BTS Meal

A BTS meal as served in Indonesia

The BTS Meal was a meal sold by the international fast food chain McDonald's in collaboration with the South Korean boy band BTS. Consisting of Chicken McNuggets, medium French fries, a medium Coca-Cola, and two spicy dipping sauces (Sweet Chili and Cajun), the BTS Meal was sold from May 26, 2021, to June 20, 2021, in select countries and eventually reached a total of fifty countries.

Product description

The BTS Meal consists of a 10- or 9-piece Chicken McNuggets,[1] medium french fries, a medium Coca-Cola, and Sweet Chili and Cajun dipping sauces inspired by "popular McDonald's South Korean recipes".[2]

History

South Korean boy band BTS

A representative from the band's agency, Big Hit Entertainment, announced the collaboration between BTS and McDonald's through an official statement. Fans could purchase a meal coupon through a food ordering service prior to the official release.

Depending on the countries and location, the BTS Meal was available via dine-in, take-out, drive-through, and app-based orders, and it was only available during regular hours. The collaboration was the third collaboration for McDonald's. The BTS Meal was first released on May 26, 2021,[3][4] in select countries, including: the United States, Austria, the Bahamas, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Indonesia, Israel, Malaysia, Paraguay, the Philippines, Taiwan, Romania and Sint Maarten.[5] By late June, the meal had been released in fifty countries.[6] Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, massive crowds in Indonesia reportedly forced the temporary closure of many outlets,[7] whereas in Singapore, the meal could only be ordered via delivery to prevent crowding at outlets due to the pandemic.[8] Upon its release, the BTS-inspired packaging that the meal was served in was listed for resale on several e-commerce platforms,[1] including Carousell.[9] The promotion was discontinued on June 20, 2021.[10]

Availability dates

Credits adapted from ABS-CBN News.[11]

  • May 26 – United States, Austria, Bahamas, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Israel, Malaysia, Paraguay, St. Maarten, Ukraine
  • May 27 – Australia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Oman, Singapore, South Korea, Vietnam
  • May 28 – Malta, Puerto Rico
  • June 1 – Costa Rica, India (Delhi), Mexico, Panama, United Arab Emirates
  • June 2 – Bahrain, Cyprus, Qatar
  • June 3 – Hong Kong, Macau
  • June 4 – India (Mumbai)
  • June 5 – Morocco
  • June 7 – Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania
  • June 9 – Taiwan
  • June 11 – Romania
  • June 15 – El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Suriname
  • June 18 – Philippines
  • June 25 – Indonesia

Reception

Writing for the Chicago Tribune, Louisa Chu found the dipping sauces "smooth, but unsurprising".[12] Rebecca Alter of Vulture praised McDonald's business acumen, while stating that the collaboration "made me optimistic for the future of musician promos at chains".[13] William Mullally of Esquire Middle East described the Cajun dipping sauce as "the stuff of fast food greatness".[14]

In 2021, the release reached over a million sales in South Korea,[15] and caused an increase in sales, according to McDonald's.[16]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Haasch, Palmer (May 29, 2021). "BTS McDonald's meal sauces and packaging are selling for more than double the sale price on eBay as fans race to collect the limited-edition collab". Insider.
  2. ^ Shanfeld, Ethan (April 19, 2021). "BTS Meal Coming to McDonald's in May". Variety.
  3. ^ "McDonald's to launch BTS meal beginning May 26". UPI. Retrieved 2022-02-22.
  4. ^ Teen, Vanity (2021-05-28). "Make My BTS Meal A Fashion Combo🍟🥤😎: The New Meal Also Features The Launch Of Special Merch Vanity Teen 虚荣青年 Lifestyle & New Faces Magazine". www.vanityteen.com. Retrieved 2022-02-22.
  5. ^ Utomo, Delfina (April 22, 2021). "McDonald's announces BTS Meal to be released in Singapore on May 27". Time Out.
  6. ^ Cannon, Matt (June 22, 2021). "McDonald's BTS Meal is Different Depending Where You Buy It—Here's How". Newsweek.
  7. ^ Bengali, Shashank (June 11, 2021). "McDonald's in Indonesia are forced to close after a 'BTS Meal' frenzy that violated Covid measures". The New York Times.
  8. ^ Yip, Jieying (June 21, 2021). "McDonald's BTS Meal Sells Out In 5 Mins; No BTS Logo Paper Bag". 8 Days.
  9. ^ "McDonald's BTS Meal lands in Singapore – without the band-themed paper bag". Channel News Asia. June 21, 2021.
  10. ^ Tyko, Kelly. "McDonald's BTS meal is here through June 20 with McNuggets and spicy dipping sauces". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  11. ^ Cerezo, Anna Gabrielle (April 20, 2021). "McDonald's to offer BTS's signature order in PH". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
  12. ^ Chu, Louisa (May 26, 2021). "We try the new McDonald's BTS Meal. Spoiler alert: It's all about the sauce". Chicago Tribune.
  13. ^ Alter, Rebecca (May 27, 2021). "It's True: BTS and McDonald's Are the Dream Combo Meal". Vulture.
  14. ^ Mullally, William (June 1, 2021). "Review: Yep, you really need to try the BTS Meal at McDonald's UAE". Esquire Middle East.
  15. ^ Chino, Leinad (2021-06-23). "Esto ganó BTS sólo en Corea gracias al Meal de McDonald's". Nación Rex (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-02-22.
  16. ^ Chin, Carmen (2021-07-29). "McDonald's says BTS Meal played a 'significant' role in recent sales surge". NME. Retrieved 2022-02-22.