McDonald’s is serving 63-cent Egg McMuffins. It’s a sandwich that was not only revolutionary for its time, but it still remains one of the best bites in fast-foodlandia.
I’m talking about the McDonald’s MCD, +0.09% Egg McMuffin, the simple yet simply delicious combo of a fried egg, cheese and Canadian bacon, served on an English muffin. The breakfast offering is turning 50 years old, and McDonald’s is marking the occasion by rolling back the price of a McMuffin to 63 cents on Thursday, provided you order it on the McDonald’s app.
Enter Herb Peterson, a McDonald’s operator in Santa Barbara, Calif. He wondered why he couldn’t serve something to his customers seeking a quick-and-easy option for breakfast, the morning equivalent of, say, a burger. Peterson also was a man who liked his eggs Benedict. So, in 1971, he came up with a portable version, going so far as to have a blacksmith create a special iron ring, so he could cook a perfectly circular fried egg for the sandwich.
With that in mind, I went back to my local McDonald’s for an Egg McMuffin this morning just to confirm what I basically already knew — namely, that the sandwich still works. As I rediscovered, the key to what makes it so great is the balance of flavor and texture: the toasted English muffin provides a bit of crunch; the Canadian bacon adds a little porky saltiness; the cheese gives a note of creaminess; and the egg…well, the egg is the star.
It’s perhaps no surprise that McDonald’s is playing up the Egg McMuffin right now, since it’s no secret the chain has had some trouble in recent years with breakfast sales.