When it comes to Montreal, a sausage, egg, and cheese all squished in between an English muffin is without a doubt the quintessential fast food breakfast. Toss in a coffee (iced coffee for me) and hashbrowns (two for me) and you've got yourself the ultimate to-go morning meal, at least to me it is.
And now with all-day breakfast at most fast food joints, you can pretty much enjoy a classic brekky sandwich whenever the heck you want, although it never hits as good as those mornings when you're parked as far back of a McDonald's parking lot, all alone, music volume on level 18 in absolute breakfast combo heaven. We've all been there, don't lie.
While McDonald's certainly popularized the sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich, they have been met with tons of competition since fast food restaurants all hopped onto the breakfast menu wagon, which as mentioned has since turned into an all-day extravaganza. Tim Hortons, A&W, and Wendy's are a few other notable spots with admired breakfast menus, all of which include the classic sausage, egg and cheese.
Considering the competition, I figured I would put three fast food restaurants to the test, comparing McDonald's Sausage Egg McMuffin to Tim Hortons' Sausage Breakfast Sandwich and A&W's Sausage Egger. All three are made up of one egg, one slice of cheese, and a sausage patty all between a toasted English muffin.
I also ordered a hashbrown from each fast food spot, too. Because like I said, it isn't the ultimate to-go morning meal without those hashbrowns.
I then compared the overall look, taste and of course, cost of each breakfast sandwich to see which of the three is the best. After devouring each breakfast sandwich, there was one that was clearly the winner and it might not be the one you necessarily expect.
So, which fast food breakfast sandwich reigns supreme? Let's find out.
Breakfast Sandwich Showdown
A sausage, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich from McDonald's, Tim Horton and A&W.
Mike Chaar | MTL Blog
When each breakfast sandwich arrived, I immediately took note of the English muffin status and each sandwich appeared to be perfectly toasted, with Tim Hortons' being slightly more crisp on the edges than the others.
The Tim Hortons harvest breakfast sandwich was also the most "put together" if you will. The McDonald's Sausage with Egg McMuffin was sloppy (per usual), as was the A&W breakfast sandwich with the cheese and bread falling on opposite sides of the sandwich. Yes, I realize a circular sandwich cannot have sides, but you know exactly what I mean.
Nevertheless, they all looked delicious and ready to be eaten.
A&W Sausage Egger
A&W Sausage Egger
Mike Chaar | MTL Blog
Price:: $4.99
I was excited to give this breakfast sandwich a try considering I'd never had an A&W meal in the morning. The Sausage Egger, which is easily the cutest name out of all three breakfast sandwich options, looked great but did not taste great. I couldn't help but notice an overpowering spice that took away from the overall breakfast sandwich experience.
While I thought maybe it was the egg or cheese, it was, in fact, the sausage that tasted…different. Not to mention the hashbrown ($1.99) was also lacklustre. While I loved the crunch, the inside had too many potato chunks, which threw off the texture for me. I will say though that I was impressed with A&W's prices. The sandwich and hashbrowns came to a total of $6.98, which is pretty darn good for a quick morning bite.
Score: 3/5
McDonald's Sausage McMuffin with Egg
McDonald's Sausage McMuffin with Egg
Mike Chaar | MTL Blog
Price: $8.29 (sandwich + hashbrown)
McDonald's has always been my go-to but I've dabbled with other breakfast spots in the past. Nevertheless, the McDonald's Sausage Egg McMuffin always hits, especially when you're having that parking lot moment. Honestly, this would have been the winner had it not been for presentation and a slightly higher cost, because all four elements of the sandwich were perfect.
English muffin? Toasted exactly to my liking. Cheese? Melted and still warm. Egg? Eggy. And the sausage? Juicy and flavourful. And as for the hashbrown, it was crunchy on the outside and steamy on the inside.
Score: 4.5/5
Tim Hortons Sausage Breakfast Sandwich
Tim Hortons Sausage Breakfast Sandwich
Mike Chaar | MTL Blog
Price: $5.39
I don't know what Tim has put in these breakfast sandwiches but they easily became a morning favourite and a major McDonald's competitor ever since rolling 'em out back in 2006.
The presentation and cost are what put Timmies first over McDonald's since the two are practically neck and neck when it comes to flavour. The Tim Hortons hashbrowns ($2.39) were also slightly better than McDonald's, offering up a bit more of a satisfying crunch than the one from McDonald's.
Score: 5/5
Tim Hortons Sausage Breakfast Sandwich
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