Review: McDonald’s Big Mac

As a boy I loved McDonald’s.   However I’ll admit I was never a fan of Ronald McDonald.  To me clowns have always seemed scary with their chalky white faces and floppy shoes.  I just don’t get that type of humor.  But disregarding Ronald what I liked about McDonald’s was that it was kid friendly.  There was never any special “kiddie menu” to remind me of my circumscribed position in life.   The standard cheeseburger was just the right size.  It fit my hands and my appetite.   Add to that a side shoestring french fries with ketchup and a Coke and life just didn’t get much better.   

Ordering was simple and service was prompt.  Well it was unless you happened to be eating with my friend Richard.  At age eleven Richard had yet to even sample ketchup or mustard and he wasn’t about to start.    His hamburgers always had to be special ordered and that complicated matters, but that’s another story. 

As an adult I still enjoy McDonald’s.  It’s convenient, reasonably priced and appetizing.  My favorite item is the iconic Big Mac.  It may not be the best cheeseburger I’ve ever had, I wouldn’t order one to celebrate a promotion at work, but I don’t need the best everyday.   When I’m hungry, and pressed for time, there isn’t anything better.   

The Big Mac’s two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a three-piece sesame seed bun, was inspired by the Big Boy Hamburger.   It was originally marketed as the “Aristocrat.”  Thankfully that name didn’t stick. 

To paraphrase Li’l Abner, “I is an American.  I don’t believe in aristocracy.  To me one bum is just as good as another!” 

Ain’t that the truth.  That’s the beauty of the Big Mac; it’s democratic.  A homeless person or the the President of the United States might eat a Big Mac and it’s the exact same burger.  The POTUS doesn’t get a special vintage or a private reserve.  Everyone knows this and everyone knows it’s good.  The Big Mac is egalitarian and I think that’s precisely why it’s so disparaged by the class conscious British and the snooty French.    

The local McDonald’s is open 24 hours a day and offers “all day breakfast.  That’s to say you can buy an Egg McMuffin at any time of the day or night.   Good stuff!  But the Egg McMuffin isn’t their signature item.  The Big Mac is and it’s only available between the hours of 11:00 am and 4:00 am.  Hear that McDonald’s?  The Big Mac should be available at any hour. 

One last thought.  For a limited time McDonald’s once offered a Mac Jr.  That was a scaled down version of the classic Big Mac with a two-piece bun and a single beef patty.  More often than not that was all I needed to satisfy my craving and for significantly less calories.   McDonald’s bring back the Mac Jr!