Mw Mcdonald's May Bring Its 1057-Calorie Big Arch To America Soon. Why It Could Be A Billion-Dollar Burger

By Charles Passy

McDonald's is just one of a number of fast-food and fast-casual chains going the plus-size route with their burgers

The McDonald's Big Arch burger comes with two beef patties, three slices of white cheddar, lettuce, pickles, onions and something called Big Arch sauce, all on a poppy-and-sesame-seed bun.

Is the half pounder the new Quarter Pounder?

According to various accounts, McDonald's (MCD) is looking to introduce its meaty Big Arch burger in the U.S. in early March. Already a feature on McDonald's menus in other countries, the plus-size sandwich has two beef patties - reportedly weighing in at 8 ounces combined - along with three slices of white cheddar cheese, lettuce, pickles, onions and something called Big Arch sauce, all on a poppy-and-sesame-seed bun.

It adds up to 1,057 calories of burger feasting, per the British McDonald's website, which is more than three times the calorie count of the standard McDonald's cheeseburger (303 calories) and about double the count of a Big Mac (509 calories).

The bigger-burger story goes beyond McDonald's, with other fast-food and fast-casual chains rolling out their own hefty offerings of late. Carl's Jr., never a chain to shy away from meaty affairs, introduced its Cali XL burger, with two 3.5-ounce beef patties, in November. And Shake Shack (SHAK) rolled out a Big Shack burger, which has two 4-ounce beef patties, as a limited-time item last fall.

And even if Burger King (QSR) hasn't introduced any new supersize burgers recently, it does offer customers the option to up their Whopper game by making the sandwich a Double Whopper or even a Triple Whopper with added patties. The Triple version has a whopping 1,170 calories.

The idea is that even if a bigger burger costs more - the Big Shack, for example, was priced at $9.99 - the customer is getting plenty of bang for their buck. Call it a game of food psychology.

Americans have been obsessed with large portions for a long time, and some say this is even more pronounced when they are feeling the economic pinch: Think the current discussions surrounding affordability, as well as concerns about the high price of dining in restaurants.

"When you see a massive burger that is heavy in your hand, it feels like you are actually winning one over on the system," said Joel Thomas Blackstock, a clinical social worker and therapist who lives in Alabama.

Burger lovers are quick to say that more is, well, more when it comes to the American classic.

"A bigger burger is going to get the job done. It promises fullness," said Paul Whitten, a self-professed burger fanatic who runs a Nashville-based tour company.

From a restaurant's point of view, there's money to be made with these bigger burgers, despite the fact that beef prices have been increasing.

Stephen Zagor, a restaurant-industry consultant who teaches at Columbia University's business school, says that's partly because the fixed costs for a restaurant - everything from labor to the electric bill - are the same no matter how many patties are on a burger. So there's generally good profit in adding extra beef, since the only add-on cost to the restaurant is the patty itself, and that can be passed on to the consumer.

Burgers have never been a huge profit center for fast-food chains in the first place, Zagor noted. "They make their real money on french fries and drinks," he said. Ultimately, if a bigger sandwich gets customers in the door - and those diners complement their purchase with a side of fries and a beverage - then it all works out to a restaurant's advantage, he said.

Those are points echoed by Mark Kalinowski, a veteran fast-food industry analyst. He's especially bullish on the Big Arch's prospects, saying he thinks the burger could become a McDonald's mainstay and one of its billion-dollar-selling menu items. He also doesn't think the Big Arch will significantly cannibalize sales of other popular burgers, such as the Quarter Pounder and Big Mac.

"This should do very well for them," Kalinowski said of the Big Arch, adding that he's heard from sources that it will be available in the U.S. starting March 3.

McDonald's told MarketWatch it didn't have any updates to share about a Big Arch launch in the U.S., but it noted the burger had been introduced in a number of international markets last year, including Germany, Portugal, France, Switzerland and the U.K.

Not that anyone is pretending bigger burgers are exactly healthier burgers. Granted, they do pack more protein - and protein has become a dietary focus of late, as evidenced by new recommendations from the Department of Health and Human Services under Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Read more: The new food pyramid and brands like Starbucks and Chipotle want us to eat more protein. We're already getting plenty.

But bigger burgers also come with more calories, fat and sodium, dietary experts note. The Big Arch's 1,057 calories, for example, can be close to half, or even more than half, what's often suggested for a total day's caloric intake.

Does that mean you can't ever indulge in a Big Arch or another bigger burger? Not necessarily, says Kezia Joy, a registered dietitian, nutritionist and medical adviser at Welzo, a healthcare platform.

"If you want to fit oversized burgers into your healthy eating plan, enjoy them every now and then, and make sure to pair them with other good choices," she said.

In short, have your bigger burger, but opt for water instead of soda, Joy said. Oh, and skip the fries.

-Charles Passy

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