new and improved about this updated Whopper?
I don’t consume fast-food burgers very often, but when I do, I am a Whopper fan. I enjoy the fact that you can smell a Burger King from a block away, I appreciate the flavor of their flame-broiled patties, and, I must admit, I have a soft spot for the generous amount of mayonnaise they use. If you are going to commit to a burger, you might as well go all in. Essentially, Whoppers are great—so what did the company decide to change?
According to the brand, here is how the Whopper has changed:
A better-tasting bun. No specific details were provided, just that it tastes better.
It is now served in a box. I suppose they were previously served in paper wrappers, though I had never really considered it before.
Better-tasting mayo. If the mayonnaise tasted poor previously, I failed to notice, though I am admittedly quite fond of mayo.
I sampled the new Whopper, and here are my thoughts.
Pros: I do believe they improved the bun. As I mentioned, I am not eating these every day, but the bun always felt like an afterthought. Now that I consider it, perhaps the previous buns were a bit dry and brittle? Regardless, the bun is good now. It is quite soft and has a slightly sweet flavor; my colleague Justine Sterling thought it tasted a bit like a Hawaiian roll. I truly do not think there was ever an issue with their mayo, and there still isn’t—it is great. As for the box, it works! It is made of cardboard, so it does not seem overly wasteful, and it certainly prevents the burger from getting crushed if it ends up at the bottom of a bag filled with other items.
Cons: If you are not a fan of Whoppers and were hoping for some sort of major Jim Carrey-style facelift, you will likely be disappointed. This is still a Whopper, which is a positive, and I highly doubt that anyone outside of Burger King’s R&D department could distinguish the difference if they were not tasting the “new” burger side-by-side with the “old” one.
All in all, it is a solid sandwich—one you will want to take a normal-human-being-sized bite of.
