Go Inside the Secret Test Kitchen Where McDonald's Invents New Menu Items

By Kim Bhasin

We visited McDonald's global headquarters in Oak Brook, Ill., and the company gave us a peek inside its test kitchen.

Tucked within the walls of the Campus Office Building, the Culinary Center seems to be in a peculiar place. It's surrounded by endless cubicles and corporate-folk.

But inside the kitchen, there's serious work being done.

"It's not just chefs playing in the kitchen," said Chef Jessica Foust, a nutrition and culinary manager at the test kitchen.

Every menu item takes years of planning to develop and organize. Different countries, screening, volume -- it's quite the effort, she said.

So, what's it look like in there? See for yourself.

Disclosure: McDonald's provided travel and accommodations for the trip.

• <p> Tucked away at the McDonald's C.O.B. &mdash; or Campus Office Building &mdash; is the test kitchen, where the fast food chain comes up with all sorts of products.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> The kitchens are up on the top floor on Big Mac Blvd. Yes, McDonald's names all the &quot;streets&quot; in its global headquarters office building.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> Here's what Big Mac Blvd. looks like. Kitchens on the left, cubicles on the right.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> Here we are &mdash; the test kitchen is called the Culinary Center.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> It's a bit strange, actually &mdash; a McDonald's kitchen encased in glass that's more fitting for a conference room.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> The kitchen has some appropriate reading.</p> <p> <br /> </p> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> We met up with Chef Jessica Foust, a nutrition and culinary manager at the test kitchen.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> Judging by the setup, the kitchen was prepped to handle the McWraps and Fish McBites. The box o' fish is the McDonald's latest limited-time offering, hitting locations just in time for Lent.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> It has all the gadgets that a regular McDonald's kitchen would have.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> Like these handheld pumps.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> And the usual cups and shakers.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> There's even a little guide on how to get buns toasted perfectly.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> So we ran through the whole process of making a McWrap &mdash; a product that McDonald's is counting on going forward.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> The whole assembly line was set up &mdash; simple enough.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> The finished product (well, after we'd taken a bite) &mdash; just like you'd see in restaurants.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> We also got to try those Fish McBites, which weren't in stores yet.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> The breading's different from a Filet-O-Fish and it's a totally different experience.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> A lot of people shy away from fast food fish, but it wasn't too bad. We wouldn't go out of our way to order it, though McDonald's Filet-O-Fish lovers might.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> What's Foust's favorite item that never made it into restaurants? A blueberry yogurt ice cream shake, she told us.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> That's not the only kitchen at the McDonald's HQ. There are plenty more running down the side of Big Mac Blvd.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> On the way to another one, we ran into Chef Dan Coudreaut, the executive chef at McDonald's.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> Other chefs were at work too. This one was getting some bacon ready for some unknown project.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> It was a bit of a mess in there, like a scientist's lab, with chefs busy at work with their food.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> There's also the Sensory Evaluation Center, which McDonald's uses to test the new stuff they're experimenting with in order to get the feedback to improve the products.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> It's a key part of product development. In the Difference Test, you evaluate everything from appearance and color to viscosity and flavor.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> The items come through a magic door. We tasted a set of mango pineapple smoothies and each of them were slightly different.</p> <br /> <br /> <p> By <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/" target="_blank">Business Insider</a></p>
• <p> <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/office-tour-mcdonalds-hq-2012-12">Step Inside The Building Where McDonald's Runs Its Global Empire &gt;</a></p> <br /> <br /> <p> <strong>More from Business Insider:</strong></p> <p> <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/buffalo-wild-wings-has-new-wing-strategy-2013-2#ixzz2LMh4EmWy">Buffalo Wild Wings Is Changing The Way It Sells Chicken Wings</a></p> <p> <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/taco-bell-cool-ranch-doritos-locos-tacos-taste-test-2013-2#ixzz2LMh9WXIe">We Tasted Taco Bell's Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos That Don't Come Out Until Next Month</a></p> <p> <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-responds-burger-king-twitter-hacking-2013-2#ixzz2LMhE2Kaa">McDonald's Responds To The Burger King Twitter Hacking</a></p>

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