With the rise in popularity of the “Gourmet” burger globally, chicken may sometimes have played Cinderella to the beef burgers Prince Charming when it comes to burger builds.
Finally, chicken sandwiches are being let into the burger “club”, in foreign lands at least. That acceptance is shown in chicken beginning to get the extravagant builds previously the preserve of said “gourmet” beef burgers.
While chicken sandwiches (that’s chicken breast fillets, not minced chicken burgers) have been on the burger menu for many a year, they’ve largely had to make do with shredded lettuce and a squeeze of mayo in your regular burger bun. By comparison, burger bars have been trying to out-do each other with all manner of multi-ingredient toppings on beef.
The burger chains tend to be pretty conservative when it comes to chicken sandwiches, so much of this creativity is coming from the independent operators who have taken on the challenge of innovating to create differentiation.
Some examples:
Baldwin Street Burger, Canada
Ancho-pepper-lime marinated and grilled chicken breast, honey-lime sour cream, chipotle aioli, lettuce, guacamole and salsa.
Some thought has been put into that sandwich.
Holy Cow Del Rey, USA
Called the OMG! Crispy fried chicken, hot sauce aioli, chipotle honey, house-made pickles and mixed greens on a butter-toasted brioche bun.
Smokehouse, Leeds
Called the Dirty Chic (see main picture above): Battered and fried chicken breast with smoky bacon and house-made Dirty BBQ sauce.
Jacks, USA
Crispy chicken fillet with creamy ranch sauce, grilled hickory smoked bacon slices, fresh leaf lettuce, sliced tomatoes with melting cheese all on a soft toasty gourmet bun.
