First there were McNuggets. Then there were Chicken McBites and now, McDonald's has added "Mighty Wings" to its menu.
The world's largest fast food franchise will begin adding Mighty Wings to their menu on Sept. 9, with the new item offered nationwide on Sept. 24. Currently, the product will only be available until November, with orders of three, five and 10-pieces starting at $2.99, according to Lynne Collier, an analyst with Sterne Agee.
The new addition will be offered with nine different sauces including Chipotle Barbeque, Spicy Buffalo and Tangy Barbeque, according to the website BurgerBusiness.com. The company tested the product in both Chicago and Atlanta to rave reviews before the launch.
According to the Chicago Tribune, a spokeswoman for McDonald's said the test in Chicago would start this week at about 500 restaurants. There no plans yet to bring the wings to other cities. Fast-food chains typically test items in select markets before taking them national. But for McDonald's, which has 14,000 U.S. locations, adding chicken wings to the permanent lineup could be tricky.
According to Yahoo News, the chicken wings are meant to compete with chicken chains like KFC and Popeyes, as well as, other fast food staples like Burger King and Taco Bell.
"Anyone can do nuggets or tenders and almost all burger chains do, but Mighty Wings are different because they're bone-in chicken," Scott Hume from Burger Business told Yahoo! "They're also tougher to source in large numbers but McDonald's has the clout to do it."
Rumors of McWings first started when a Missouri-based owner-operator mentioned them in a Facebook post alongside products like Pralines and Crème McFlurry, Pumpkin Spice Lattes and Southwest Premium McWraps.
McDonald's has not confirmed any of these additional items.
This is not the first time McDonald's has offered wings. According to the National Chicken Council, McDonald's first introduced chicken wings in 1990 at some locations. The previous addition prompted other fast-food chains to file a suit.
McDonald's is facing competition from newer chains such as Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. and Panera Bread Co., which serve higher-quality food for slightly higher prices.
According to Yahoo Finances, in October, McDonald's said a key sales figure dropped for the first time in nearly a decade. The figure rebounded in November after the Oak Brook, Ill., company said it would return to emphasizing its Dollar Menu to lure price-conscious diners.
Are you planning on giving the new Mighty Wings a try?
