KFC Vs McDonald’s Vs Burger King: Burger & Fries Review with 4 Panelists

If eating burgers is wrong, we don’t want to be right! And to get the right burger, several factors have to come together seamlessly – the soft fluffy bun, the crisp juicy patty, and of course, the sauces and relishes that add the flavor punch we like so much. In the end, it’s all about how tasty that BIG, collective bite is.

We decided to find the best-tasting burger brands in India. This was possible by keeping in focus burger chains present pan-India. Yes, you are likely to find delicious burgers at local restaurants, smaller cafès in your city, but when it comes to standardizing taste and keeping the prices affordable for all, these chains do a good job. And so, it was down to Burger King, McDonald’s, and KFC in our big burger review.

While Burger King launched in 2014 in India, McDonald’s and KFC have been around since the ’90s. All three burger chains offer a wide range of vegetarian and non-vegetarian burgers along with sides including the classic salted potato fries. We ordered a veggie burger, a chicken burger, and a side of medium fries from all burger chains across four metros in India.

In this battle of KFC vs McDonald’s vs Burger King, which burger chain has the best burger and fries in India? Here’s the answer.

We picked three global burger chains that have a prominent presence in India. We did not pick artisanal brands or brands that only cater to a specific city. 

While selecting brands for our burger review we kept the following points in mind:

• The brands should have a Pan-India presence.
• A standardized menu and pricing across all outlets.
• The brand should offer delivery, take-away, and dine-in.

Our contenders are –

• KFC
• McDonalds
• Burger King

We selected one burger from the vegetarian and chicken category from each burger chain along with a side of potato fries. For the vegetarian burger order – we decided to go with the one that contains a patty made of potatoes and veggies. For the non-veg – we picked a patty that was fried and crispy – not grilled. 

Here is a table of our orders from the three burger chains – 

Why did we choose these vegetarian burgers?

McDonald’s: McAloo Tikki from McDonald’s is more popular. Why did we not select that? Well, we were looking for a veggie patty and not a potato dominating patty which is why we selected McVeggie as our pick in the vegetarian section.

KFC: Veg Zinger is their most popular and iconic burger, which is why we chose this as our pick.

Burger King: We chose the Vegetarian Whopper  because it is their most popular vegetarian burger. Burgers like Tikki-Twist or Veg Makhani weren’t considered for our review as they come with a desi twist. The Crispy Veg Burger from Burger King was not compared as that is an entry-level burger and it wouldn’t have been fair to pit it against KFC’s Zinger or McVeggie

Why did we choose these non-vegetarian burgers?

As McDonald’s and KFC do not have a mutton burger, we chose chicken as our choice of meat for this review. Chicken McGrill and Chicken Whopper were not chosen as they are ‘grilled’ patties. We were looking for a crisp, deep-fried patty which is why McChicken (McDonald’s) and BK Classic Chicken burger (Burger King) were chosen as the contenders.

Why fries?

No burger order is complete without a side of fries, which is why we just HAD to include them in our review. We ordered medium fries from all the chains to standardize the order.

Just like our Pizza Review: Pizza Hut Vs Domino’s, we selected our panel keeping in mind how diverse our country is. We chose four food experts from four directions in the country. Their knowledge about food and collective experience of over five decades helped us gain insight and prepare a framework for the burger review.

Our panel included four experts from four metros in India –

The Beginning – Mishry’s HQ was buzzing with excitement when we conceptualised the burger review. After weeks of planning and creative discussions, we were sure of two things – our panelists and the menu.

Planning the review – Before our review actually took place, we arranged a meeting to introduce the panelists to each other and explain to them the flow of the review. We also revealed the menu during this meeting. Once everyone had agreed to the menu and the purpose of us selecting that particular variant of burger, we selected a date that was suitable to all.

D-Day – On the day of the review, we ordered all the burgers from the Mishry HQ via Zomato. The burgers were ordered between 12 Noon to 12:30 PM, before the peak lunch hour rush. All the panelists were asked to take pictures of their orders before and after unboxing. The tastings were done without any condiments like ketchup or mustard (Yes, even the fries!). Once everyone was done tasting and jotting down copious amounts of notes, and filling out the marksheet, we began our post-review meeting.

We made sure we tasted all the burgers warm within 5-6 minutes of them arriving.

Please note that McDonald’s Kolkata was not serviceable to our panelists’ address, which is why they did not review their burgers. It also helped us gauge availability in the city of Kolkata as McDonald’s outlets have shut in major parts of the city.

