Kiwiburger

A Kiwiburger with its top bun opened for its inside reference

The KiwiBurger is a hamburger sold at McDonald's restaurants in New Zealand. It consisted of a four-ounce (113 g) beef patty, griddle egg, beetroot, tomato, lettuce, cheese, onions, mustard, and ketchup on a toasted bun.[1] The burger was also sold in Australia under the name McOz but did not include an egg. The McOz was discontinued and replaced by the McFeast Deluxe, which has since been discontinued and replaced by the new range of Angus beef burgers.

The Kiwiburger was the idea of franchisee Bryan Old, who came up with the burger as a nostalgic take on the typical New Zealand hamburger prior to the introduction of McDonald's to the New Zealand market in 1976. Trialled initially in Old's five Hamilton restaurants, it was added to the national menu in 1991.[2] The New Zealand ad for the KiwiBurger had a well-known song, consisting of 46 Kiwiana items, which was printed on the box for some time and was used in the TV advertisement.

Discontinuations and reintroductions

It was discontinued in 2004 as it was unprofitable. The burger had ingredients that were not a part of any other product (beetroot for example), and the egg had to be cooked on a special grill which impeded operations (because of the temperature and timing).

The KiwiBurger was reintroduced to McDonald's New Zealand menu in May 2007.[3]

In September 2007 McDonald's ran a "Vote KiwiBurger" advertising campaign to promote retention of the KiwiBurger (which, as of July 2008, was successful). In December 2008, the KiwiBurger was discontinued again, with the premise being the burger had gone on its "overseas experience".

In June 2009, McDonald's reintroduced the KiwiBurger to its restaurants again for a limited time. It was due to be removed from the menu at the close of business on Tuesday 25 August 2009.

The burger was reintroduced on 17 August 2011 as part of McDonald's promotional Kiwi Menu, introduced ahead of the Rugby World Cup.[4]

Ahead of McDonald's New Zealand's 40th anniversary on 7 June 2016, the Kiwiburger returned to the menu in May 2016. The Big Mac also received a Kiwiburger-style box during the period, with the ingredients of the Big Mac ("two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun") instead of Kiwiana icons.

Advertising

The original 1991 advertisement for the Kiwiburger can be found at Nga Taonga Sound & Vision. It was directed by Fane Flaws with music composed by Murray Grindlay.

The lyrics for the ad are as follows: "Kiwis love Hot pools, Rugby balls, McDonald's, Snapper schools, World peace, Woolly fleece, Ronald and Raising beasts. Chilly bins, Cricket wins, Fast skis, Golf tees, Silver ferns, Kauri trees, Kiwi Burger love one please... Mcdonald's KiwiBurger. The classic New Zealand burger. Cause We love All blacks, Thermal daks, Egg & Cheese, Walking tracks, Beef pattie, Marching girls, Tomato, Lettuce and Paua shells, Gumboots, Ponga shoots, Floppy hats, Kiwifruits, Beetroot, Buzzy bees, Moggy cats, Cabbage trees, Onions, Kakapos, Kiaoras, Cheerios, Jandals, Sandals, Ketchup, Coromandel's, Swanndris, Butterflies, Mustard, Fishing flies, Hokey pokey, Maori haka, Kiwi burger. That's our tucker!!!"

When the KiwiBurger was released in 2007 the ad was edited to include more details about the actual burger... Ie. 100% pure beef, Watties beetroot, Mainland cheese and an egg from Farmer Brown.

Kiwiburger by Gourmet Burger Kitchen

A burger with the same name also exists at Gourmet Burger Kitchen in the UK. It consists of a beef patty, beetroot, egg, pineapple, cheese, salad, mayonnaise and relish. For each one sold, 25p is donated to the Whakatane Kiwi Trust to help save the kiwi.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "McDonald's celebrates return of KiwiBurger".
  2. ↑ Hepözden, Rosemary (2011). O'Flaherty, Brian, ed. Golden Arches under Southern Skies: Celebrating 35 years of McDonald's in New Zealand. in co-op with McDonald's Restaurants (NZ) Ltd. Auckland: Renaissance Publishing. p. 151. ISBN 978-0-9864521-1-6.
  3. ↑ "McDonald's News".
  4. ↑ "McDonald's celebrates Kiwiana in style". Voxy.co.nz. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 17 August 2011.

Further reading

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