I ate the bacon, egg, and cheese biscuits from 4 major fast-food chains, and the winner surprised me

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I ate the bacon, egg, and cheese biscuits from 4 major fast-food chains, and the winner surprised me

Bacon Egg and Cheese Biscuit lineup

Irene Jiang / Business Insider

I tried breakfast sandwiches from McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, and Chick-fil-A.

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Good morning, sunshine.

Getting up can be hard, especially when you have a long day ahead of you. A few things can help you wake up: the smell of coffee, a functioning alarm, or the thumping footsteps of your upstairs neighbors.

But the best cure for the morning blues is something to look forward to. And there's nothing I look forward to more than my first meal of the day.

The BEC biscuit has long been my personal favorite breakfast sandwich. As a kid, the only time I'd get McDonald's was when my family embarked on a long road trip at the crack of dawn. I was a grumpy morning child, but a salty, buttery BEC biscuit sandwich would always put me right back to sleep in the backseat.

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Read more: I ate hot dogs from 5 major chains, and the best was also the cheapest

Nowadays, I don't always eat a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit for breakfast. But when I do, I eat four.

I taste-tested the BEC biscuits from McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, and Chick-fil-A to see who has the best sandwich.

I judged the sandwiches on four metrics: biscuit, bacon, egg, and overall taste. I gave each sandwich a score between one and five for each metric.

Here's how they stack up:

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WENDY'S — The sunny-side-up egg is draped alluringly over the biscuit. Mrs. Robinson, are you trying to seduce me?

WENDY'S — The sunny-side-up egg is draped alluringly over the biscuit. Mrs. Robinson, are you trying to seduce me?

BISCUIT — 3: Crumbly and doughy with no crunch. It was strangely tangy and sweet, as if it had been brushed with lemon frosting. BACON — 5: Plentiful, crispy, and flavorful.

BISCUIT — 3: Crumbly and doughy with no crunch. It was strangely tangy and sweet, as if it had been brushed with lemon frosting. BACON — 5: Plentiful, crispy, and flavorful.
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EGG — 5: Perfectly circular and sunny-side-up, this egg was the only non-square scramble of the bunch. OVERALL — 3: Despite being loaded with bacon and having a soft-cooked real egg, the tart sweetness of the biscuit is way too distracting.

EGG — 5: Perfectly circular and sunny-side-up, this egg was the only non-square scramble of the bunch. OVERALL — 3: Despite being loaded with bacon and having a soft-cooked real egg, the tart sweetness of the biscuit is way too distracting.

CHICK-FIL-A — This Southern chain has a Southern-sized biscuit and nearly enough bacon to feed a small congregation.

CHICK-FIL-A — This Southern chain has a Southern-sized biscuit and nearly enough bacon to feed a small congregation.
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BISCUIT — 5: Generous and tasty with a crispy, lightly egg-glazed crust. BACON — 4: There's a good amount of bacon, but it's chewy rather than crispy.

BISCUIT — 5: Generous and tasty with a crispy, lightly egg-glazed crust. BACON — 4: There's a good amount of bacon, but it's chewy rather than crispy.

EGG — 4: Thick layers of rectangular scramble make for a moist and fluffy egg base. OVERALL — 5: Savory and fatty, this sandwich is everything you want out of a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit.

EGG — 4: Thick layers of rectangular scramble make for a moist and fluffy egg base. OVERALL — 5: Savory and fatty, this sandwich is everything you want out of a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit.

Read more: I tried the signature burgers from 5 major fast-food chains, and the winner was obvious

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MCDONALD'S — My childhood fave looks a lot less impressive when viewed at a reasonable hour and not in the backseat of a Ford Taurus.

MCDONALD'S — My childhood fave looks a lot less impressive when viewed at a reasonable hour and not in the backseat of a Ford Taurus.

BISCUIT — 4: It's crunchy and buttery, but a little too soft and dry. BACON — 1: The bacon gets a point for existing ... barely. Two wimpy slices struggle to escape from underneath the thick square of egg.

BISCUIT — 4: It's crunchy and buttery, but a little too soft and dry. BACON — 1: The bacon gets a point for existing ... barely. Two wimpy slices struggle to escape from underneath the thick square of egg.
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EGG — 2: At least there's a good amount of egg. But it's dry and rubbery. OVERALL — 3: It tastes like powder in your mouth. There isn't really enough bacon to justify its name. But it has a decent amount of egg, and the biscuit is biscuit-y enough.

EGG — 2: At least there's a good amount of egg. But it's dry and rubbery. OVERALL — 3: It tastes like powder in your mouth. There isn't really enough bacon to justify its name. But it has a decent amount of egg, and the biscuit is biscuit-y enough.

BURGER KING — This bready baby is the most beige of them all.

BURGER KING — This bready baby is the most beige of them all.
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BISCUIT — 3: It's very buttery, but soft and doughy to the point of being undercooked. It tastes more like unsweetened shortbread than a biscuit. BACON — 1: Where's the bacon? Maybe Wendy can help me out.

BISCUIT — 3: It's very buttery, but soft and doughy to the point of being undercooked. It tastes more like unsweetened shortbread than a biscuit. BACON — 1: Where's the bacon? Maybe Wendy can help me out.

EGG — 3: BK does a moister, tastier egg than McDonald's, but there's not that much of it. OVERALL — 3: It's doughy, moist, salty, and buttery, but it's mostly biscuit.

EGG — 3: BK does a moister, tastier egg than McDonald's, but there's not that much of it. OVERALL — 3: It's doughy, moist, salty, and buttery, but it's mostly biscuit.
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After all was said and munched, the winner of this taste test had me hankering for more.

After all was said and munched, the winner of this taste test had me hankering for more.

Chick-fil-A's buttery, bacon-y biscuit harmonizes like a world-class choir. I always think of CFA as a chicken place, so I was surprised that it won this taste test. I can't believe that I've been eating the wrong BEC biscuit all these years.

Chick-fil-A's buttery, bacon-y biscuit harmonizes like a world-class choir. I always think of CFA as a chicken place, so I was surprised that it won this taste test. I can't believe that I've been eating the wrong BEC biscuit all these years.
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Sorry, McDonald's. It's not you, it's me — and the irresistible charms of another biscuit.

Sorry, McDonald's. It's not you, it's me — and the irresistible charms of another biscuit.
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