McCafe Mango Pineapple Refresher short review

 

 (I wanted to post a picture of the actual drink instead of the generic one on McDonald's website, but my Airdrop is not working >___<)

This is the final Refresher from McDonald's/McCafé (same difference 😜) summer refresher lineup, and it is by far the most interesting of the three. It was also probably the most frustrating and yet enjoyable experience of the bunch (you'll see why below).

According to McDonald's, this drink is:

A match made in the McDonald’s kitchen: a refreshing lemonade beverage made with real lemon juice concentrate, with the sweet taste of mango and pineapple swirled in. Finished off with strawberry-flavoured popping pearls, this drink is like a dance party for your mouth.

Impressions:

• love the strawberry popping pearls!
• surprisingly difficult to get the popping pearls without a straw because of the ice
• any size straw works for sucking up the pearls
• the popping pearls completely steal the show
• mango and pineapple become secondary flavours to the strawberry pearls
• mango and pineapple are much weaker than expected compared to the strawberry

First off, I love the popping pearls. They were easily the highlight of the drink, and I thoroughly enjoyed the little "pop" sensation every time one burst in my mouth.

Ironically, the thing I loved most about the drink was also what frustrated me the most. The popping pearls settled at the bottom of the cup, while the ice sat on top, making them surprisingly difficult to reach without a straw. It almost defeated the "no straw" design of the cup because, at least initially, a straw made drinking the pearls so much easier.

Once the ice melted a bit, however, everything worked much better. The pearls became easier to drink without a straw, which I suspect was how the drink was intended to be enjoyed.

As for the flavour itself, I was expecting the mango and pineapple to be the stars, but the strawberry popping pearls completely took over the show. The strawberry flavour was sweeter, tangier, and much more intense than either the mango or pineapple. In comparison, the mango and pineapple were surprisingly subtle and mostly acted as a backdrop to the pearls.

Despite the minor frustration, this ended up being my favourite of the three Refreshers. I never thought I would prefer a mango-pineapple drink over the Strawberry Watermelon Refresher, but the addition of the popping pearls made the experience much more fun and memorable.

This one isn't just a drink — it's a drink and a snack at the same time 😛.

Score: 9.5/10 🥭🍍🍓✨
Website: https://www.mcdonalds.com/ca/en-ca/product/mango-pineapple-refresher-medium.html

McCafe Blackberry PassionFruit Refresher short review

 (I wanted to post a picture of the actual drink instead of the generic one on McDonald's website, but my Airdrop is not working >___<)

This is the second drink I got to try from McDonald's/McCafé (same difference 😛) Summer Refresher lineup.

According to McDonald's, this drink is:

Turn your lemonade beverage all the way up to 100 with the sweet and tart taste of blackberry and passionfruit, and the undeniable refreshing flavour of real lemon juice concentrate. Now, push it to 200 with irresistible freeze-dried dragon fruit for an extra punch.

Impressions:

• sweet with chunks of dragon fruit
• tastes more like blackberry than passionfruit
• sweet rather than tangy
• lots of dragon fruit pieces in every sip

I liked this one — it was quite good — but it is still my second favourite compared to the Strawberry Watermelon Refresher.

I am not a huge fan of blackberry, but this drink actually helped me appreciate blackberry's unique flavour. Despite McDonald's describing it as a blackberry-passionfruit drink, I found the blackberry to be the dominant flavour, while the passionfruit was much more subtle and harder to detect.

I was also expecting it to be more tart because of the blackberry, passionfruit, and lemonade combination, but surprisingly, it leaned much more toward the sweet side than the tangy side.

What I enjoyed most were the dragon fruit chunks. They added a nice texture and made the drink more interesting to sip. If you've ever eaten dragon fruit before, you'll know it has those tiny edible seeds that create a texture similar to kiwi. McDonald's was quite generous with the dragon fruit pieces, so if you enjoy that texture, you'll probably love this drink. If you're not a fan of those little seedy bites, you may not enjoy it quite as much.

While it didn't beat the Strawberry Watermelon Refresher for me, it's still a refreshing and enjoyable drink that helped me see blackberry in a new light.

Score: 8.0/10 🐉🫐✨
website: https://www.mcdonalds.com/ca/en-ca/product/blackberry-passionfruit-refresher-medium.html

McCafe's Strawberry Watermelon Refresher Short Review

 

(I wanted to post a picture of the actual drink instead of the generic one on McDonald's website, but my Airdrop is not working >___<)

It’s that time of year again when McDonald's/McCafé (same difference 😛) introduces their Summer Refreshers! This year, they have three flavours, and I got to try the Strawberry Watermelon Refresher first! (The other two are: Black Passion Fruit and Mango Pineapple)

According to McDonald’s, this drink is:

“A refreshing lemonade beverage to quench your thirst, made with real lemon juice concentrate, and the sweet taste of strawberry and juicy watermelon. But the pièce de résistance? Freeze-dried strawberries for something a little fancy.”

