The Internet Is Buzzing About CosMc's, McDonald's First-Ever "Spin-Off" Restaurant — So I Tried It, And It Was Wild
Hi, I'm Anna, and I firmly believe that it is always important to indulge in a sweet treat and have at least one fun little beverage on hand at all times. 🫡
And don't even think about saying that my dentist must hate me because of all my daily treats. She loves me! Shout out to Dr. Cole!!!
In fact, among the thousands of photos in my phone, the majority document either a) the sweet treats I've purchased, or b) the sweet treats I've crafted. Most of them are caffeine-based because coffee is the best. I even made an iced coffee once and then stuck an iced coffee-flavored popsicle in it! Just because I can! I love my life!
Due to the combination of my love of sugar, caffeine, and my ever-present desire for just a tiny boost of serotonin, when I learned that McDonald's was opening a space-themed drive-thru concept called CosMc's that boasts a wide array of brand-new mood-and-energy-boosting beverages and sweet treats, I was VERY curious.
I mean...look at all of this. I'm salivating.
Currently, there is only *one* location, in my hometown of Bolingbrook, Illinois, USA. This town, which we lovingly call The Brook, is 27 minutes southwest of Chicago in perfect driving conditions (I lived here for over 20 years, so yes, my drive time calculation is correct and exact).
🤔 Why Bolingbrook? Why Illinois? Seems random! 🤔
It's actually not! Though McD's was founded in California, it was headquartered in another Chicago suburb, Oak Brook, starting in the '70s. In 2018, it moved to a more elaborate building in the actual city of Chicago (this was a BIG deal in 'burbs news, if you care).
Its current Chicago headquarters building also features an open-to-the-public Global McDonald's Restaurant on its ground floor, featuring a rotating menu of international items!
Anyway, literally everyone I know from sea to shining sea has been talking about CosMc's, and how they're dying to try it. So why are people *talking* about it instead of simply trying it themselves?
🪐 Firstly, there's only this one location out of all places on God's green earth.
🪐 Secondly, since it's drive-thru only, the lines are LONG, with some people waiting several hours to simply pull up to the ordering kiosk.
But I am a woman of the people. I am here to help. I will bear this burden* and be the one who heads over to see what it's all about.
*this is actually 100% my pleasure.
Of course, I was a victim of the Infamous CosMc's Long Line, even though I thought I was built different. I arrived at 5:51 p.m. on a Monday, because this establishment is allegedly open until 8:00. However, a whole two hours before closing, I was met with these signs — *that* was how backed up the line was. There were even cops around the parking lot, waving cars away. I guess it's that serious.
According to my mom — who is very up-to-date on the neighborhood Facebook groups — many folks aren't thrilled about these early closing times, which I can only assume happen because they've run out of food or are about to. According to her (and the Facebook groups), since its opening day a few weeks ago, there have even been instances in which this sign has been illuminated as early as 4:00 p.m. I cannot verify this, but I can believe it.
After being turned away, I was more determined than before, so I said, "f*ck it, I'll try again when they open tomorrow." And so I did! CosMc's opens at 6:00 a.m., so up I was with the sun. Look at that beautiful sky! And even better, this time I was in one of only two cars there — a McMiracle.
👽 So my biggest tip is: the earlier you arrive, the better.
The menu is wild. There's no other word to explain it. The offerings here range from classic Mickey D's fare, such as McMuffins and McFlurries, to, as they describe it, "out-of-this-world" items like a pear slushie topped with Pop Rocks, a churro frappé, an array of sour drinks, and filled donuts with unique flavors.
To prepare for my visit, I'd studied the menu as if I were to be tested on it. This is what I selected. While you read, please imagine me sitting at the kiosk at 7:13 a.m. while the sun beautifully rises on the horizon, asking the poor CosMc's employee for all of these items:
🧋 Drinks:
• Sour Cherry Energy Burst (small – $5.19)
• Popping Pear Slush (small – $4.69)
• Churro Frappé (small – $4.99)
• Chai Frappé Burst (small – $5.19)
🍟 Food:
• Spicy Queso Sandwich ($4.99)
• McPops mini pastries: apple cinnamon, hazelnut, and cookie butter ($3.79 for a bag of three — you can order a bag of three of the same flavor or a mixed bag)
• Mini Hash Brown Bites with dipping sauce ($2.39, I got four in my bag)
Side note, the payment system here is also unique, at least to me. Not only is it a drive-thru concept in that you order at a kiosk, but you also pay here before pulling around the building for your food. CosMc's is cashless.
