I tried the McDonald's McBaguette made famous by 'Emily in Paris' and thought it was underwhelming

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Erin McDowellJan 19, 2023, 23:41 IST
I tried the McDonald's McBaguette made famous by 'Emily in Paris' and thought it was underwhelming

At a Parisian McDonald's, I tried the McBaguette featured on the Netflix series "Emily in Paris."Erin McDowell/Insider

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I visited a McDonald's in Paris' historic Latin Quarter and tried the McBaguette, which was recently featured in the third season of "Emily in Paris."

I visited a McDonald's in Paris' historic Latin Quarter and tried the McBaguette, which was recently featured in the third season of "Emily in Paris."
The exterior of McDonald's in Paris.Erin McDowell/Insider

In the first episode of the season, the main character, Emily, and her on-again-off-again love interest, Gabriel, go to McDonald's after she's pitched the idea of promoting the chain's newest product, the McBaguette.

French McDonald's restaurants first launched the McBaguette in 2012 for a limited time only, and the sandwich has returned to McDonald's menus in France for short periods of time over the years.

Most recently, the McBaguette was brought back in December 2022 for a collaboration with Netflix as part of an official "Emily in Paris" meal. Many of the characters proclaim their love for the sandwich throughout the course of the episode, so I was excited to see if the real-life menu item would live up to the hype.

The McDonald's I visited offered a limited-time-only "Emily in Paris" meal, which included the McBaguette, fries, a drink, and two macarons.

The McDonald's I visited offered a limited-time-only "Emily in Paris" meal, which included the McBaguette, fries, a drink, and two macarons.
The McDonald's menu displays the different meal options for the McBaguette.Erin McDowell/Insider

I was also given the option to order the sandwich by itself, which cost €6.20 or $6.69. It's also available to order as part of two other meal combos — one in the regular size and a "maxi" version, which don't come with macarons.

The "Emily in Paris" meal cost €10.90, or $11.77, which I thought was a pretty fair deal compared to the price of similar meals in the US. For example, a Big Mac combo meal costs $13.69 at my local McDonald's in New York.

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The McBaguette came with two beef patties, lettuce, Swiss cheese, and a smear of mustard on a small baguette-like roll.

The McBaguette came with two beef patties, lettuce, Swiss cheese, and a smear of mustard on a small baguette-like roll.
The McBaguette from McDonald's.Erin McDowell/Insider

When I unwrapped the sandwich, I was impressed. It was quite large and unlike any menu item that I've tried from a McDonald's restaurant in the US.

The closest comparison I could make in terms of size and appearance was with the McRib, which comes on a long toasted bun. However, the ingredients couldn't be more different.

When I inspected the sandwich, I saw a generous, but unevenly distributed, spread of mustard.

When I inspected the sandwich, I saw a generous, but unevenly distributed, spread of mustard.
The McBaguette from McDonald's.Erin McDowell/Insider

A lot of the mustard had soaked into the bread. However, the inside of the bread itself looked fluffy, and I thought the ingredients looked fresh.

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I found the crust of the baguette a little too crispy and hard to bite into.

I found the crust of the baguette a little too crispy and hard to bite into.
The McBaguette from McDonald's.Erin McDowell/Insider

However, the inside of the bread was fluffy, and I thought it had just enough salt.

The overall flavor of the sandwich reminded me a little of a Big Mac, thanks to the thick layers of bread, meat, and lettuce.

I was expecting the lettuce to taste fresher compared to McDonald's lettuce I've eaten back home, as I read that McDonald's food in France is "locally sourced and very high quality," according to NPR. However, it tasted about the same.

The texture of the crispy baguette combined with the light smattering of sauce left me underwhelmed.

The texture of the crispy baguette combined with the light smattering of sauce left me underwhelmed.
The McBaguette from McDonald's.Erin McDowell/Insider

The beef was also on the drier side, and despite the lettuce's best efforts to add some freshness to the sandwich, I thought it simply tasted dry and flavorless compared to other McDonald's menu items. Perhaps it needed more sauce, or maybe melting the cheese would have added a touch of moisture.

That said, I thought the cheese had far more flavor than the standard American cheese slices I'm used to eating on a McDonald's sandwich or burger.

Overall, I thought the sandwich tasted pretty good, and it was a great value, but definitely not worth booking a plane trip for.

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