It all started with a tweet from @TGIFridaysUK the other day, saying they had a top secret to share with me about a new item on their menu… Intrigued, I was then asked to DM the brand telling them a secret to see if I was worthy of being let into this mystery. After confessing that I once smashed one of my Mum’s expensive ornaments and blamed it on the dog (sorry Mum/Bruno!), they said: “Looks like we can trust you, so we’ll let you in on our little secret…”
At this moment, I thought that this was a great campaign already – it had captured my attention, lured me in thanks to my curious mind, and the interaction had made me want to know more about this secretive mission. TGI Friday’s went on to say that this Wednesday (2nd April 2014), they were releasing a “brand new range of handcrafted burgers nationwide…We’ll be selling a secret burger which isn’t listed on the menu and we’d like to treat you and a friend to try it…”
I received a letter in the post with vouchers plus a letter which was brilliantly written ‘in character’, mentioning that, “when the waiter/waitress comes to take your order, simply say…’I’ll have what Jack’s having’…and then give a shifty look of your eyes and a wink” – “Now destroy this letter”. Following these instructions when James and I were seated at the diner in Manchester, our friendly waitress knew exactly what we were on about and swiftly brought us our food.
We hadn’t asked beforehand what the nameless burger was (which we later found out was called ‘The Jack Burger’) as we wanted to guess what was in it, and wow was it a taste sensation. The beef in the burger was juicy and chunky, the topping of what we guessed was caramelised onions in a Jack Daniel’s/BBQ type sauce with a hint of chilli was delicious, held together in a soft but substantial brioche bread bun. Heartbreakingly, being wheat intolerant I had to leave the bread bun but, together with the serving of crispy fries on the side, was just the right amount to fill me up.
You know it’s a good meal when you’re so busy enjoying the food, you don’t say a word until every crumb has been devoured; for James and I, this is a big deal, being a pair of chatterboxes. When our waitress returned, it seemed our guess of ingredients was pretty much spot on – relatively simple but a fantastic combination of flavours and textures.
So, there you go – the secret is out: The Jack Burger is certainly one to look for on the menu in the coming weeks. A big thanks to TGI’s for inviting me to be involved in this campaign and for making it a very fun, engaging one – for now, here are mine and James’ #BurgerFace purely for the brand’s social channels – nomnomnom!.