This payment method was easy enough for me, but the person next to me sounded like she was having trouble scanning her card properly. She seemed frustrated as the employee guided her, through the speaker, with different troubleshooting solutions. A few minutes later, as I was driving back around the building with my food, I saw an employee walk out to help her. This is likely rare, but could definitely also be something that would hold up a long line quiiiteeee a bit. The process definitely has some flaws, but it's actually fine because I'm not ready for a fully non-human-run society yet. Let computers be a little bit stupid still, please.
After paying, the screen instructed me to hang tight. Since it was early, I only had to wait about two minutes until my food was ready, but the night prior, I could see from a distance that the screens were red for several minutes, probably longer, before cars were ushered to the pickup windows.
Finally, after a failed attempt the night prior and an anxiety-inducing morning drive over, during which I hoped the line wouldn't be half as bad, I had literally secured the bag. It was time to glamorously pull over into the Burlington Coat Factory parking lot next door to eat and drink my damn treats!!
🪐 👽 💫 🌟 🌙 🪐 👽 💫 🌟 🌙 🪐 👽 💫 🪐
The method to my CosMcMadness: I'll be ranking the nine items I tried from my least to most favorite, while taking the item's innovativeness (out of 10) and tastiness (out of 10) into account. And of course, I'll rate each item overall out of five stars — it's 🌟 CosMc's 🌟, after all! 👽
While I love sugar, there is such a thing as *too much* sugar. And I watch a lot of Kids Baking Championship, so I know that a treat needs to have an interesting flavor profile, and even if a concoction is meant to be weird, the flavors still need to make sense all together once you bite into it.
Please note that ILY, McDonald's!!! It's just that I have a lot of opinions about every single thing I've ever experienced. The plight of the Pisces.
9.Popping Pear Slush
I'm sorry to be mean and I swear it only gets better from here, but this may be my least favorite thing that I've had at a McDonald's. Maybe that's hyperbolic, but I was definitely not a fan of this! I love actual pears, so knowing that this was not only pear-flavored but also topped with hella whipped cream AND Pop Rocks made me very excited. What a novel combination! Only in America!
However, upon first sip, I genuinely felt a little bit sick from the sheer amount of sugar. There is simply too much going on here. In my head, Pop Rocks + whipped cream = sexy. In my mouth, this combination was not. The taste of whatever "popping pear syrup" is overwhelmed my taste buds, and while the drink is so pretty (especially in the morning light), I think even a child would proclaim that there is an ungodly amount of sugar in this concoction. I have to hand it to 'em for dreaming big with this flavor combo, though!
Innovativeness: 7/10
Tastiness: 1/10
Overall rating: 0.5/5 🌟
8.Sour Cherry Energy Burst
The name "sour" is absolutely fitting, because the first sip felt like my taste buds got punched. The "popping boba" at the bottom of this drink also did their job, because every time one popped, I think I felt a shock to my nervous system. I'm glad I was alone in my car when I tried this because the expletives that came out of my mouth were ones I could not repeat in front of a Girl Scout. However, a welcome aspect of this drink is the caffeine syrup, because caffeine is always a bonus IMO.
The drink is extreeemeeeeelllly pretty, so as someone who always needs to be visually stimulated, this does the trick in that department. It's definitely an Instagram-worthy drink.
Even as someone who enjoys an energy boost, I think the taste of this is simply too intense for someone who is just looking for some caffeine. It's not the most awful-tasting drink (no one can deny that the creativity is off the charts), but due to the sugar content would probably give it to a kid if I wanted to make them hyper and piss off their parents. This would certainly do the trick.
