McDonald's is well known around the world and is exposed in popular culture to both blind adoration and serious criticism as the biggest fast food franchise in the world. McDonald's was founded in the United States and has been through a number of slogans over the years, the current being "I'm lovin' it."
In Australia, McDonald's biggest competitor is a Burger King franchisee called Hungry Jack's. Burger King also hails from the United States. The Hungry Jack's slogan is a direct attack on their competitors' products: "The burgers are better at Hungry Jack's."
McDonald's and Hungry Jack's sell many of the same sorts of products, and in this article I will line them up side by side.
Burgers are sandwiches with a round sesame seed bun and a patty of some kind of pork, beef, seafood or vegetable matter. (We here at Foobar have decided to put chicken in its own category.) McDonald's allows you to add bacon to any burger which does not normally have it.
McDonald's  | Hungry Jack's  |
|---|---|
| Big Mac | Whopper |
| McFeast Deluxe (grill order, formerly McOz) | Aussie Burger |
| Quarter Pounder With Cheese | Whopper With Cheese |
| Double Quarter Pounder | Double Whopper |
| Hamburger (no seeds, heart tick if w/ salad) | Hamburger |
| Cheeseburger (no seeds) | Cheeseburger |
| Double Beef & Bacon Burger (grill order, no seeds) | Bacon Deluxe |
| Double Cheeseburger (no seeds) | Double Cheeseburger |
| Triple Cheeseburger (no seeds) | Triple Cheeseburger |
| Whopper Junior (w/ cheese optional) | |
Mighty Angus (no seeds, large square patty)  |
Angry Angus (single small patty) |
| Grand Angus (no seeds, large square patty) |
Angry Angus (double small patty) |
| Fillet'O'Fish (fish, no seeds, heart tick if w/ salad) | Veggieburger |
| BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger (no seeds) (value item) | |
| McBLT (no seeds or beef, w/ mayo) (value item) | |
This tableaux (just a little bit fancier than a table) has been updated with the Almighty Angus wars of late 2009. While Macca's was going for a high-end experience using a special bun and unique salad formulations, the Hungry Jack's clones only have the Angus name attached. They are far less grand and mighty, and may end up leaving you slightly angry. They are priced at a fast-food level, however, which is the only real criticism of Macca's offering (unless you meet a store which skimps on the formula, or you have some sort of problem accepting that quality fast food doesn't have to be an oxymoron.)
Many items on the Macca's and Jack's menus have chicken in them. For now, I'll exclude the kids menu... (For a bigger chicken range, check in at another fast food chain.)
| McDonald's | Hungry Jack's |
|---|---|
| Chicken Fillet Deluxe With Bacon (burger, seared or crispy) |
Chicken Royale (long roll, crispy) |
| Chicken Fillet Deluxe (burger, seared or crispy) |
Spicy TenderCrisp (burger, crispy) |
| Classic Chicken Fillet (burger, seared or crispy) |
TenderCrisp (burger, crispy) |
| McChicken (burger, heart tick if w/ salad) | Flame Grilled Chicken (burger, seared) |
| Chicken McNuggets | Chicken Nuggets |
| Deli Choice Wrap (seared or crispy) (see below) |
Chicken Wrap (crispy) |
| Mini Snack Wrap (seared or crispy) | |
| McDippers |
Being an Olympic year, Maccy D's decided to play on its sponsorship of the games (Official Restaurant of Beijing 2008) by offering four promotional items. At the same time, Jack's was promoting the latest additions to the Batman and the Simpsons' franchises and generally clogging arteries around Australia with its "Stackers", consisting of multiple layers of beef, cheese and bacon doused in barbecue sauce. Reminded me of the Fungry's spoof that CNNNN used to do. Mmmm. I'm Fungry!
| McDonald's | Hungry Jack's |
|---|---|
| McAsia wrap | Double/Triple Stacker |
| McAmerica bagle | Quad Stacker |
| McAfrica burger | The Simpson's Ultimate Whopper |
| McAustralia burger (not the same as McOz) | The Dark Knight Whopper |
The McAmerica outlasted its promotional timeframe in some stores (notably Hobart) and the McAustralia has also stayed on in places (such as Devonport.) The Ultimate Whopper is also available as a regular menu item now, without the Simpson's moniker.
