A Cruel Grimace’s Thesis: Trying the Evangelion Burgers from McDonald’s Japan
The latest collaboration between McDonald's Japan and Neon Genesis Evangelion has certainly been an attention-grabber. From the amusing commercials to the freshly-designed original McDonald's-themed EVA Unit UNIT-M to the transforming toys, it has been hitting all the right notes. At the heart of this unusual mash-up lie the Evangelion burgers, three special limited-time menu items. You may have seen promotional pictures of them already, but what is the reality? And most importantly, how do they taste? There's only one thing for it: I had to try them out.
In order to keep my doctor and wife from getting too upset, I properly prepared for this potentially stomach-destroying effort. Okay, I just had a light brunch and drank a lot of water, but I'm telling myself that's good enough. After finishing work for the day, I hopped in the car and headed for the nearest Makku. While I considered taking the easy way out by going through the drive-through, I wanted to check out some of the in-store signage. So in I went. I placed my order for all three burgers, then checked things out while I waited.
After taking a few pictures, I grabbed my order and drove back to my office. In total, there are three Evangelion burgers at McDonald's, each with a particular character assigned to them. Representing Shinji Ikari, we have the Double Teriyaki Cheeseburger. The enigmatic Rei Ayanami adorns the wrapper for the Hashbrown & Beef Burger with Garlic Mayo. Finally, the fiery Asuka Langley is paired with the Mexican Cheese Chicken Burger. I wouldn't think too hard about how those are supposed to line up. Well, let's dig in.
Mexican Cheese Chicken Burger
This was the one I was the most interested in trying. The special burgers from McDonald's Japan can be hit or miss at times, but they rarely miss when they try to go spicier. This isn't a particularly fancy sandwich, but on paper it seems like it would work. The usual chicken filet patty is placed in a special fluffier-than-usual bun and topped with a slice of processed cheddar cheese, a couple of pickles, taco meat, and a sweet lemon sauce. McDonald's Japan issues a warning that this sandwich is spicy, so if you don't like spicy food you should be careful. This typically doesn't mean much, but upon opening the wrapper there was a certain spiciness wafting off of the burger.
The Mexican Cheese Chicken Burger kicked off what turned out to be a theme with these Evangelion burgers. It was quite messy to eat and its contents were prone to spilling out. The first bite I took was quite delicious. I got a good bite of pickle and taco meat, and the result was a pleasantly spicy and flavorful taste. The sweet lemon sauce had a nice tang to it, too. The chicken filet patties at McDonald's Japan can be a little bland, so having these peppy ingredients in the mix really helped out.
Sadly, the ingredients weren't evenly distributed. Some bites had no pickles and very little taco meat, and when that happened it really demonstrated how important those two elements are to this burger. My hands were in an absolute state by the time I finished this one, but that's what soap and water is for. All in all, I rather enjoyed the Mexican Cheese Chicken Burger. It could have used a little more tsun in its tsundere, but overall it's one I would order again. Best burger for the best character? I guess we'll see as we continue on.
Score: Eight "ANTA BAKAs" Out of Ten
Hashbrown & Beef Burger with Garlic Mayo
A real gap between the McDonald's Evangelion crossover marketing photo and the reality for this one, but we all know how that goes. The Hashbrown & Beef Burger with Garlic Mayo comes off as the busiest of this bunch. You've got the same fancy bun we saw with the Mexican Cheese Chicken Burger, with a thicker-than-usual beef patty. From the bottom to the top, you get some tangy steak sauce, a slice of processed cheese, a hashbrown potato patty, the aforementioned beef patty, and some garlic mayonnaise sauce. Surprisingly, this is not the highest-calorie sandwich of the three. That would be the next one.
The scent of garlic hits you as soon as you open the wrapper. And that proved to be the case for the Hashbrown & Beef Burger with Garlic Mayo as a whole. Biting into it, I found the garlic mayo overpowered every other flavor. The hashbrown pretty much melted into the rest of the burger. Since this burger is lacking any crunchy vegetables, I was hoping the hashbrown would add a bit of texture to the sandwhich. Unfortunately, it was quite soft. The hashbrown and beef patty took turns trying to fall out with each bite, too.
Ultimately, the Hashbrown & Beef Burger with Garlic Mayo sees the rest of its flavors lost in the powerful taste of the garlic sauce. I like garlic as much as the next person, but I couldn't help but feel a little empty about this burger. For how much it appears to have going on, it's completely one-note. Those who hate garlic cannot love or trust this sandwich. Rei, you got robbed. Hopefully the last of the Evangelion burgers can bring this back around. Shinji, don't let us down!
Score: Four "Objects Living a Lie" Out of Ten
Double Teriyaki Cheeseburger
I'll say straight-up that I wasn't very excited by the Double Teriyaki Cheeseburger in the way I was for the other two. It's not that I was expecting it to taste bad or anything like that. The reason is that this is really just a Teriyaki McBurger with an extra pork patty and a slice of processed cheese. On top of that, McDonald's Japan has offered the Double Teriyaki Cheeseburger before without a Shinji endorsement. The only new thing here is the bun, which is the same special one used by the other two Evangelion burgers. The filling is two pork patties generously slathered in sweet teriyaki sauce, the aforementioned slice of processed cheese, some lettuce, and a large dollop of tangy mayonnaise.
If you've never had the Teriyaki McBurger before, there are a few things to know. First, it's very tasty. The sweetness of the teriyaki sauce and saltiness of the pork patty make for an enticing blend, and the mayo adds to the nasty decadence of it all. The lettuce is just there to make you feel better, as it will most likely be rendered fully limp by the time you start eating. Second, it's really messy. When you open the wrapper, it's like an explosion went off. You will get your hands dirty eating it, so plan ahead. Third, because it's such a saucy burger, the contents like to spill out of the bun. The more McDonald's tries to cram in there, the more it wants to spill out. Indeed, the second pork patty and slice of cheese in the Double Teriyaki Burger make it hard to keep a handle on.
The Double Teriyaki Cheeseburger is good, but it's just a bigger Teriyaki McBurger. The extra pork patty doesn't hurt the balance of the burger, and cheese is always welcome. Still, it feels like an opportunity was missed here. For such a big collaboration, having one of the burgers be a recycled one that wasn't very exciting to begin with is a bit of a disappointment. Surely the main character of the show deserves something a little cooler. Then again, it's Shinji. Maybe this is just what he deserves. Reliable, a little on the plain side, and if the others can't get it done then this might be your hero.
Score: Seven "Get in the Burger, Patties!" Out of Ten
Closing Thoughts on the McDonald's Evangelion Burgers
Overall, this isn't a bad batch of burgers. Sure, the Hashbrown & Beef Burger with Garlic Mayo comes off like an oily garlic ball, but McDonald's Japan has unleashed far worse before. With that said, I feel like McDonald's could have done more to lean into the theme. Despite the name, the Evangelion Burgers feel like they could have been slotted in during any number of McDonalds campaigns, and it feels like very little attempt was made to fit them to the Evangelion brand. Even so, I'll stop in and get the Mexican Cheese Chicken Burger once more before it's gone. If you happen to be visiting McDonald's Japan this month, that would be my recommendation. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go hit the treadmill for about six hours.
The Evangelion crossover is live at McDonald's stores in Japan now.
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