Burger King wants to win customers back and pass Wendy's (WEN) to become the Pepsi to McDonald's (MCD) Coke. That's why the chain's parent company, Restaurant Brands International (QSR) has hired former Domino's CEO Patrick Doyle as its chairman and why the company has committed to making a $400 million investment over the next two years to building back its market share.
Along the way, the company has been open to menu innovation and leveraging its iconic Whopper brand as a way to test new ideas, new flavors, and get people back into its restaurant. That includes the Angry Whopper, a spicy take on the classic sandwich that was first sold in the U.S. in 2009.
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And, while some Burger King Whoppers were more novelty than legitimate menu item, the Angry Whopper has provided a sort of brand for the company to try spicy takes on many of its favorites. It's a simple recipe:
The Angry Whopper features a quarter-pound flame-grilled beef patty, thick-cut bacon, American cheese, iceberg lettuce, tomato, crispy onion petals, jalapenos, mayo, and "Angry" sauce on a toasted sesame seed bun.
Basically, the part that makes it "angry," is the spicy sauce. The chain has offered an Angry King, brought back the Angry Whopper multiple times, and now, it has added an Angry breakfast lineup to its menus in Canada -- a move that is often a precursor for the chain to bring a new item to the United States.
Image source: Shutterstock
Burger King Adds Four Angry Breakfast Sandwiches
Burger King took a hit in the mornings when Wendy's and Yum Brands (YUM) Taco Bell entered that day part to try to take down established leader McDonald's. Wendy's had the misfortune of launching its new breakfast menu basically at the same time the covid pandemic hit.
That hurt sales at first, but the chain has reported strong results recently. CEO Todd Penegor said during RBI's fourth-quarter earnings call.
"As I said on the prepared remarks, our breakfast business behind the continued momentum on French Toast Sticks, the $3 breakfast deal to drive trial. We did all of that lapping the $1 Biscuit promotion from a year ago to put those strong numbers in place," he said.
Yum Brands CEO David Gibbs made similar comments in his company's fourth-quarter earnings call.
"We also made encouraging progress in our breakfast layer, building on high-profile branding partnerships such as Doja Cat in Q1 and Davante Adams in Q3, Taco Bell brought in Pete Davidson to help drive consumer buzz for breakfast. This led to 9% transaction growth for the day part," he said.
RBI executives did not mention breakfast at Burger King during its earnings call. The chain, however, clearly has not forgotten about the heavy competition during the morning as it's bringing its Angry franchise there, at least in Canada.
Burger King Adds Four Angry Breakfast Sandwiches
The Angry breakfast lineup consists of four sandwiches, two labeled with the chain's iconic Croissan'wich name and two others being dubbed "Muffins" because they are served on an English muffin, The new sandwiches now appear on the chain's Canadian website, but may not be available at every location.
It's a simple lineup that was first shared by The Fast Food Post:
- Angry Croissan’wich: Your choice of sausage, egg & cheese, bacon, egg & cheese or just egg & cheese, topped with Angry sauce and spicy jalapenos served on a toasted croissant.
- Angry Double Croissan’wich: Your choice of double sausage, double bacon or sausage and bacon plus egg & cheese, topped with spicy jalapenos and drizzled with Angry sauce on a toasted croissant.
- Angry English Muffin: Your choice of sausage, egg & cheese, bacon, egg & cheese or just egg & cheese, topped with Angry sauce and spicy jalapenos and served on a toasted English muffin.
- Angry Chicken English Muffin: A juicy chicken patty topped with an egg, cheese, four spicy jalapenos, and Angry Sauce on an English muffin.
