Double down, v.: To double or significantly increase one's wager, risk, investment, or commitment. Originates from gambling.
It's not often that a commercial product gets an honest name. The Double Down Dog, as its name suggests, has the consumer take a risky gamble with his body weight and health. It's also a gamble by KFC that its customers don't give a rat's ass about their health.
In case it's not obvious from the photo, the Double Down Dog is a hot dog with a fried chicken "bun". Why would anyone eat such a thing? The Double Down Dog is extremely calorie-dense, with lots of fat, salt, and a crispy fried starch shell. While it may not appeal to most of us, for some people that's a powerful enough combination of reward factors to motivate purchase and consumption. Being a contrarian may be an even stronger motivation.
Fortunately, it's only available in the Philippines... for now.
You need to talk about those little fried apple pies that the fast food places sell. Like a pie isn't hyperpalatable enough before you deep fry it.
ReplyDeleteThe original KFC "Double Down" was two chicken breasts basically used as bread. They had either the fried or grilled chicken as "bun" options.
ReplyDeleteI thought it an interesting idea, so I made my own version using one breast cut in half, grilled.
And, it has cornichon.
http://freetheanimal.com/2010/04/the-kfc-double-down-is-going-down.html
Still quite palatable and rewarding, but not so much that I've ever done it again since two or three times a few years ago.
@Tam
ReplyDeleteTaco Bell has these "caramel apple empanadas", which is essentially crack on steroids. The second time I ordered one, it came straight from the cooker, so the inside was molten hot lava. I burned my mouth but didn't stop eating it because my brain just turned off.
I've been clean for a month. To avoid relapsing, I routinely avoid streets that have Taco Bells.
WHOA! That picture... I'm in the Philippines with a KFC nearby. I haven't eaten there in years (over a decade). It's fascinating to see that picture and a little bit scary. The food offerings certainly have evolved/devolved (from a marketing viewpoint vs a nutritional viewpoint).
ReplyDeleteMany Filipinos grew up loving KFC, especially the gravy (tweaked to cater to Filipino tastes). It's often poured over white rice (available in Philippine KFCs). Arguably, it's EVILLY delicious (white rice + soupy tasty gravy + crispy chicken).
Now, Purefoods red hotdogs are another Filipino childhood favorite. So the pairing of the two seems like an attempt at creating fast food gold. Marketing-wise, I can possibly understand the pairing. But to eat it? That's just...WHOA!