Food & Drink Crap food that you absolutely love to eat

[leviramsey]

KFC debuts their bacon sarnie

Last August, we wrote about the "Double Down," a mysteriously tempting (and potentialy lethal) new food item being tested by KFC. For those coming late to the story, it's bacon and cheese sandwiched between two pieces of fried chicken. And now, many months later, I'll finally be able to get my hands on one.

KFC announced the decision to go live with the Double Down yesterday, but we weren't sure they weren't playing a April Fools gag. But no, they truly are going nationwide with the delicacy on April 12.

The sandwich will be available in two forms. The Original Recipe sandwich will set you back about 540 calories, 32g of fat and 1380mg of sodium. The not-as-bad-for-you Grilled Double Down totals 460 calories, 23g of fat and 1430mg of sodium.

Official link

[Anthony]

All I can say is, Christ almighty. Where do you start?

[Nigel]

Im on my way to KFC right now!

KFC cooks up a deep-fried marketing win

by Ruth Brown

The internet’s obsession with bacon and fatty food pr0n has finally crossed over into the real world this week, with KFC in the US releasing perhaps one of the most terrifying food-like products of all time, the Double Down Burger:

From the greasy pen of the Colonel:

The new KFC Double Down sandwich is real! This one-of-a-kind sandwich features two thick and juicy boneless white meat chicken filets (Original Recipe® or Grilled), two pieces of bacon, two melted slices of Monterey Jack and pepper jack cheese and Colonel’s Sauce. This product is so meaty, there’s no room for a bun!

Yes: it’s a double-cheese and bacon burger with fried chicken in place of a bun. And the internet is — quite literally — eating it up.

Whispers of this latest creation first hit the interwebs in July 2009, when a blogger from Food Geekery spotted the prototype at his local KFC. Other food bloggers quickly picked up the scent of plastic cheese, and a new internet meme was born.

The food police soon caught a whiff, too, and the “One burger to kill us all” stories started piling in, only further fueling the burger’s forbidden appeal.

Anticipation built and built, until earlier this month, when KFC announced it would start selling the Double Down in all stores throughout the US.

So when stoned 16-year-old “chicken technicians” (yes, that’s what they’re called) across the States finally started frying up this frankenburger on April 12, every self-respecting food blogger and critic across the mediasphere just had to try one.

And try them they did

EDIT - Ooops just read Levis post!

[wiggyrichard]

A foot long Chicken pizziola from Subway

[mjmooney]

Why the hell do people feel the need to eat so MUCH?

I can understand the desire for fatty, salty food, but for me a small portion is enough.

It's not the nature of these items that disgusts me, it's the size.

[wiggyrichard]

Why the hell do people feel the need to eat so MUCH?

I can understand the desire for fatty, salty food, but for me a small portion is enough.

It's not the nature of these items that disgusts me, it's the size.

And then once ive eaten, its down to the gym to pump some iron with the boys.

:winkold:

[mjmooney]

[Genie]

Just had a gold bar, remember those? Tastes jsut as good as I remember

[AVFCLaura]

Cheese n Onion flavour crisp sandwhiches, gotta be Walkers tho.

Top stuff mate.

With Anchor butter, hell yes.

[leviramsey]

I'm actually kind of ashamed to admit that I did not try that KFC sandwich on its day of release...

[Wainy316]

Cheese n Onion flavour crisp sandwhiches, gotta be Walkers tho.

Top stuff mate.

With Anchor butter, hell yes.

Try Chicken flavoured Walkers on toast. Awesome.

[AVFCLaura]

Is that KFC thing UK as well? That looks lush.

[tonyh29]

Cadbury Creme egg flavour ice cream is currently on the list... not is sickly sweet as the real thing

Talking of Walkers I think they should be in the shops soon so check out the American Cheeseburger flavour .. if you close your eyes it's a McDonalds Cheesburger that you are eating , even has the mustard & gherkin taste balance right ..of course it depends on your POV of McDonalds cheeseburgers

[wiggyrichard]

Talking of Walkers I think they should be in the shops soon so check out the American Cheeseburger flavour ..