Innovativeness: 7/10
Tastiness: 2/10
Rating: 1/5 🌟
7.Cookie Butter McPops
I'm a GIGANTIC cookie butter fanatic, so this was one of the treats I was looking forward to the most. Out of the three McPops flavors offered, though, this was the one I loved least. 😭 The dough was cooked to perfection — which I can say for all of the McPops I sunk my teeth into! — but I had a very difficult time tasting the cookie butter flavor. In an attempt to find it, I took several more bites, and they were very rich, yet somehow not very flavorful, if that's possible. The taste in my mouth reminded me of that old "Got Milk?" commercial where that person had too much peanut butter in their mouth and missed out on a huge cash prize while calling into a radio station. I also got one cookie butter McPop that simply had no filling at all, but I wasn't too distraught because, as I mentioned, the dough tastes amazing all by itself.
Overall, if you're a cookie butter fan it definitely wouldn't hurt to try this, but you might not have the experience you're hoping for. If the filling were more gooey and prominent, I would've enjoyed it more. Also, CosMc's needs to sell milk, because if I had some cold milk with one of these, I may not have been so concerned about the richness of each bite.
Innovativeness: 5/10
Tastiness: 5/10
Rating: 2.5/5 🌟
6.The Chai Frappé Burst
This was the first thing I tried, and it set the mood for my CosMc's-perience (nice). As promised, the Chai Frappé Burst totally features all of the classic chai flavors, with cinnamon — one of my favorite flavors — as the shining star. Sadly, the drink was just wildly overly sweet. Like, two sips was intense, and I hadn't even tasted anything else yet. I was glad that I had other food and drinks to try, because if I had only purchased this drink, it'd be too sweet for me to finish and I'd feel guilty.
While the base of this drink doesn't have caffeine in it, you can add espresso shots and/or energy boosts, so with the popping boba it's comparable to a Starbucks Frappuccino with a twist. Unfortunately, once I graduated middle school in 2006 my digestive system could no longer handle a Frappuccino. I feel the same way about this drink: I wish my body could handle it. Unless you have a sweet tooth that literally screams for sugar or plan on drinking this verrrrrry slowly throughout your day, it's a lot to take in — literally.
Innovativeness: 6/10
Tastiness: 5/10 (just SO sugary)
Rating: 2.5/5 🌟
5.Apple Cinnamon McPops
I will admit that I wasn't very excited about this one out of all the things I ordered, because to me "dessert" means that something has chocolate in it. I know, I'm a child. I can and have eaten desserts where the star is fruit, but it's not usually my first choice and I'm generally very judgmental before even taking a bite. That was the case here, but I was pleasantly surprised and will admit that my judgment was unwarranted!
The closest thing I can compare this to is one of those apple cider donuts you find at an orchard in the Midwest in October, but this time the donut is mini and filled with an apple cider-flavored jam of sorts. Don't get me wrong, I love those apple cider donuts, but this reimagining of that classic treat just didn't fully hit the spot for me.
While it was super tasty, the filling had a gritty texture, like it contained large granules of sugar. Definitely extremely sweet, and if you love sugar and apple cider, this will probably be your favorite thing. It just wasn't mine!
The flavors definitely stood out in a good way, though, and I do have to hand it to CosMc's once again for the perfect cook on the dough here. It's divine.
Innovativeness: 6/10
Tastiness: 5.5/10
Rating: 3/5 🌟
4.Spicy Queso Sandwich
I will admit that this sandwich looked a little sad when I took it out of its wrapper. HOWEVER! I was NOT disappointed in the taste. While the sausage patty looks a lot thinner than the egg patty, the egg flavor does not overpower the meat, cheddar cheese, queso, and jalapeño chips that top it all off. I didn't get a lot of it on my sandwich, but the spicy queso that I did get had quite a bit of a kick to it, which is obviously a plus if you decide to order this.
If you're looking for a breakfast sandwich on the go, or you're in the CosMc's line and you decide that you're truly very hungry, this is a great — maybe the best — choice to fill that hunger void, in my humble opinion. I was definitely not mad at this, and actually went on to finish it. If you're a big McDonald's breakfast sandwich fan and want to eat something in the same vein with a flavorful twist and slightly different aesthetic, this is the top item I'd rec to you. My biggest critique is that while it's delicious, it's also the most unique sandwich on the menu — just not the most innovative sandwich they could've come up with.