Post review meet – This included us revealing the winners and why they deserved a top spot. Believe us when we say we could have given any news hour debate a competition!

The panelists were asked to keep a fork, spoon, and knife handy to be used as a prop while revealing the winners. A fork denoted Burger King, a spoon for KFC, and a knife for McDonald’s. On the count of three, we all lifted the cutlery representing our preference across all three categories.

We marked and rated the burgers on the following parameters –

Review Factors for Burgers

1. Quality of Non-Veg Patties

Three significant aspects were gauged – the tenderness/juiciness of the chicken patty, the seasoning, and the crispiness. 

How tender and juicy is the chicken patty? Is it a minced chicken patty or a chunky patty? How well is the meat seasoned? If the patty has a breading, how is the breading to meat ratio? How is the meat – undercooked, overcooked, juicy, just right?

2. Quality of Vegetarian Patties

Veggie patties in India are primarily made of potatoes. Since we ordered the brands’ veggie patty, we wanted to see which other vegetables made their way into the patty. Is it crisp, or has it gone limp? How is the breading to potato ratio? How well is the patty seasoned? Can we actually taste the vegetables?

3. Quality of the Buns

Is the bun dry or soft? How fluffy is the bun? Does it disintegrate when you bite into it? Does it have specks of white or black sesame seeds? 

4. Collective Bite

What’s a burger if not for that BIG collective bite. A bite that includes the relishes, sauces, the patty, and the soft, fluffy buns? How tasty is the burger?

5. Appearance

We eat with our eyes first. Correct? How appetizing does the burger look? 

6. Overall Experience

The overall experience includes the packaging and delivery. How well is our order packed? Are the vegetarian and non-vegetarian burgers marked differently or packed separately? Is there any spillage in our order? Did our order arrive warm or cold? How well are the fries or burgers packed individually? 

It also included how value for money is the burger order?

Review Factors for Fries

1. Crispiness

 Yes, delivery does hamper the crispiness of the fries. So keeping some margin for the impact of delivery on the fries, we gauged their crispiness. 

2. Seasoning Level

How well are the fries seasoned? Undersalted, oversalted or just perfect?

3. Potato Flavors

How accentuated is the potato flavor? Do they taste fresh?

4. Quantity

All the potato fries we ordered were a medium portion offered by the brand. We weighed them on a scale to check how many grams of fries make a medium at each burger chain. This also helped us answer a crucial question – how value for money is the portion of fries? 

5. Uniformness

How uniform or even are the cuts of potatoes?

Here are the details gathered from all four cities for the vegetarian burgers- 

1. Burger King Veg Whopper

Burger King’s Veg Whopper had white sesame encrusted on the bun. The size of the patty and burger were in sync with each other. The dressing/sauce was cheesy. The burger had onions, lettuce, pickles/gherkins, and jalapenos inside which gave this burger a premium and indulgent look and feel.

The size of the patty and the thickness of the bun were in harmony with each other. The patty was crisp and loaded with veggies. The bun was relatively soft and did not disintegrate or break apart while biting into it. This combination of sauce, toppings, and patty remained the same in all four cities.

Panels Cumulative Rating: 4 out of 5

2. McDonald’s McVeggie

McDonald’s McVeggie Burger also has a sesame encrusted bun. But the patty inside was not as flavorful and lacked a good seasoning. This only had mayo and lettuce on top of the tikki which further lowered the overall flavor. Flavor-wise, it was dominated by lettuce and an excess of mayonnaise. The patty wasn’t crisp. The bun was soft and did not break apart. This burger was the smallest in size comparatively.

The experience with the McDonald’s burger was similar across all three cities. McDonald’s was not available for delivery in Kolkata in the specified Pincode. 

Panels Cumulative Rating: 2.67 out of 5

3. KFC Veg Zinger

KFC’s Veg Zinger had a lot of veggies like peas and corn. The lettuce was crunchy and didn’t wilt. The tangy mayo sauce added gives the veg zinger a very chatpata flavor which we liked. The patty is flavorful and crunchy. The bun is fluffy and soft. Across all orders, we felt that KFC had better buns. 

While KFC performed well in Mumbai and Delhi NCR, it lagged behind in Bangalore and Kolkata. Priyadarshini Nandy (Bangalore panel) and Anindya and Madhushree (Kolkata panel) both found KFC’s Zinger lacking in flavor and texture.