Apart from the Angus Wars, it's been a quiet year for promotions. Macca's restructured their menu around seared versus crispy chicken, and introduced a value range that no-one really wants a piece of... (Deluxe Cheeseburger? With mayo? What were they thinking? That item is now discontinued, of course... But the value menu persists, just without the Apple Pie into 2010.) Hungry Jack's tried to one-up their "Stacker" controversy from last year with the "XL" range. But alas bigger patties didn't cut through with bigger Michael Jacksons, Sri Lankans, Chasers and John Safrans to fry in the Oz media landscape.
The biggest standout of the year may actually have originated in 2008 when TenderCrisp was first introduced: the Cheesy Bacon TenderCrisp. It's come back twice this year in my local store, and I hear you can still order it. (This is Hobart, in case you are interested.)
Before the middle of 2008 (and the beginning of 2009 in Macca's case), those looking for a more generous sandwich could have indulged in Hungry Jack's fifteen centimetre baguettes or McDonald's Deli Choice Rolls. But now that those are gone, competitors Subway have the monopoly, with a more healthy selection of insides to boot. (There are exceptions to the Deli Roll shut out, being the Deluxe Brekkie and the Bacon & Egg, which both exist as Roll options on the Macca's breakfast menu, presumably because they sell well. And those sales owe nothing to healthy image, I am sure, because they are loaded with saturated fats.)
The table below now shows M-Selection wraps. Hungry Jack's still chooses not to compete in this space. I have also marked all M-Selections on this page. These are supposedly "premium" items for the more discerning punter: M-Selection burgers, including chicken burger items above, come on sourdough buns and include a more varied lettuce than the typical iceberg. The clone versions from Hungry Jack's come on corn-dusted buns. Personally, and I consider myself the more discerning of the discerning punters, I prefer the wheatgerm bun the HJ Grilled Chicken comes in.
All wraps are chicken wraps and come with a choice of crispy or seared chicken.
| McDonald's | Hungry Jack's |
|---|---|
| Chicken Tandoori (heart tick for seared only) |
|
| Sweet Chilli Chicken |
|
| Chicken Caesar ( |
|
Apparently some stores still do the baguettes, so more power to you if you can find one that does.
Menu extras, mainly to compete with the fish and chip store down the road. In McDonald's case, the Pasta/Zoo/Goo was to woo yuppie parents back after their programming by Aussie current affairs TV to steer clear of the traditional Cheeseburger/Hamburger Happy Meal (burger and fries). But after its failure, it's back to the drawing board. Meanwhile, enjoy your deep fried fare!
| McDonald's | Hungry Jack's |
|---|---|
| French Fries | French Fries |
| Onion Rings | |
| McNuggets/Cheeseburger/Hamburger Happy Meal (kids menu) | Chicken Nuggets/Hamburger Kids Meal (kids menu) |
| Apple Pie ( |
Salads for yuppie mummies. If you combine a Garden Salad with a McChicken, Fillet O'Fish or Hamburger (previously a Lean Beef Burger) and also stick with OJ or water instead of a fountain soft drink, you'll be eating a meal approved by the Australian Heart Foundation. Shock horror, but true.
| McDonald's | Hungry Jack's |
|---|---|
| Garden Mixed Salad (heart tick) | Caesar Salad |
| Greek Salad (not available all stores) | |
Not all Hungry Jack's do brekkie...
| McDonald's | Hungry Jack's |
|---|---|
| Hash Brown | Hash Brown |
| English Muffin | Aussie Brekkie |
| Egg & Bacon McMuffin | Egg & Bacon Muffin |
| Egg & Sausage McMuffin | Egg & Sausage Muffin |
| Sausage McMuffin | Sausage Muffin (grill order) |
| Hotcakes | Pancakes (why don't they call them "Flapjacks?") |
| Brekkie Snack Wrap (value item) | Bacon, Sausage & Egg Brekkie Wrap |
| Steak & Egg Brekkie Wrap | |
| Egg & Bacon Roll | |
| Deluxe Brekkie Roll | |
| Buttered Raisin Toast | |
| Sanitarium Cereal |
Macca's used to have a big brekkie too—still do in the US. Time to move there, I guess.
As the McFeast Deluxe is now gone from the menu, you'll need to grill order it. You could also grill order a Double Beef and Bacon, but that's just a Double Cheeseburger with double bacon. McFeast Deluxe is a little more complex...
Last updated: Sunday 22nd November 2009