Purchased from Asda last night along with the Jamaican Jerk Chicken flavour.

I will report on the Jerk Chicken flavour in due course.

[leviramsey]

Is that KFC thing UK as well? That looks lush.

AFAIK it's US-only.

And it's "not so gross"

So much of the attention that’s been heaped on KFC’s new Double Down “sandwich” has originated from the idea that this amazingly nasty food product is yet another illustration of a food system gone horribly awry. Well, the critics are wrong. Putting aside what this orgy of cheap meat says about America’s food system, the Double Down, which debuted today, is actually not so gross. It’s only weird and disgusting as a concept — which, of course, was the whole point.

For lunch, you could do much worse than what is essentially a thick slab of fried chicken with some bacon and cheese flavorings added to the mix. Critics have decried the Double Down as a heart stopper but it actually has only 540 calories (which is not a lot for fast food) and 32 grams of fat. Compared to Burger King’s Triple Whopper with 76 grams of fat, it looks like a Weight Watchers special.

After eating one for lunch, I didn’t feel stuffed or ill from an onslaught of grease. The chicken is thick and meaty and tastes and looks more like real chicken than other fast food options (it’s not, but that’s a subject for another post). The Colonel’s Sauce wasn’t oozing out the sides as some pictures had indicated. All in all, if you forget about the novelty of what you’re eating, it’s actually pretty tasty. Although, even as someone who doesn’t shy away from salty foods, I found it overkill in the salt department. The 1380 mg of sodium seems reckless in a country where 74 million Americans have hypertension.

The biggest achievement of the Double Down, though, is the way it’s succeeded in getting attention. Not only did NYT restaurant critic Sam Sifton decide to slum it for lunch at a KFC, but a blog sent crouching photographers there to capture the odd event. (Unsurprisingly, Sifton panned it.) Other reviews have been more upbeat.

And the outrage continues. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a pro-vegetarian group, made the Double Down sound almost dangerous when it asked KFC to avoid marketing the sandwich to children and to keep ads for the sandwich from within 500 yards of schools. All of which has no doubt helped keep customers flowing through the doors of KFCs. The cashier at my local store said that Double Downs were pretty much all they’d served for lunch today.

As far as KFC’s concerned, that’s mission accomplished.

The New York Times review

KFC, the fast-food company based in Louisville, Ky., introduced its newest product on Monday, a chicken, cheese, bacon, and mayonnaise sandwich called the “Double Down.”

Diner’s Journal went out to try it, sacrificing its Monday morning good mood in the service of the reader.

The sandwich contains no bread save the breading on the chicken, which is fried and comes in two bread-like slabs. Between these a KFC worker places a slice of white American-style cheese, a piece of crisp-fried bacon, and a splat of “Colonel’s sauce,” a kind of mayonnaise. The sandwich, KFC says in its advertising materials, “is so meaty, there’s no room for a bun.”

Stunt food has been a part of restaurant life probably since the first time a chef put a napkin over a customer’s head in order to serve him a whole, rare, roasted ortolan. There have been deep-fried candy bars, and General Tso’s chicken heroes. There have been steaks so large that they’re free if you can finish them. Some of these are redeemable in both their excess and flavor.

The “Double Down,” however, arrives at a new low: a greasy entree dish of chicken with bacon and cheese on it, slathered in sauce, that the company asks customers to eat with their hands. The chicken is watery within its soft casing of “crust,” the cheese familiar to anyone who has eaten food prepared by the United States government, the bacon chemical in its smokiness, the mayonnaise sauce tangy, salty, and sweet, all at once.

At the KFC on Broadway and 33rd Street on Monday morning, dour, slow-moving workers were selling the sandwich beneath fluorescent lights for $5.49. There was no sign for that option on the placard above the cash registers, however. The only “Double Down” on the menu was part of a combination deal selling for $7.99: the sandwich, a small order of fries, and a medium cup of iced Pepsi. At 11:45 a.m., there was a line of 7 people. All in it ordered the combination special.

