Squiddies has placed itself at the pinnacle of fish and chip stores in Dunedin for many years, being awarded the Critic award for best fish and chips more than three times in different years. This meant that there were very high expectations to be met for this seasoned Nuggeteer.
Were they met? Undecided. Let me explain.
Squiddies Nugs were flavoursome, they rivaled McDonalds I dare say -the pinnacle of Nugs- quite well. SNugs (as I call them) achieved this as I expected from their high standard of fried fish and potatoes, I don't know what it is but there's something they do to make all their fried heart attacks taste delicious.
Moving on to the other qualities, they were reasonably dry which was forgiven pairing with a nice sweet and sour or BBQ sauce would help this HOWEVER... The sauce.
THERE WAS NONE!
We see here the bane of many fish and chip stores, the lack of sauces or the microtransaction nature of purchasing sauces. The sauces that I could view on offer were Tomato which was a tin, far too much for SNugs worth 80c each and due to this they were left dry.
Apart from this the coating was acceptable and I was left satisfied with my purchase as I slipped my deep fried Moro bar into my mouth, accepting that my coronary manslaughter was about to begin.
Mei Wah have come in with some underdog qualities, their coating is such that is rivals many of the supermarket and fast food competitors. With a crisp and crunchy coating, there is a large amount of satisfaction to the Nug.
But... that is where the positives end...
While they say don't judge a book by its cover, that is exactly the case with Mei Wah's chicken nuggets as the meat inside leaves much to be desired. The Nugs I consumed were dry and tasteless, far from the pinnacle of McDonalds (which just so happens to be across the road)
My recommendation is to steal a bit of grease from the Maccas fat fryer and add it to Mei Wah's Nugs and they might just have a winner on their hands
Burger King has attempted to recreate the perfection that is McDonalds Nug but has come... one short of a six pack.
BK has admirably been seated on top of Maccas in terms of its selection of sauces, however it is hard to beat Maccas Sweet and Sour.
BK's Nugs are in Laymens terms: something between cardboard and edible. The texture and taste are mediocre and bland, really mirroring the price that you pay for these Nugs.
Overall, if you have just received your allowance then go to McDonalds. If you are at the end of your week, spent most of your money on booze and vape canisters, and need a snack to tide you over to dinner time... go to BK or honestly, get a frozen bag of Chicken Nuggets from the supermarket...
McDonalds is the epitome of Nug, its texture and balance of crispiness and tenderness is unparalleled. The flavour of Macca's Nugs can only be characterised by the sweet intimacy with a loved one on a passionate Valentines Day.
McDonalds has perfected the art of the Nug and will forever be held in the pantheon of the Deep Fried, beside Chimichanga and Deep Fried Moro Bars.