As I walked into my local Burger King restaurant (yes friends..it is considered a restaurant), I was almost looking forward to this particular transaction.
After all, when Burger King announced their new bacon sundae, I had to try one. It's the food equivalent to a double dare. As I pulled into the parking lot, I noticed signage for BK's new healthier menu items. Fruit smoothies and chicken salads were lovingly photographed in all their glory. I thought that maybe South Florida missed out on the gut bomb menu items that Burger King recently announced.
After all, not only did the "King" announce the bacon sundae ($2.49), but the Miami-based corporation said they were introducing an entire host of bad-for-you products like the sweet potato fries, Carolina BBQ burgers and chicken sandwiches ($3.49), and a Memphis BBQ pulled pork sandwich ($3.49). BK calls it their summer menu. We call it food-to-die-by.
I asked the person at the counter if they, in fact, had the bacon
sundae. "You're the first person who asked for one", she exclaimed --
then proceeded to confirm that I actually wanted one of them.
Apparently this was either not well marketed...or people were smarter
than some marketing executives thought. The manager came over with my
purchase. "I hope we did this right", he told me. This was not boding
well.
I brought the sundae home and placed it on the coffee table
to take a few shots before it melted into oblivion. Immediately, my
Chihuahua Molly was intrigued. Because of the hot fudge, I refused to
share this treat with my chow hound and dug into this cold mess myself.
Here's the good, the bad, and the ugly.
The
good: The bacon was crisp, not too salty, and actually worked well with
the standard-issue soft serve ice cream. Though not something I would
go back for, I was preparing for the food-version of a train wreck, but
it wasn't so bad.
The bad: Someone has to do something about that hot sludge
fudge. It's super sweet, uber thick, and the taste resembles neither
chocolate...nor fudge...nor anything fit for human consumption. It's
overbearing and kills the caramel sauce with its cloying sweetness and
gritty mouthfeel. I shudder at the memory.
The ugly: Apparently
Chihuahuas do not have the same palate as people (nor do they listen
to reason when it comes to bacon). Yes, I teased the poor little beastie by
putting it in her range of vision and smell for a few seconds. But I moved
it to a high counter top when answering the phone. Here's a fun trivia
fact: When enticed by bacon, Chihuahuas can, apparently, jump onto four
foot high surfaces.
After finding an empty cup and a faceful
of ice cream on said pocket pet, I immediately rushed her to the local
vet for treatment. Chocolate is known to be toxic to dogs and this 11
pounder had surely bitten off more than she could chew, so to speak.
My
vet, however, thought this was the funniest thing ever. "Tell me
again....Burger King has a bacon sundae? And Molly got into it?"
"Doctor, there was chocolate in the sundae. Fudge!," I shrieked.
"It's
more sugar than chocolate," the vet sagely deduced. "She does have
some gas," he chuckled as he gave her a dose of doggie antacid.
As
I pulled out my wallet, my vet motioned for me to put it away. "This
one's on me," he said. "Best laugh I've had all week."
As we walked out the door, I heard the doctor call after me, "Hey!
Weren't they trying a new healthy menu? Maybe you should both stick to
the grilled chicken and smoothies." That's some good advice.
Follow Clean Plate Charlie on Twitter: @CleanPlateBPB
