McDonald’s didn’t seem to be wingin’ it when it launched the Mighty Wings in 2013. The limited-edition crispy, bone-in wings were moonlighted with a clear vision to “bring the popularity and fun of chicken wings to customers” (via McDonald’s). The snack even had the backing of NFL stars and promised a “spicy kick with every bite,” according to the fast food chain’s website. However, by the end of the year, the fast food chain still had 10 million pounds of unsold Mighty Wings. CBS dubbed it the “great Mighty Wing flop of 2013.” In a 2013 quarterly earnings conference call, McDonald’s then-CEO Don Thompson confessed the wings “performed at the lower end of our expectations,” per Seeking Alpha’s transcript, and soon after, the company finished out the tough year with mixed earnings results.
Well, what went so wrong for the not-so-mighty wings? Not everyone hated them, after all. Twitter, now X, was pretty split on the debate; in one post, they were heralded as “absolutely delicious,” whereas another person complained they were, simply, “very bad” in a separate post. It’s possible they were just too expensive. At $2.99 for three wings, $4.79 for five, and $8.99 for 10, customers were paying about $1 per wing, whereas at KFC, you could bag five hot wings for $3.99 (80 cents per wing) — a clear winner in terms of price. Moreover, McDonald’s own dollar menu, a former fast food chain staple, offered more for less, with some franchises blaming these competing prices for the crisis. Pair that with customers clutching purses tight amid a sluggish economy, and you get the downfall of McDonald’s Mighty Wings.
Maybe people just didn’t like the taste
This wasn’t the first time Mighty Wings had made it to the McDonald’s menu. The item actually survived a healthy stint of 14 years in restaurants from 1990 to 2004, and upon its brief return in 2013, chicken wings had already taken off at McDonald’s in Hong Kong. But this time around, things were different in the United States. It’s possible palates had changed, with Don Thompson himself claiming the wings were too spicy for many customers’ tastes (via Jezebel).
And maybe on-the-bone chicken was just falling out of fashion. Chick-fil-A didn’t do on-the-bone in 2013, nor did Burger King, and neither did Wendy’s. Invented in 1963, the fast food chicken nugget was finally becoming mainstream. KFC even rolled out a boneless chicken recipe in 2013, convinced it was going to be the next big thing, and the meal was later celebrated in Time’s list of must-taste fast food that summer. So maybe McDonald’s just needed to stick to what it still does best: McNuggets, which are perfectly fried and come with all the tasty sauces of the wings, such as Sweet Chili and Tangy Barbecue, but without the bones and fiery kick.
Despite their failure, Mighty Wings were brought back again for a limited time at Detroit McDonald’s in 2015 and many Atlanta restaurants in 2016. But how would they fare today? Well, Americans are going wild for spicy flavors and crispy chicken, and one online petition requesting their return has over 600 signatures, so they might be a hit. But don’t get your feathers ruffled. With no word from McDonald’s, it looks like Mighty Wings will remain a relic of the fast food past.
