McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski went viral on social media after appearing deeply unenthusiastic about eating one of his own burgers.
In a video Kempczinski posted on Feb. 3, 2026, to Instagram, the CEO filmed himself eating the new Big Arch Burger. Although the post initially flew under the radar, once people online latched onto it, they very quickly turned the video viral with quips and jokes at the CEO's expense.
The CEO vs. the Big Arch Burger
After introducing the burger and reassuring viewers that he would be eating it for his lunch later, Kempczinski opened the box and said, "Holy cow," with seeming excitement.
However, that excitement was short-lived as he tried to remember all the ingredients that went into the burger and called it a "product" instead of… food? A meal?
While he technically ate a bite of the burger, he barely committed to it. Kempczinski took a small bite and seemed to have a moment of realization of what he was tasting before nodding and excitedly describing what he just ate as a "big bite for a Big Arch."
Social media had plenty to say
People had a lot to say about what they considered the stilted and stiff performance on the McDonald's CEO's part. On X, @MikeBeauvais joked, "Not to get all 'Simpsons did it,' but Simpsons did it."
Similarly, @inkedupjayy tweeted, "It’s giving squidward trying a krabby patty for the first time😭"
Others focused on the word choice. @evilcassieroll wrote, "when the ceo calls it product instead of food you know its got less nutritional value than the napkin."
Some users went further, explaining that this was the best possible McDonald's burger they could provide for the video.
@Nick_TopG tweeted, "Even crazier when you think that this was made in HQ by corporate chefs. This burger (I mean product) is worlds better than anything you would ever get at an actual McDonald's, and he still wanted nothing to do with it."
Perhaps the sharpest summary came from @RoyalMelanite, who added, "Watching the McDonald's CEO tentatively nibble on the Big Arch like it's a radioactive artifact from the dollar menu, calling it 'product' instead of food, is the most unintentionally hilarious endorsement fail since New Coke."
Redditors echoed the disbelief. "What gets me is that they did not need to upload this," wrote u/Carosello.
"I thought about that, but then I thought who's gonna tell the CEO 'we can't upload it because you come off like you've never eaten a burger in your life'?" u/MagnetoWasRight24 replied.
u/Media-consumer101 questioned jokingly if the CEO was human. They joked, "Is this his first day being human? Did they use an Ai clone (so he didn't have to take an actual bite)? Does he desperately want people to think he is the same lizard spieces as the pre-updated Mark Zuckerberg?"
McDonald's did not respond immediately to the Daily Dot’s request for comment via email.
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