Review: McDonald's New Bacon Caesar McCrispy Is America's Best Fast Food Chicken Sandwich

With the Fourth of July and the World Cup now behind us this summer, you might think that's it for all the big news this season — but you'd be wrong. McDonald's still has another seasonal surprise about to drop, which is already turning heads. No, not the BTS collaboration Happy Meal with BT21 Universe toys (although there's no doubt K-Pop fans everywhere are rushing to get those, too). A limited-time Caesar sauce, fit for dipping and drizzling, is joining the McDonald's chicken menu, and fans are already lining up to try it.

Sure, chicken and Caesar sauce are not a ground-breaking combination. But it's also a winning one that's so obvious, you can't help but wonder why this wasn't a menu option already. The new dipping sauce will be available solo, as well as with orders of McCrispy Strips, on Caesar Snack Wraps, and on the new Bacon Caesar McCrispy Sandwich. To find out if the new Caesar sauce is fit to join the lineup of legendary fast food dipping sauces, we had to taste it, along with the upgraded chicken menu options, to see for ourselves. Here is everything you need to know about the limited-time Caesar sauce from McDonald's.

As soon as the new Caesar sauce and menu items became available at my local McDonald's, I immediately placed an order to try them. Stopping only to take pictures of each item, I tried the sauce by itself first, followed by the McCrispy Strips with the sauce, the Caesar Snack Wrap, and finally the Bacon Caesar McCrispy Sandwich. After first impressions and a few handfuls of french fries, I retasted all of the items and dug into the details of the sauce itself.

As a fan of Caesar dressings in general, I compared the flavor, texture, ingredients, and intensity of the new Caesar sauce to what I've come to expect from other dressings. Having tasted the classic versions of the McDonald's Snack Wrap and McCrispy Chicken Sandwich, I also considered how the limited-time preparations enhanced or detracted from the original versions. 

Finally, I compared the Bacon Caesar McCrispy Sandwich with some of my favorite fast food chicken sandwiches to determine its place in the never-ending chicken sandwich wars. My opinions on the new Caesar sauce and menu items are entirely my own, and are based on a strong foundational knowledge of the existing McDonald's menu items.

These days, new dipping sauces seem to lean into creative, international, or extra-spicy flavor combinations, so it's a little surprising to see such a familiar flavor added to a sauce lineup — but it's a welcome addition all the same. Immediately upon opening a cup of the new Caesar sauce, it's clear from the texture that this isn't as much a runny dressing or fluid dipping sauce. It is a thicker, classic aioli-style Caesar sauce.

A quick look at the ingredients list confirms just how classic this Caesar sauce is. Made primarily with oil, water, vinegar, real Parmesan cheese, and egg yolks, this sauce has a similar makeup to a homemade Caesar dressing and also includes garlic, lemon juice, and mustard seed. Interestingly, white wine is also listed as a minor ingredient, although alcohol is not called out as a special ingredient or allergen.

Those who aren't fans of anchovies will be glad to know that there are none in this sauce, which instead boasts big Parmesan and zesty lemon flavors. This Caesar sauce is bolder and cheesier than I'd expected, making it all the more irresistible on all of the chicken menu items it's served with. One .78-ounce Caesar sauce cup has 120 calories, 13 grams of fat, 1 gram of carbohydrates, and 0 grams of protein.

McDonald's McCrispy Strips are the basis for the Snack Wrap, but can also be ordered by themselves in three- or four-piece boxes with accompanying dipping sauces. If you're not entirely sure if the Caesar Sauce is for you, you get two sauces to mix and match as you please. The robust Caesar sauce clings to the crunchy, peppery, and salty McCrispy Strips, where the garlic notes become more apparent, and the bright lemon and vinegar notes balance the fried chicken and creamy sauce.

While this is the most basic way to taste the new Caesar dipping sauce, it's a nice way to enjoy it if you aren't interested in the additional vegetables and carbohydrates from the Snack Wrap and McCrispy Sandwich options. One 3-piece order of McCrispy Strips has 400 calories, 20 grams of fat, 24 grams of carbohydrates, and an admirable 31 grams of protein, not including the additional Caesar sauce.

