The so-called New York Happy Meal may have been the cool combo of 2025, but this year’s McDonald’s inspiration goes beyond a martini and fries at the bar.
High-end chefs around the city are reinterpreting McDonald’s dishes with a gourmet spin, inspired by the low-brow, everyday fast food (if you can call it food), and elevating familiar dishes with impressive technique and quality ingredients. The ever-famous Filet-o-Fish, McNuggets, Shamrock Shake, McGriddle and more are now being served in never-before-seen iterations.
“During R&D at Boro Brine, I wanted there to be a dish on the menu with a nostalgic feeling that guests can relate to,” says Mark Nobello, executive chef at Boro Brine in Williamsburg. “The familiarity of a McDonald’s classic breaks the ice and gets guests engaged and eager to see what the hype behind our signature sandwich is about.”
“I wanted something that tasted familiar to guests and yet still felt luxurious,” says.
Nobello’s version of the Filet-O-Fish (his favorite McDonald’s order), leans into his background and training in Korean cuisine and is made with premium ingredients. The tartare sauce is made with kimchi instead of pickles, mild Comte subs in for the typical slab of American cheese, and breaded skate echoes the flavor of pollock, but with more refinement.
“I wanted something that tasted familiar to guests and yet still felt luxurious,” says Mark Nobello, executive chef at Boro Brine in Williamsburg.
Another dish on Boro Brine’s menu, the lobster pot pie, takes inspiration from KFC, where Nobello’s mom is a fan of the chicken pot pie.
“Diners are really hungry for nostalgic and comforting flavors,” Nobello says.” Gourmet spins on these fast food classics allow guests to re-experience familiar flavors that are elevated and executed beyond memory and recollection.”
For those who may have indulged in martinis at Boro Brine, two elevated fast casual spots have McDonald’s breakfast dupes on their menus for the next morning. All day cafe Oh Boy serves a McGriddle riff called The Griddy.
“We grew up on McGriddles. Hungover mornings, road trips, all of that. It always felt like this chaotic, kind of genius idea that just needed a little tune-up,” says Oh Boy’s owner Brendon Beck. “The McGriddle is the memory. The Griddy is what you wish it actually tasted like. Same sweet-salty, messy, indulgent vibe, but we’re using real ingredients, better technique, and just paying more attention to the balance. It still feels fun and a little chaotic, but it actually lands the way your childhood brain remembers it, not how it really was.”
Nearby at Edith’s Sandwich Counter, diners are enjoying the McEdith, a version of the egg McMuffin.
“They’re different from the fast food version mainly because we have much higher quality ingredients,” says Edith’s owner Elyssa Heller. “We really tried to honor these McDonald’s menu items and keep the flavors and components of the dishes as similar as possible.” She aims to emulate McDonald’s ethos of fun and convenience, comfort and consistency, while being a special treat.
In more ritzy zip codes, McDonald’s is appearing in international iterations, far beyond the caviar-dressed nuggets at Flatiron’s Coqodaq.
At l’abeille à côté in Tribeca, executive chef Mitsunobu Nagae recently shifted from an elegant Filet-O-Fish dish to a Teriyaki Burger inspired by a menu item only available in Japan, one of Nagae’s favorite childhood foods.
“I thought that if I recreated this burger topped with a sweet and savory soy-based sauce and mayonnaise using high-quality ingredients and made the sauce from scratch, it would undoubtedly be even more delicious,” Nagae said. “I know that diners love nostalgic dishes with a twist, plus so many New Yorkers these days want to be transported to Japan, which led to this creation.”
Nagae’s signature burger sauce is made with grated aromatics and apples, then drizzled on a Wagyu patty, “a premium protein synonymous with Japan that you won’t find at McDonald’s,” says Nagae. A sprinkle of sansho pepper on top adds a zesty accent.
“I really enjoy trying a dish while hearing the chef’s story behind it. McDonald’s is something everyone knows, but people get curious when they hear that a uniquely Japanese burger inspired it,” Nagae says. “It’s also fun because there’s a contrast between a casual burger and an upscale setting.”
