McDonald’s much-hyped “Create Your Taste” menu, which allowed diners to customize their burger orders, is kaput. As Business Insider reports, the Golden Arches will now be replacing Create Your Taste with a line of "Signature Crafted Recipes.” Sandwiches will still be customizable in some markets, but not quite as customizable as the previous program allowed.
The chain first began its push into McCustomization with a build-your-own burger system at a handful of locations in Southern California. Eventually the company announced it would expand the Create Your Taste program to thousands of locations, allowing diners to customize their burgers and build their own chicken sandwiches.
But as Business Insider notes, there were some problems with the program — namely, that it was too costly and slowed down operations. The new line of Signature Crafted Recipes will offer fewer options: Customers can pick a protein (grilled or fried chicken or a burger patty) and a topping style: apple bacon dijon; sweet barbecue bacon; or pico guacamole. (Select markets will have an additional a Signature Sriracha sandwich option.)
On a recent earnings call with investors, CEO Steve Easterbrook noted that the new andwiches will eventually be available at all McDonald’s locations, adding that the company was looking for “customizable options that we can deliver through both the drive-thru and in store."
One thing that won’t change? The touch-screen kiosks McDonald’s had been implementing along with Create Your Taste. Customers will now use those kiosks to order from the Signature Crafted menu. Good thing, too, because as BI notes, “Many franchisees invested roughly $125,000 per location to install the ‘Create Your Taste’ kiosks in their restaurants.”
The new, less customizable, sandwiches should solve a couple of problems for the fast food giant: Not only were the Create Your Taste options costly for franchisees to implement, they were pricier for customers, too. (One Chicago man even created a nearly $900 burger utilizing the kiosks.) And certainly no one visits McDonald’s for an expensive burger, no matter how original it is.
Since the Signature Crafted line comes with pre-determined topping combos, there’s only so much customization diners will be able to do, allowing McDonald’s to focus on what it does best: cheap food and all-day breakfast.
• McDonald's Just Pulled the Plug on Its Biggest Menu Change in Years [Business Insider]
• McDonald's Bringing Build-Your-Own Burger Program to 2,000 Locations [E]
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