Dunkin' debuted a limited-edition menu featuring Ben Affleck's go-to order. Here are the 6 items, ranked from worst to best.
Dunkin' Donuts released a limited-edition menu called "DunKings" in collaboration with Ben Affleck.
The actor is a longtime fan of the chain, and the new menu includes his go-to drink.
I tried all six items on the menu and ranked them from worst to best.
It's no secret: Ben Affleck loves Dunkin' Donuts.
In 2019, he admitted that he visits the chain daily.
So, naturally, following his viral Dunkin' Donuts Super Bowl commercial, which costarred his wife Jennifer Lopez, longtime best friend Matt Damon, and football icon Tom Brady, Affleck took his love of the chain to a new level by collaborating on a limited-edition menu.
The "DunKings" menu is described as being inspired by the "whimsical" nature of Affleck's latest Super Bowl commercial. The chain hasn't said how long the menu will be available, just that it'll be "in stores nationwide for a limited time" starting Monday.
The "DunKings" menu has six items, three of which are iced beverages.
Affleck and Dunkin' Donuts' menu features three iced beverages: the Hazelnut Heartthrob Iced Coffee, the Mixed Berry Beats Dunkin' Refresher, and the DunKings Iced Coffee, described as the actor's "go-to order."
The menu also features a hot version of the Hazelnut Heartthrob coffee and two food items: the Everything Encore Breakfast Sandwich and an assortment of three DunKings Munchkins.
The Munchkins come on a skewer, resembling "the olive in a martini," according to the chain's website.
I ordered the entire menu in NYC, which totaled $17.37, and ranked each item from worst to best. Take a look.
6. The Mixed Berry Beats Dunkin' Refresher
A small version of the Mixed Berry Beats Dunkin' Refresher costs $2.79. The drink is flavored with strawberry dragonfruit, green tea, and an extra raspberry-flavored syrup shot.
Before taking my first sip, I could tell the beverage would contain bold flavorings from its distinct red color. I wasn't wrong. The drink had a very strong artificial fruit taste that was too overwhelming, in my opinion.
Without the extra shot of raspberry syrup, it would've been a lot more palatable and refreshing.
5. The Everything Encore Breakfast Sandwich
At $4.29, the breakfast sandwich is the priciest item on the "DunKings" menu. The ingredients include sweet black pepper seasoned bacon, white cheddar cheese, and an egg sandwiched between an everything bagel.
My first issue with the sandwich is that my order didn't come in an everything bagel but a plain one. Besides that, I couldn't taste much flavor or sharpness in the cheddar cheese.
However, the bacon was well-seasoned — a perfect blend of sweetness and saltiness.
But overall, I found the sandwich to be a bit dry and think a sauce could've fixed that problem while adding some much-needed flavor.
4. The Hazelnut Heartthrob Iced Coffee
The Hazelnut Heartthrob is the second-cheapest beverage on the menu. A small version of the drink, which contains Dunkin' Donuts' original blend of coffee, whole milk, two pumps of Hazelnut syrup, and two pumps of Caramel Swirl syrup, costs $2.59.
Like the refresher, I found the iced version of the Hazelnut Heartthrob overpoweringly sweet from the syrups.
The flavor improved slightly when I stirred the drink with a straw to mix the syrup collected at the bottom of the cup with the milk, but it wasn't enough to rank higher in my menu review.
3. The Hazelnut Heartthrob Coffee
The hot Hazelnut Heartthrob coffee isn't just a better deal than the iced version; it tastes better.
At $1.99, the small coffee had all the same ingredients as the iced version, but I found that the syrups didn't separate from the milk as much.
All the ingredients blended so that each sip had the perfect milk-to-syrup ratio, making it far less sweet and easier to drink than the iced version.
2. The DunKings Munchkins Skewer
The DunKings Munchkins Skewer was my favorite food item, and at $1, it's also the cheapest item on the entire menu.
It consists of three different flavored mini doughnuts held together through an orange skewer. The flavors I got were classic glazed, chocolate glazed, and one that tasted as if it was spiced with cinnamon.
Though I found the skewer unnecessary as the mini doughnuts fell off after one bite, and I didn't see the point in sticking the skewer into any of the drinks I ordered, I loved how light the texture of each little ball was.
They all had a crispy, glazed, iced exterior but were perfectly fluffy and a good portioned snack to have along with a coffee.
1. The DunKings Iced Coffee
According to Dunkin' Donuts, the DunKings Iced Coffee is Affleck's go-to drink order. After trying it myself, I get why.
At $3.29, it's the most expensive drink on the menu, but it's worth it, especially if you have a sweet tooth.
The beverage features unsweetened vanilla flavoring, french vanilla swirl syrup, cream, sweet cold foam, cinnamon sugar, and regular whole milk. The cinnamon sugar added a much-needed twist to the vanilla-heavy drink. Even though it had a lot of syrup, it blended well into the milk, so each sip wasn't overwhelmingly sugary.
The flavor profile reminded me of something I would enjoy during Christmas and holidays. Still, because it was iced, it was super refreshing.
Read the original article on Business Insider