There’s a new rotisserie chicken on the block at Woolworths, and they’ve teamed up with Greek fast-food chain, Zeus Street Greek, to create it.
Everyone on the internet is going crazy over the zesty lemon and herb roast chook, with breadcrumbs spiced with lemon, paprika, garlic, and herbs. But honestly, after tasting it… We’re sorry to say we aren’t sure why everyone’s obsessing over it.
We all love a supermarket collab with our fave takeout, but this one missed the mark. Keep reading to find out why.
Meet the taste-testers
Megan Osborne, Editor, loves tasting, eating, food in general! She started out as a food and wine writer and editor on titles such as GRAM Magazine, the Urban List, Broadsheet, Halliday and more.
Tahni Mesann, Digital Editor, is a time-poor working mum who’s always looking for ways to make mid-week meals less stressful. She gravitates toward recipes that are nutritious, easy to prepare, and budget-friendly.
Jade Coull, Senior Content Producer, loves any excuse to taste-test a new recipe and is all about convenience. She’s the girl who always steals all the stuffing (sorry not sorry) and has grown up eating roast chook on the regular.
Jo McKinnon, Senior Sub Editor, has been demolishing cooked chook since she was a small child. Not a week goes by that she doesn’t eat chicken. Fuelled by the power of fowl, she has also written and subedited in magazines and online for the past three decades (and then some). Do not stand between this woman and a roast.
Our verdict on the Woolworths x Zeus Street Greek roast chicken
Our editor, Megan Osborne, took off to Woolworths and returned with the Woolworths x Zeus Street Greek roast chicken for the whole team to try. Our first impression? It looked the same as Woolworth’s ordinary roast chicken, but the packaging promised to be different.
“It tasted exactly the same as a normal Woolies chicken,” Megan said. “It was tender and juicy, but still somehow a little artificial tasting. It didn’t taste anything like the chicken at Zeus Street Eats.”
Senior Copy Editor, Jo McKinnon, added, “The meat was tender and juicy, but the seasoning overwhelmed the chicken flavour (if there was one!),” Jo said. “It tasted better when I popped it on a bit of rye bread. So I’d use it in a sandwich with lettuce and tomato, but I wouldn’t serve it on a plate with vegies. I’d put it in the same category as pastrami – better on a sanger.”
Next, Tahni tried it. “I’m a hot chook mum, especially in summer when I want a hearty meal but don’t want to turn on the oven. So when I heard there was a new Woolworths roast chook flavour, I was definitely curious,” she said.
“The piece I tried was tender and juicy (which is saying something because I prefer to eat chicken breast, which is notoriously dry), but apart from that, I really didn’t notice much of a flavour difference. Sure, it was ever-so-slightly more lemon-y, but not enough for me to justify the extra $2-3 markup.”
I felt it was both a good chicken and a disappointing one. The most impressive aspect for me was its juiciness. I’ve had my fair share of dry supermarket chickens, so upon first bite, I was happy to not be met with that.
But when it came down to the flavours, which is really what it’s all about, it didn’t stop me in my tracks and make me go, “Wow!”. The stuffing, while holding a lot of flavour, tasted quite powdery.
Would we buy it again?
While we don’t think it lives up to the hype surrounding it online, it is a chicken that everyone could enjoy for a quick and easy dinner. Is it worth the price increase? We don’t think so. But for how juicy it is, it could pair nicely in a salad or sandwich.
