KFC Tex Mex Wrapstar Rides Again

In the early part of this year KFB's team were lucky enough to stumble across an ops shakedown (one branch trial of a new product prior to nationwide release) for the current time limited offer, the TEX MEX Wrapstar. It was given a lukewarm reception that time. Now its back for roughly 6 weeks. I tried it at Stafford Hough Branch to see if they've ironed out the creases.

The product arrives in next packaging exhorting the purchaser to "Unwrap to discover the totally tasty flavours." That was certainly my intention and with a beefed up ingredients list i was looking forward to tucking in. The TEX MEX Wrapstar boasts:

• Tortilla Wrap (possibly imbued with subtle flavours due to its colour)
• 2 Crispy Strips
• Diced Tomatoes
• Sour Cream
• Crispy Tomato Tortilla
• Pepperjack Cheese
• Chilli Salsa
• Lettuce

Quite a list I'm sure you'll agree and all available for the extremely reasonable price of 2.99 for just the 'burger' or 3.99 as a meal.

First look! well the shape left a lot to be desired, though in a nice tight bundle this wasn't the star shape on the advertising literature and it seems that the Chicken technicians nationwide are struggling to get to grips with its manufacture.

The wrapstar doesn't however suffer from 'wrap syndrome' whereby the bottom of the product is nothing but wrap like the twister. Inside the wrapstar, all of the ingredients conspire to give our taste buds a damn good time.

My wrap was soft, the diced tomatoes gave a great fresh feeling to the product and the sour cream's coolness contrasted oh so very well with the Chicken nestling in it. The crunchy texture of the the tomato tortilla was excellent, remeniscent of the crunchy prestige the hash brown enjoys in the tower burgers.

What didn't come through too much was the cheese but then the punch from the chilli salsa was teriffic, again cool and moist making the 'burger' fresh and non cloying. There was no hint of grease anywhwere and the Wrapstar stayed remarkably intact throughout.

Within the chilli salsa was a very distinctive barbecue taste which along with the fried Chicken and the fusion cheese gave this dish its TEX constituents.

I finished satiated, and, as happens rarely with clean hands. sounds good, but it denied me that small pleasure of 'Finger Lickin' Chicken.'

In conclusion, a great product. For me it was the crunch of the tortilla that stood out but was certainly not far ahead of the pack of other truly excellent ingredients.

TEX MEX Wrapstar 7.5/10

Yeehaaww! Tex Mex Wrapstar Review

The Wrapstar saw it's first appearance mid-2007, arriving on the menu as the Toasted Twister's bigger brother. Dubbed as the perfect solution for lunch on-the-go, the Wrapstar was aimed at young, busy adults and boasted a compact design fully enclosed in a soft tortilla wrap, thereby maximising portability and reducing the risk of contents spillage. Inside, the Wrapstar boasted two Crispy Strips, pepper mayo, a slice of cheese, a tostada, mild salsa, lettuce and tomatoes. It was well received, but as dg explains in his recent post Shifting Sanders, the Wrapstar was lost to the greasy graveyard of forgotten menu innovations, only to be reincarnated last year as part of the KFC AM suite, namely the AM Wrapstar. Was this the last variation we would see? Apparently not.

You can imagine my suprise (and that of fellow blogger Albad) as we arrived at Bethnal Green KFC branch for a Sunday meal. There, in the window, was a poster for the Tex Mex Wrapstar. This was the first time I had ever been made aware of new menu items by in-branch advertising - normally these new items are heavily advertisied in offline, online and television advertising. It seemed like the Tex Mex Wrapstar had appeared out of nowhere. The excitement took hold there and then, as we decided to immediately plump up the £2.99 for a meal deal.

In terms of review, there isn't a great deal to say here. The twist given to the Tex Mex is the addition of a pepperjack cheese slice and mexican salsa, supposedly giving more flavour and a fiery kick. It tasted just as I expected - good - but possibly too similar to the original Wrapstar. Sometimes I think it's not quite enough to add a single ingredient (here, salsa/cheese) and call it a new product... but at the end of the day, you can't go wrong with Crispy Strip chicken and mexican zing, a proven winning combination.

One thing I should note here, is construction. The chicken technicians at Bethnal Green KFC have never been noted for a high level of experience and craftmanship, but this was taking the piss. My Wrapstar arrived not as expected or as demonstrated in advertising material, but as a loose, floppy pouch, barely holding the contents and leaking salsa from all sides. After a couple of bites, handling it became nigh on impossible, feeling much like a bar of soap coated in grease. I resorted to picking it apart by hand and ended up in quite a mess. Thank god for the clean-up wipe is all I can say.

One month down the line, and as quickly as it arrived, it's gone. Another casualty, but one which most customers probably won't miss due to the strange lack of advertising behind it. This leaves me to wonder, was this a rare item? Possibly a smaller branch roll-out, or a market test/research for future products...we can only speculate at this stage. If you managed to experience the Tex Mex Wrapstar during it's 1 month shelf life, leave us your thoughts in the comments.