Innovativeness: 3/10
Tastiness: 6.5/10
Rating: 3.5/5 🌟
3.Savory Hash Brown Bites
I must say that it is very smart to capitalize further on one of McDonald's' most classic menu items: The iconic hash brown. You know it, you love it, I used to eat it when it came with my Hotcakes in the yellow styrofoam packaging.
I noticed that the flavors in these little guys were slightly different than that of the original McDonald's hash brown. I say lovingly that these are definitely less greasy, for one, and I swore I could taste some herbs that I never noticed in the original recipe. Sure enough, after comparing the ingredients in both via each restaurant's website, the mini version features parsley, onion, and garlic — ingredients that aren't a part of the original, larger hash brown. These ingredients definitely upped the quality!
Upon ordering I was also asked if I wanted dipping sauce, and out of four options (spicy queso, herb ranch, ketchup, and hot mustard), I went with spicy queso. Not the worst choice, but I maintain that hash browns are meant to be dipped and/or topped with ketchup.
The mini hash browns are a great on-the-go breakfast pick or hangover cure. This one also hurt my tummy the least.
Innovativeness: 6/10 (for using one of their best original menu items and twisting it in a fun way + adding dipping sauces)
Tastiness: 7/10
Rating: 3.5/5 🌟
2.Hazelnut McPops
I'm not a N*tella girl by any means. It's overrated. But these creamy hazelnut-filled McPop mini donuts were my favorite out of all the flavors I tried. Who would've guessed!
The gooeyness of the filling is exactly what you would hope for when biting into a filled donut, and every hazelnut McPop I got was filled liberally, while also somehow allowing space around the filling for that delicious, perfectly-cooked dough I cannot stop thinking about.
If you're a hazelnut, N*tella, or rich dessert fan, this is your BEST option, hands down. I ended up eating more of these throughout my day. My only critique is that I thought they'd be warm, but every flavor of McPop was room temp, even though I ate them within minutes of purchasing. If you bring these home and zap them in the microwave for 10 seconds, they're almost perfect.
Innovativeness: 7/10
Tastiness: 8/10
Rating: 4/5 🌟
1.Finally: The Churro Cold Brew Frappé
The love of my life. Sorry to my boyfriend, puppy, and cat. This was the CosMc's treat that made getting out of bed at 6:00 a.m. to beat the crowds completely worth it.
This drink is, in one word, delectable. I was most excited for this one when planning my visit, and I'm happy to report that I literally have taste. It doesn't exactly give "churro" per se, but it has the general flavor profile. I am disgusting, but if they added little churro chunks to this, it would be the most perfect creation on Earth. Maybe that'd be a little over the top, but it's McDonald's, and the possibilities are almost endless. Maybe they'll make a churro McFlurry down the line, and I'll be a beta tester (I'm begging).
But in all seriousness, I do believe with every cell in my body that CosMc's should heavily lean into the churro business, because they are onto something.
I was fully aware that this would hurt my tummy so badly, but I did not care. Tums exist for a reason, and so do toilets.
Innovativeness: 8/10
Tastiness: 10/10
Rating: 5/5 🌟
Keep in mind that this is my ~~~personal~~~ opinion, so do what you'd like with your life!
But many people in my life have asked this question over the last few days, and my answer is very simple: If you're a McDonald's fan or a fan of sugar in general, you'll love it. If you're neutral toward McDonald's and sugar, you'll either be neutral or love it. If you're a sugar hater, this is not the place for you.
While there are unique aspects to this menu, I personally don't think it's worth an extremely long trek (like this woman who traveled from London) or a three-hour wait in line. I would wait 'til the hype dies down or, like me, go early in the morning for a more peaceful experience and pretty much a full guarantee that they won't be out of what you want to try.
I will say that I am still elated that I got to try it, because as I mentioned, I have a lot of opinions on everything. If you do, too, drive on over to Bolingbrook.
Okay, so what are your thoughts? Do you think it'd be worth a drive (and possibly loooooong wait)? I need to know, so tell me in the comments! Xoxo. Bye!
