Quick meals in 2024 has been, nicely, type of disappointing. Hell of a option to begin a Greatest Quick Meals of 2024 article, proper? However in case you’re a hardcore quick meals eater, you realize we’re not telling you something that you simply don’t already know. Quick meals’s hunch 12 months began firstly of the 12 months when article after article proclaimed that quick meals was manner too costly and other people had been turning away from the drive-thru in favor of sit-down eating places.
And fact be informed, we did it too! Certainly one of our hottest articles of the 12 months is that this rating on Cheesecake Manufacturing facility’s 35 best menu items. However chicken sandwiches? Folks couldn’t care much less this 12 months! And the large manufacturers understand it too, that’s why they spent a lot of the 12 months looking for artistic methods to convey individuals again to the drive-thru like bringing again old classics or providing new value meals.
But it surely wasn’t all doom and gloom. Which is why for the third 12 months in a row we’re launching our annual Golden Bag Awards, celebrating the most effective in quick meals. As a result of it’s been such an odd and troubled 12 months for quick meals, we’re going to be hitting you with quite a lot of surprises and hopefully, providing you with just a few good causes to hit up the quick meals eating places which might be nonetheless killing it proper now.
Greatest New Burger: Shake Shack — Smoky Basic BBQ Burger
Why It Deserves The Award:
This burger was pure decadent indulgence at its most interesting! On prime of a luxurious smashed patty you have got American cheese, bacon, pickles, and a layer of fried onions on a BBQ sauce-slathered bun, leading to a burger that’s crunchy, smokey, beefy, and packs a strong umami punch.
It’s the form of burger that makes your mouth water whilst you eat it. It’s arduous for a single patty cheeseburger to realize that, however the Smokey Basic BBQ Burger makes it occur. We named it the most effective BBQ burger in all of quick meals again in June and now six months later, we totally stand by that!
Sadly, like all actually scrumptious burgers at Shake Shack, this one was solely obtainable for a restricted time. However not less than you’ll be able to order the Black Truffle Burger proper now which type of hits comparable complicated umami-rich notes.
Discover your nearest Shake Shack here.
Greatest New Rooster Sandwich: Chick-fil-A — Maple Pepper Bacon Rooster Sandwich
Why It Deserves The Award:
Yeah, we all know, it’s not fried, however hear us out for a second — the Maple Pepper Bacon Rooster Sandwich is definitely the most effective rooster sandwich that was launched this 12 months, and it’s not even shut. There was a depth of taste with this sandwich that no fried sando might evaluate with. It had an addictive charred taste joined by natural, and lemony notes, some gentle warmth by way of the pepper jack cheese, and a candy, smokey, aromatic peppery aftertaste courtesy of the maple bacon (I haven’t even talked about the brioche bun or pickles but, nicely, there may be that too!).
That bacon was rendered in order that the smokey and candy flavors melted in your mouth whereas nonetheless offering some crunch. It’s against the law that Chick-fil-A has determined that this can be a seasonal summer time merchandise as an alternative of awarding it everlasting menu standing, nevertheless it has us hyped for its eventual return.
Discover your nearest Chick-fil-A here.
Greatest New Fried Rooster Order: KFC’s Authentic Recipe Tender Field
Why It Deserves The Award:
For years we’ve been begging KFC to convey its Authentic Recipe (arguably the model’s finest contribution to quick meals) to its rooster tenders, and the model lastly listened. Because of this we received the most effective rooster tenders in all of quick meals.
Sure, that’s proper, we stated “finest.” These items have dethroned Elevating Cane’s in each manner. The rooster is complicated, you’ll be able to style herbaceous hints of thyme, oregano, and celery salt, some floral chunk by way of black pepper, a savory trace of onion and garlic powder, all housing juicy tender rooster. Add to that a few of KFC’s Secret REcipe fries and a biscuit and you’ve got a meal that dunks on Elevating Cane’s in each manner besides the sauce.
We even tasted the meals side by side and graded every factor. KFC got here out on prime. All hail the Kentucky King.
Discover your nearest KFC here.
Greatest Celeb Meal: Jack In The Field — Deadpool & Wolverine Sauced & Loaded Mini Chimi Bang Bangs
Why It Deserves The Award:
Visually, this dish is an absolute mess. We’re totally conscious of how unappetizing this dish appears, and the visible coupled with its ridiculous title is sufficient purpose to by no means eat it, however that may be a mistake! This dish is form of like an elevated tackle the Jack within the Field taco, so if that dish is a responsible pleasure of yours, you’re going to like this.
We’re undecided what precisely it has to do with Deadpool & Wolverine, however a Loaded Mini Chimi Bang Bang actually sounds like one thing Deadpool would eat, so we’re not going to assume too deeply about it.
The dish options shredded rooster, corn, black beans, and cheddar cheese stuffed into three mini flour tortillas which might be then deep-fried, and topped with cheddar cheese sauce, taco sauce, and a random sprinkle of lettuce. The result’s a medley of salty cheese notes, earthy natural tones, and a zesty aftertaste.
