McDonald's tries out Buttermilk Crispy Chicken

McDonald's will roll out the new sandwich soon as improvement on its crispy chicken patty. 

Having substituted new Artisan Grilled Chicken as an improvement for its grilled product this spring, McDonald’s now is introducing an improvement on its crispy chicken patty: Premium Buttermilk Crispy Chicken. The rollout had been expected.

The new chicken product was tipped, unexpectedly, in March by the Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) organization. In an email to social-media connections, McDonald’s describes the Premium Buttermilk Crispy Chicken sandwich as “a tender, juicy filet made with 100% chicken breast meat, real buttermilk, and no artificial colors. Plus fresh tomato, crisp leaf lettuce and mayonnaise. All atop our delectable artisan roll.”The email says the sandwich is “coming soon.”

Meanwhile, Wendy’s acknowledged that it, too, is looking at a “better chicken” item. During its Aug. 5 earnings call, Wendy’s CEO Emil Brolick said, “As part of our commitment to serving high quality, freshly prepared food, we have recrafted the recipe for our grilled chicken sandwich to elevate its flavor profile. The new grilled chicken sandwich, which is currently in test, features marinated grilled chicken spring – with spring mix, tangy herb sauce, and toasted multigrain bun. As part of this test, we are offering grilled chicken raised without antibiotics to determine our supply chain capabilities, as well as customer appeal.”

FARE reports that the test markets Pittsburgh, Las Vegas, Jacksonville, Orlando, Gainesville, Kansas City and Austin, and that the grilled chicken is “served on a toasted Multigrain Bun featuring nine different grains and seeds including white sesame seeds, red quinoa and flax seed.”