Panels Cumulative Rating: 3.37 out of 5

Winner: Burger King Veg Whopper

With an average of 4 out of 5, Burger King’s Veg Whopper was chosen as our Top Pick for the Best Vegetarian Burger across India. This burger had the best overall bite and was consistently good across all cities. 

Kalyan Karmakar says, “Burger King’s Whopper was more indulgent and the dressing was cheesy. Their veggie burger had a more crunchy patty.”

Here are the details gathered from all four cities for the non-vegetarian burgers- 

1. Burger King Classic Chicken

The BK Classic Chicken Burger has a chicken patty that was shaped differently, making the patty to bun ratio a bit off. There were several bites that did not have a chunk of the patty inside them.

The sauce seemed sparse and that didn’t really work for us. It’s a small, compact burger. 

The Burger King orders in Mumbai, Bangalore, and Kolkata were also inconsistent and had something that didn’t work for them – the texture of the patty, the bun, or the sauce.

Panels Cumulative Rating: 2.75 out of 5

Read more about chicken burger patty here

2. McDonald’s McChicken

All the McChicken burgers had the same complaint from all three cities – it had too much shredded lettuce and mayo which completely masked the flavor of chicken, if any at all. The chicken burger patty was unsatisfactory and considering the price, it could have been better. Just like the McVeggie, this too had a soft, sesame encrusted bun.

Panels Cumulative Rating: 3.1 out of 5

3. KFC Classic Chicken Zinger

The KFC Chicken Zinger had the crispiest breading (no surprises there!) The patty wasn’t made of minced meat, it was a juicy, tender piece of chicken that was cooked well. It was a thick chunk and not a flat piece. The lettuce and mayonnaise were added in just the right quantity and did not reduce the flavor of the chicken. 

The bun was soft and fluffy for the Mumbai and Delhi panel, but not for the Bangalore and Kolkata team. They felt the bun was quite dry.

More or less, across all cities, KFC’s Chicken Zinger performed consistently.

Panels Cumulative Rating: 4.65 out of 5

Winner: KFC Classic Chicken Zinger

KFC’s Chicken Zinger burger was chosen as our Top Pick in the Best Non-Vegetarian Burger category. It swooped the title with an average of 4.65.

Anindya and Madhushree from Kolkata’s panel say “For us it was KFC because it has a thick patty, moist chicken, and a crispy coating. Moreover it has just the right amount of mayo and is not too spicy.”

First things first, we know fries get soggy and lose out on a lot of crispness when we get them delivered. But that should not mean they lose out on the flavor or become inedible. 

We weighed all the ‘medium’ fries from all three chains to check which brand offered the most quantity of fries in the same size bracket. We noticed that Burger King fries were the most (138 grams) and KFC’s were the least (78 grams). McDonald’s stayed in the middle at 88 grams.

1. Burger King Fries

Not only did the Burger King Fries win the weigh-in, but they were the most chunkiest and uniform. They were well-seasoned and had the most potato flavor in them. They weren’t hollow and didn’t become limp.

Panels Cumulative Rating: 4.25 out of 5

2. McDonald’s Fries

McDonald’s fries were well salted and had a mix of small and long chunks of fries. They became extremely soggy and limp. 

Panels Cumulative Rating: 3 out of 5

3. KFC Fries

The fries from KFC were packed the best in a tall, green box. The reason they didn’t make it to the top is because they were under seasoned, were the least crispy and lacked a flavorful potato bite.

Panels Cumulative Rating: 2.62 out of 5

Winner: Burger King Fries

The Burger King Fries had the chunkiest cut of potatoes, they were well seasoned and remained the crispiest after delivery. The medium we ordered from all the chains, the one from Burger King contained the maximum amount of fries.

“Tastier, crunchier and the correct temperature”, Priyadarshini Nandy about the Burger King Fries.

The winners of our Big FAT Burger review are – 

• Best Vegetarian Burger – Veg Whopper from Burger King
• Best Non-Vegetarian Burger – Chicken Zinger from KFC
• Best Fries – Burger King

Four cities.

Four food experts.

United by burgers.

Our review spanned several days including researching, tasting, reviewing, and putting together the final scores, finally leading us to our verdict of the best burgers from popular chains. KFC’s Chicken Zinger emerged as the best in the non-vegetarian burger category for its juicy, tender chicken meat. The Veg Whopper from Burger King was chosen as our Top Pick in the vegetarian burger category. Burger King also won in the best fries section. 

Which is your go-to burger place in your city? Let us know in the comment section below. 

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