This February at the Winter Olympic Games, snowboarders flipped and twisted on the halfpipe, figure skaters landed triple axels, and skeleton racers slid face-first down an icy track at more than 85 mph. That kind of athleticism demands some serious vigor, and one of the menu items that fueled competitors this year was a new Real Fruit Smoothie from McDonald’s, which debuted at the Olympics.
Later this summer, smoothies will join the McCafé lattes, mochas, cappuccinos, and hot chocolate that arrived in Evansville in late 2008. The lineup is the fast food chain’s answer to Starbucks and other gourmet coffee retailers, and many McDonald’s restaurants have undergone remodeling to create a more intimate coffeehouse vibe.
In March, McCafé introduced mocha and caramel frappés — thick, creamy blended ice drinks topped with whipped cream and a chocolate or caramel drizzle. Frappés are available at all McDonald’s in and around Evansville, and recently, I tried a mocha frappé at the restaurant on North Main Street. The frappés are advertised as containing just “a hint of coffee,” and the bitter beans lend balance to the sweet treat. The chocolate syrup added a decadent, sundae-like touch.
If the forthcoming smoothies are good enough to power up the 10,000 Olympians, coaches, and officials in Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia, they surely will satisfy Evansvillians, too. Real Fruit Smoothies, made with fruit and low-fat yogurt (and available without yogurt), will debut at local McDonald’s restaurants in mid-summer.
Coupons for McCafé frappés are inserted on page 17 of the May/June 2010 issue of Evansville Living magazine. For more on the McCafé line, visit www.mcdonalds.com/mccafe.