Discover your nearest Jack within the Field here.
Most Viral Quick Meals: Crumbl Cookie
Why It Deserves The Award:
Quick meals didn’t have its Grimace Shake second in 2024, and since so many individuals turned away from quick meals, the large manufacturers spent extra time enjoying it secure and making an attempt to convey individuals again somewhat than taking an opportunity with a bizarre menu merchandise. Crumbl however, continuously made headlines and dominated web chatter and whereas it’s not technically quick meals, we’re going to go forward and award the model for preserving issues enjoyable.
Discover your nearest Crumbl here.
Largest Swing And A Miss: Jack within the Field — Ice Dice’s Munchie Meal
Why It Deserves The Award:
Final 12 months, we named the Snoop Dogg Munchie Meal the Greatest Celeb Meal of the Yr as a result of it completely married Jack within the Field’s model of stoner meals to some of the well-known stoners of all time. The Ice Dice Munchie Meal doesn’t have that very same anchor, and in consequence it feels random and chaotic. Nothing about it says “Ice Dice,” and with its assortment of throwaway dishes (besides the curly fries), this one left us extremely disenchanted.
The meal consisted of a Chick-N-Tater Soften, a closely processed rooster and bacon sandwich that featured a one-dimensional salty taste. Along with the sandwich, you’ve received curly fries, a taco, and mini churros. There isn’t any concord to this dish, no actual connection to Ice Dice. It feels random, take it from a West Coast child from the outskirts of LA, Dice deserved higher.
Discover your nearest Jack within the Field here.
Greatest Model Collaboration: Scorching Ones x Panda Specific — Blazing Bourbon Rooster
No, this dish wasn’t fairly as spicy as we anticipated given Scorching Ones’ status and the truth that Panda Specific dubbed this its “spiciest dish,” however simply because it didn’t ship the warmth, doesn’t imply it wasn’t scrumptious.
That includes chicken rooster breaded in a crispy corn-starch-based breading (the perfect sponge to absorb sauce), this rooster dish delivered a candy honey and maple taste with refined fruity notes and a gentle warmth that builds between bites. On addition to the rooster, this dish got here with some wok-fried bell peppers and onions, which helped so as to add a vegetal counterbalance to all of the sweetness.
Discover your nearest Panda Specific here.
Worst New Dessert: Starbucks — Summer season-Berry Refresher
Why It Deserves The Award:
No single quick meals merchandise made me really feel like I used to be burning cash just like the Starbucks Summer season-Berry Refresher, and sure, we totally contemplate Starbucks quick meals at this level. They’ve a drive-thru, the standard management is at an all-time low (the meals is particularly horrendous), and the costs are larger than they need to be — every thing about Starbucks screams quick meals.
The Summer season-Berry Refresher featured a mixture of blueberry and blackberry syrups shaken with ice and minimize with water. Sure, you learn that proper, that is only a syrup-flavored water. It’s soda with out the fizz, and the outcome tasted like a watery and muted mess. So as to add insult to harm, Starbucks tried to get into the boba market by including boba-like pearls to this drink, however as an alternative of chewy tapioca balls, Starbucks thought it will be a good suggestion to place some edible raspberry syrup-filled plastic bubbles.
Simply fascinated by this drink makes me offended.
Discover your nearest Starbucks here.
Most Stunning New Menu Merchandise: Jack In The Field — Smashed Jack
Why It Deserves The Award:
If you happen to had informed us firstly of the 12 months that Jack within the Field would launch probably the greatest burgers of the 12 months, we straight up wouldn’t have believed you. After which sixteen days later, we might’ve been confirmed flawed.
Dropped firstly of 2024, Jack within the Field’s smash burger-inspired Smashed Jack blew us away with its mixture of savory, salty, smokey, and tangy flavors. The meat patty is juicy, the grilled onions are completely carmelized, and the sauce wraps every thing collectively properly. It’s not simply probably the greatest burgers of the 12 months, it’s the most effective burger Jack within the Field has ever launched, and although it initially bought out, now the Smashed Jack is a everlasting a part of JiB’s menu.
If you happen to haven’t had it but, treatment that sh*t ASAP.
Discover your nearest Jack within the Field here.
Greatest Total Model: Taco Bell
Whereas all the opposite large manufacturers shied away from taking possibilities this 12 months Taco Bell has quietly been placing in quite a lot of work. Not solely did they launch the scrumptious Cantina Rooster Menu, a barely elevated tackle the model’s standard fare, however the model saved costs low with its new Cravings Worth Menu, launched a number of new dishes, together with the Cheesey Avenue Chalupas, and they introduced again coveted menu gadgets from many years previous just like the legendary Meximelt with its nostalgic Many years Assortment.
It looks as if Taco Bell is the one quick meals model that didn’t get the memo that individuals had been ditching quick meals. The model saved issues contemporary in 2024, a sentence we by no means thought we’d say about Taco Bell.
Discover your nearest Taco Bell here.
