McDonald's UK Fries Review: Healthier Yet Forgettable

This week, we're in UK - London to be precise. And of course, anywhere we visit, we must review the benchmark: McDonald's fries. So far, the records are not in favor for McDonald's overseas where it has repeatedly disappointed with its Japanese, Korean, and Australian counterparts. Will the UK avenge its fallen cousins or will it fall victim to yet another bad fries from abroad? Here is our review of McDonald's UK fries.

McDonald's at Brompton Rd in London, UK

Texture (4/10)

The arid, dry and slightly crisp surface of the fry had little to no moisture at all, and was very parched, which would come back to bite the overall flavor profile of the fry as the saltiness would fail it. Despite the quite dry surface of the exterior, the potato itself had no crunch at all, giving a very unsatisfying bite. After biting into the fry however, the interior was noticeably less mushy than all other McDonald's fries reviewed so far.

Weak crisp and crunch. The sticks had decent innards.

Flavor (3/10)

The fry had no seasoning or salt whatsoever, and that paired with the dry, unsatisfying texture of the fry made the extremely bland. Although there was an absence of saltiness, it seemed to actually have a permeating potato essence to it, tasting more natural than other fries, and more like an actual potato. The potato flavor was short-lived though, as it faded into the background with each bite. Another main characteristic we noticed was how little oil the fries had on their exterior. It almost felt like these fries were air-fried, which did not help the mundane flavor profile. We were so intrigued by this that we actually took a picture of the empty carton to see how much oil and grease smears it had (and we compare that to the US version). After eating the fries enough, the fries were just redundant, each one being less tastier than the last as the tongue became accustomed to its predictable and uninspiring flavor. Less oil and salt may have been intentional to make the fries healthier?

The carton on the left is from the US McDonald's fries (source). The one on the right is its UK counterpart. You can clearly see the difference in the amount of oil. There's barely any oil in the UK version while the US fries soaks the carton.

Shape (8/10)

The shape of the fries was actually quite well-rounded, and nice. The fry was longer than a finger, nice and thick. The fries had these attributes while also maintaining this shape consistently for every fry and had no clumps or irregular short fries mixed into the fray. This standard shape is what has defined the McDonald's benchmark in the US, but we believe the UK version is slightly more properly executed, thanks to the ever so slight extra thickness than its US counterpart.

The shape is solid and resembles its counterpart in the US.

Presentation (3/10)

Thankfully, the fries came in the classic red carton, not a paper bag, which are meant to stand upwards opening towards the top, with vertial fries placement. Unfortunately though, the fries were placed in a random, messy way into the carton, not the organized, inviting position they are in the ads. The two cartons we ordered also lay flat on the tray, not leaned or upright next to the burgers. This to us is blasphemy and the ultimate betrayal to the McDonald's way of presnting fries. To make matters worse, as the fries lay scattered on the tray, it seemed like they orginated from cartons filled to the brim. But when held upright, the carton was nowhere near to the brim, which just poses as an example of the attention to detail and the feeling of being short-changed.

The fries came laid flat on the tray. Typically you stand them up. The carton was not filled to its brim.

Experience (2/10)

Since the fries themselves did not have any flavor, they barely contributed to the meal entirely, serving just as empty calories with no flavor in them. The fries actually downgraded the experience, as they were received in a lopsided position squirming all over the carton, and actually was not very hefty in the amount of fries there were per portion. We do feel the price was reasonable though, at about £2.30 or $3.00.

Texture	4
Flavor	3
Shape	8
Presentation	3
Experience	2
Overall	4.0 / 10

Conclusion

Although Australia is a great spot for zoos, wildlife, beaches and fun, McDonald's isn't a specialty for fries, or "crisps" as the locals say it. Every aspect of the fries were mediocre or worse. Though the fries were not as bad as those of McDonald's in Korea or Japan, we could not help but feel disappointed. We were not able to observe much effort, especially in the presentation. We suggest that if you ever go to Australia, go for the koalas and the kangaroos, but feel free to skip the fries from McDonald's.

Digital ordering kiosks lin the wall and the counter is largely for delivery.