Despite the hype around the return of the Snack Wrap in summer 2025, McDonald's Snack Wrap is, frankly, a little boring. In its most basic form, Snack Wraps include McCrispy Chicken Strips, lettuce, and a shredded cheddar/jack cheese blend, with your choice of either Ranch or Spicy Pepper sauce. There's been plenty of competition from nearly every other major fast food group to capitalize on the hype of this menu item, with other outlets doing snack wraps arguably even better.

A chicken Caesar wrap is far from groundbreaking, but it's also exactly what so many people want — myself included. The McCrispy Strips in the wrap are just crunchy enough that they count for both the chicken and the croutons you'd expect in a Caesar wrap. The Caesar sauce itself is noticeably cheesy and zesty enough to stand up to the chicken tenders, while the lettuce and shredded cheese play supporting roles, mostly for a fresh and cool crunch.

All in all, this is an enjoyable step up from the McCrispy Strips and dipping sauce alone, and head and shoulders better than the Ranch and Spicy Snack Wraps on the regular menu. Just make sure to order an extra cup of Caesar sauce, because there's no such thing as too much. One Caesar Snack Wrap has 390 calories, with 22 grams of fat, 32 grams of carbohydrates, and 17 grams of protein.

The Caesar Snack Wrap may be a noticeable step up from the solo McCrispy Strips and Caesar dipping sauce, but the Bacon Caesar McCrispy sandwich is where the sauce really shines. This is essentially a Deluxe McCrispy sandwich, which regularly comes with a crispy chicken filet, lettuce, sliced Roma tomatoes, and mayonnaise. The Bacon Caesar McCrispy swaps the regular mayonnaise for the new Caesar sauce and adds crinkle-cut pickles that usually come on the regular McCrispy sandwich, along with slices of applewood-smoked bacon and slivers of crispy fried onions. All of it is served on a fluffy, slightly sweet potato roll.

Not only is the Bacon Caesar McCrispy the most complex sandwich on the current McDonald's menu, but the Caesar sauce itself boldly ties the entire sandwich together. Juicy and fresh bursts of lettuce and tomato play off the crunchy chicken and bacon, while the pickles, fried onions, and sauce round out the flavors of the sandwich.

As someone who normally finds the McCrispy sandwich to be a kind of one-trick pony, the Bacon Caesar McCrispy far and away exceeded my expectations. One Bacon Caesar McCrispy sandwich has 750 calories, 44 grams of fat, 57 grams of carbohydrates, and 34 grams of protein.

The new McDonald's Caesar sauce and accompanying menu items launch at restaurants everywhere across the U.S. beginning Tuesday, July 21st. With that said, they've been spotted on some menus early if you're especially excited to get your hands on them. There's no official word on how long the Caesar Sauce menu will last, only that it's a limited-time offering for the summer season. It's safe to say that you'll want to grab a bite of this menu before the Pumpkin Spice Lattes make their debut.

Prices will vary depending on location, and whether you order in person or online. For an idea of what you can expect, the prices at my local McDonald's restaurant in New York City are: 25 cents for a single cup of Caesar sauce, $7.19 for a 3 Piece McCrispy Strips box with accompanying sauce, $2.99 for a single Caesar Snack Wrap, and $8.49 for a Bacon Caesar McCrispy Sandwich. Meal prices with a drink and a side of fries start at $12.19, $9.89, and $12.19, respectively, before taxes.

Caesar sauce is widely adored, making it a sure bet for a broad audience. Luckily, instead of taking shortcuts, McDonald's has created a flavor-packed sauce with traditional Caesar ingredients that's delicious no matter what you decide to try it on. The best showing of the sauce is undoubtedly the Bacon Caesar McCrispy sandwich, which is, in my opinion, the best-tasting sandwich now on the menu.

When it comes to the long-disputed chicken sandwich wars, I've personally always preferred Popeyes Classic Chicken Sandwich with a little Blackened Ranch Sauce on it. But the Bacon Caesar McCrispy beats even that one in my book, thanks to the generous amount of toppings that are piled on and the thick layer of Caesar sauce that ties it all together. I enjoyed it so much, I went back and ordered another one two days later, before it even formally hit stores nationwide.

For as long as it's on the menu, the Bacon Caesar McCrispy is the best fast food fried chicken sandwich you'll find anywhere. Perhaps that will be enough to convince McDonald's to make the limited time Caesar sauce a part of the regular menu. But in the meantime, I'll be enjoying it as often as I can get my hands on it, and trying to recreate it for myself once it's gone.