I have taken the liberty of purchasing a chicken burger from KFC, BK and McD's all within 15 minutes of each other for tonight's dinner in order to do a mystery shopping comparison. From McD's I have their new Seared Chicken Delux, from BK I have some kind of seared burger and from KFC I got their works burger.
First the 3 stores were judged on their first impressions, including, staff presentation, cleanliness of building etc. Marks out of 10.
BK - Nice clean store, staff were well groomed and the building was nice and tidy. 8/10
McD's - Busy, but nice and clean - up to McDonald's usual standards. Staff we all wearing clean uniforms. 8.5/10
KFC - Drive through has huge pot holes, behind the building looks like a dark alley where you might get mugged in a movie. Staff were ok. 6.5/10
Secondly the 3 stores were judged by the staff's level of service. Marks out of 10.
BK - Girl had manners, however, window was slammed shut between paying for and receiving the meal. Was a short wait, but an apology was made for this. 8/10
McD's - Girl was abrupt and not polite. Wait was short. 5/10
KFC - Girl was friendly, direct. 8/10
Thirdly the stores were judged on their burgers. Marks out of 10.
BK - Burger nice and plump and well presented, Chicken was more processed than the rest of the burgers, lettuce wasn't too bad. A little sloppy but sauce was good. Good general flavour. 8.5/10
McD's - Burger was flat, good salad selection with a decent amount of tomato, red cabbage, mesclin and carrot, but sadly the burger was so poorly made all this had fallen out. Sauce did not taste so great. Worst presentation. 5/10
KFC - Small burger but well presented. Lettuce was ok, a little wilted, had pineapple. Chicken was the tastiest, crispy, nice and thick. Sauce was good. 7/10
So, Overall BK definitely IS the Burger King despite the forgettable name of the actual burger, and they now also serve breakfasts, which are surprisingly good. KFC comes a close second with decent chicken, beating out McD's who's burger quality and rude service let them down. Stay tuned as next time I mystery shop produce stores and their parsnips.