No one believed in KPop Demon Hunters when the movie was first created. Sony sold it off to Netflix. Toy companies passed on the opportunity to sell HUNTR/X and Saja Boys merch. But then KPop Demon Hunters became an absolute phenomenon.
And now Netflix and McDonald’s have teamed up to bring us a full KPop Demon Hunters menu, with the Saja Boys Breakfast Meal, the HUNTR/X Meal and the Derpy McFlurry all making their debut on Tuesday.
“Everything we do at McDonald’s is for the fans, and no one can relate to that more than Netflix and KPop Demon Hunters,” Alyssa Buetikofer, chief marketing and customer experience officer at McDonald’s, said in a press release. “Big things happen when you bring two massive fandoms together, and this partnership was a natural fit. We found authentic ways to unite our iconic worlds — inviting HUNTR/X and Saja Boys fans into the rivalry in ways that feel true to the film and unmistakably McDonald’s.”
Two full meals and a new McFlurry inspired by KPop Demon Hunters? That felt like a golden opportunity for my Tuesday. Here’s how it’s done ... done ... done ...
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What they cost
The Saja Boys Breakfast Meal was $7.19, the HUNTR/X Meal was $11.39 and the Derpy McFlurry was $5.19.
My thoughts
The Saja Boys Breakfast Meal
I started out my Tuesday with the Saja Boys Breakfast Meal. This is the second time this year where McDonald’s has included breakfast in a promotion. (You might remember I very much enjoyed the Hot Honey Sausage Egg Biscuit back in January.) But KPop Demon Hunters’ influence on the first meal of the day took things to another level.
I’m a sucker for when a fast food chain actually puts the work in and creates a custom package for a promotion like its KPop Demon Hunters meals. For the Saja Boys Breakfast Meal, the Spicy Saja McMuffin comes in its own unique wrapper.
When I first took a look at the Spicy Saja McMuffin, I only saw a touch of the peppery Spicy Saja Sauce peeking out. Upon first bite, though, I was surprised at the kick it packed. This is a much bolder level of heat in a McDonald’s breakfast sandwich than what we got in the Hot Honey Sausage Egg Biscuit.
I definitely appreciated that McDonald’s included a Coke — you know, a “Soda Pop” — with the Saja Boys Breakfast Meal to counteract the heat that was “inspired by the fire of Gwi-Ma.”
At its core, the Saja Boys Breakfast Meal is just a Sausage McMuffin with Egg with a kick — but McDonald’s made sure the other elements of the meal tie into KPop Demon Hunters lore too. In addition to honoring “Soda Pop” with a Coke, the breakfast meal comes with a hash brown because they’re “crispy on the outside and soft on the inside — just like the Saja Boys’ leader Jinu.” Rumi wasn’t able to resist Jinu’s charm, and I gotta say that a McDonald’s hash brown has the same effect on me.
Each meal comes with two cards: One of a member of the Saja Boys (I got Romance Saja) and a Derpy access card that has a QR code that lets you “ unlock first access to exclusive content and a special reveal of the group that wins the Battle for the Fans.”
While the Saja Boys Breakfast Meal was a great way to start my Tuesday, the centerpiece of McDonald’s’s KPop Demon Hunters crossover is the one-two punch the HUNTR/X Meal and the Derpy McFlurry, a combo that makes for a complete lunch or dinner.
The Spicy Saja McMuffin had Spicy Saja Sauce, but the HUNTR/X Meal raises the stakes with two of its own sauces: Hunter Sauce and Demon Sauce. (I’m assuming Rumi would enjoy both.)
McDonald’s writes that Hunter Sauce is a “sweet chili sauce mixing notes of chili, garlic and pepper with just enough heat inspired by HUNTR/X’s fierce, yet fun-loving personalities” and Demon Sauce is a “bold mustard sauce with heat and tang — made purple, just like demon patterns.” Yes, it’s a purple mustard sauce.
If you hadn’t told me that Hunter Sauce was a part of this promotion, I would’ve guessed that it was McDonald’s’s beloved yet retired Sweet Chili Sauce.
Maybe purple ketchup would’ve been a lot more successful if it had come out during the days of KPop Demon Hunters. (There better be someone over at Heinz trying to make this happen for the sequel.) I couldn’t exactly place where Hunter Sauce falls on the spectrum of mustard sauces. It’s definitely not a honey mustard but it doesn’t have the kick of a spicy mustard.
If you’re keeping score, the box for the 10-piece McNuggets was not specially themed for the HUNTR/X Meal ...
... but every part of the Ramyeon McShaker Fries absolutely was on brand. Not only did McDonald’s give the McShaker Fries bag and the Ramyeon seasoning pack the KPop Demon Hunters treatment, they even put the crossover logo on the fries container itself.
I love the simple line drawings on the McShaker Fries package.
Are McShaker Fries going to be a normal thing for McDonald’s? After the United States was mostly left out of any of the fast food chain’s McShaker Fries offerings, we got the Grinch’s Dill Pickle McShaker Fries with The Grinch Meal back in December.
While the Grinch’s McShaker Fries were his attempt at ruining Christmas, the Ramyeon McShaker Fries are a tribute to Rumi, Zoey and Mira’s beloved ramen. McDonald’s writes that the McShaker Fries included in the HUNTR/X Meal boast a “spicy, umami” taste. I found the flavoring to be subtle, with the occasional burst of spice when I hit a fry that got a heavy dose of seasoning.
The best part of the Ramyeon McShaker Fries, though? Unlike how the HUNTR/X women had to wait three minutes before enjoying their ramen, you can dive right into your McShaker Fries.
Topping off my day of feasting in the style of KPop Demon Hunters was the Derpy McFlurry.
I love Derpy Tiger. He might be my favorite character in all of KPop Demon Hunters. He’s just a great bit of design and visual gags. I was thrilled to hear that McDonald’s was including the Derpy McFlurry in its KPop Demon Hunters menu.
This limited edition McFlurry flavor is your traditional vanilla ice cream base with berry popping pearls and a wild berry sauce.
The inclusion of those berry popping pearls is what really got my attention. McDonald’s has stealthily been offering ingredients like the popping pearls at CosMc’s, the chain’s now closed experimental drink locations.
The popping pearls are a super fun addition to a McFlurry. I really enjoyed them as a complement to the cold McFlurry ice cream. Is this the beginning of CosMc’s innovations like popping pearls becoming a full addition to the McDonald’s menu?
The Omnicosm founder. Snackology, Popculturology and The Cold Open writer. A Rochester, N.Y., native now living in the Washington, D.C., area. Won’t pass up a Genny Cream Ale.
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