The fries weren’t bad: steak-fry shaped numbers with a lot of salt on them. The Pepsi was, as Pepsi is, more sweet than Coke, more syrupy. And there was the chicken product, consumed on a seat on Broadway just north of Greeley Square, as geek paparazzi lurked anonymously in the bushes to watch and document the tasting: a slimy and unnaturally moist thing, with flavor ginned up in a lab.

It is, in all, a disgusting meal, a must-to-avoid.

Meanwhile in the heartland

From the moment I heard about it, I was intrigued.

Who wouldn’t be?

KFC, the master of coronary delights, apparently decided deep fried food was way too healthy and thought, “How can we make our food kill people even more quickly?”

Presenting, the Double Down.

What is it, exactly?

Imagine a sandwich with no bun. What’s this, you ask? How is that possible?

Well, my friend, the bun is meat. That’s right, two pieces of grilled or original recipe chicken. In between, cheese, bacon, and sauce. This pretty much ensures the sandwich is only for the manliest of men. Or masochists. So, I figured what the hey and popped the $5 for it. I opened the box, and this awaited.

The bacon isn’t even visible.

Summoning the little courage I had left from years of rejection by women, I took the first bite.

I tell you what, the sandwich might sound gross, but it works. Be warned, though, there is a RIDICULOUS amount of sodium in it (1,380 mg, to be exact, in the Original Recipe version. Incredulously, the grilled version has 1,430!). But the chicken is just two breast pieces, the bacon was crispy, and the cheese and sauce add more salty goodness.

I finally managed to down the entire thing with a feeling of triumph mixed with sadness knowing my arteries have given up and walked off the job. The sandwich itself was good, but I honestly don’t know if I could ever eat another one, as I’m pretty sure I cut my life expectancy by 1/3.

I get the feeling this might just be a promotional thing that won’t stay on the menu for long. For the sake of our country’s health, I hope so. But, if you’re intrigued, don’t like life, or just plain feel like your blood’s been racing through your system too quickly, give it a shot.

[Troglodyte]

I've tried the Beef & Yorkshire Pudding flavour ones, and the Spaghetti Bolognese and wasn't particularly impressed with either.

Jamaican Jerk Chicken sounds promising, but I have a feeling it won't be as strong as I'd like the flavour to be.

[AVFCLaura]

Cadbury Creme egg flavour ice cream is currently on the list... not is sickly sweet as the real thing

Talking of Walkers I think they should be in the shops soon so check out the American Cheeseburger flavour .. if you close your eyes it's a McDonalds Cheesburger that you are eating , even has the mustard & gherkin taste balance right ..of course it depends on your POV of McDonalds cheeseburgers

OMG you just reminded me of the best crisps ever made.

And in doing so, I've found a place where I can order them. Cheers Tony.

[cheltenham_villa]

Cadbury Creme egg flavour ice cream is currently on the list... not is sickly sweet as the real thing

Talking of Walkers I think they should be in the shops soon so check out the American Cheeseburger flavour .. if you close your eyes it's a McDonalds Cheesburger that you are eating , even has the mustard & gherkin taste balance right ..of course it depends on your POV of McDonalds cheeseburgers

OMG you just reminded me of the best crisps ever made.

And in doing so, I've found a place where I can order them. Cheers Tony.

still for sale in my corner shop. love em but not a patch on Transformersnacks

[wiggyrichard]

Cadbury Creme egg flavour ice cream is currently on the list... not is sickly sweet as the real thing

Talking of Walkers I think they should be in the shops soon so check out the American Cheeseburger flavour .. if you close your eyes it's a McDonalds Cheesburger that you are eating , even has the mustard & gherkin taste balance right ..of course it depends on your POV of McDonalds cheeseburgers

OMG you just reminded me of the best crisps ever made.

And in doing so, I've found a place where I can order them. Cheers Tony.

still for sale in my corner shop. love em but not a patch on Transformersnacks

Im with Cheltenham on this one, Transformer snacks are by far and away the best crisp ever. Still sell them in Asdo.

[AVFCLaura]

You cannot beat the American Cheeseburger flavour of Quarterbacks!