Impressions:

• not too sweet
• more strawberry than watermelon
• nice tanginess
• huge strawberry chunks in every sip

I really liked it! Despite how it looks, it isn’t overly sweet at all — it has the perfect amount of sweetness, which I really appreciate (I hate overly sweet drinks).

There’s a reason strawberry comes before watermelon in the name, because the drink is mainly strawberry-forward, with the watermelon balancing it out so the strawberry flavour doesn’t become too intense.

I don’t usually like sour or tangy drinks, but this one has a really nice balance — not too tangy, but enough for me to enjoy it.

And what I liked most were the huge strawberry chunks in almost every sip! They’re soft, chewy, and honestly make the drink much more enjoyable and interesting to drink.


This is definitely off to a great start for McDonald’s summer refresher lineup!

Score: 9.2/10 🍓 
Website: https://www.mcdonalds.com/ca/en-ca/product/strawberry-watermelon-refresher-medium.html

Hong Kong McCafe's Crayfish and Egg Mayo Ciabatta review

my meal... I shared it with someone

another McD review! I think I am spending a bit too much time at McD's...

price: +$16 HKD (when you make a purchase of an medium or large drink) approx. $2.00 HKD

close up of Ciabatta

impressions:

• a bit bland (needs more seasoning and salt)
• Ciabatta was very fresh (between waffle and pancake)
• fresh
• lots of lobster (bit chunks of lobster)
• needs more mayonaise

close up of the inside of the Ciabatta

This Ciabatta is much different from the other ones I have had previously... the texture was like a blend between a waffle and a pancake... it wasn't sweet though. I loved this sandwich (?), but it would be so much better if they put in more seasoning... or at least more mayo and salt. 

This is perfect if you are at McD's and want something nicer and sophisticated than your average burgers. Keep in mind that this is only available at the McCafe's.

It certainly seems much healthier too! (compared to their burgers)

source: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/

I hope they improve their recipe by adding more mayo and seasoning (or some salt) to make it more flavourful, other than that, a nice Ciabatta.

Score: 7.5/10

Website: 

McDonald' s Earl Grey Latte review

large cup of Earl Grey Latte

Price: $32.50 HKD (approx. $4.25 USD)

McDonald's has been heavily advertising this Earl Grey Latte... so I decided to get this... because... as most of you know, I love drinking tea... and Earl Grey happens to be one of my favourite teas!

Impressions:

• Heavily brewed
• Slightly bitter taste
• Lots of lemon/citrus flavoured jelly's at the bottom

I didn't really enjoy drinking this... unlike their other drinks, this tea latte did not quench my thirst... it was too thick and they had overbrewed it... giving it a terrible bitter and "coarse" taste.

Their lemon/citrus jelly was supposed to enhance the tea flavour (because for all you English folks out there... you will know that adding lemon to Earl Grey is a MUST)... but unfortunately, the jelly was too sweet... it did not enhance the taste at all... making it a terrible combination...

Score: 6/10

Website: http://www.mcdonalds.com.hk/en/mccafe.html

McDonald' s McCafe almond Roca cake review

April 19, 2015 update: turns out this item is still available at McCafe (Hong Kong)!

I ordered an Almond Roca cake with Iced Hazelnut Latte topped with cream

Before I begin, I want to sincerely apologize for the lateness of this review. I thought their Almond Roca faze was going to stay much MUCH longer in HK... I can't believe it is already over. So I apologize if I captured your appetite... but you can't order it... (well... at least, not until their next Almond Roca collaboration).

P.S. I will do the Iced Hazelnut Latte review in another post... we need to focus on the cake for this post :P

Almond Roca cake

impressions:

• cake is not sweet
• love the Almond Roca caramel bites
• a bit dry

I found the cake slightly dry... and not very sweet... luckily the almond roca caramel bites made up for the lack of sweetness. Other than that, quite a nicely made layered cake.

advertised

Score: 7/10

Website: no website

McDonald's Shamrock Shake review

I have finally gotten the chance to try McDonald's Shamrock shake (the shake that is only available during February-March every year at McDonald's to celebrate the Irish St. Patrick's (St. Patty's) Day).

I must have been hiding under a rock or something for the past few years McDonald's was serving this as I had no idea what it tasted like other than loving the look of this drink, so out of curiosity I bought it.

For those who haven't tried this before, it is a cool mint milkshake (or ice cream shake?) topped with whipped cream and some cherry extract (I couldn't find a full cherry, just some red stuff that had a cherry taste). I liked the taste since I am a fan of mintiness foods. The texture of the drink is also very creamy.

So, if you are a fan of cool minted creamy drinks, I would suggest you try this drink! And keep it mind, it's only served during the month that surrounds St. Patrick's Day, (February - March) so get it while it's still here! :)