A few weeks ago I started to review much of Magnet’s school lunches. Surprisingly, since then a lot has changed in the cafeteria after the much loved Orange Chicken and General Tso’s chicken were discontinued. Mr Pearlmutter assured us that a similar option would arrive and he was right, with the new General Tso’s chicken option arriving in mid February, available exclusively for seniors. In today’s article I will be reviewing this new chicken along with some of the other food reviews I have not gotten to yet.

Charleston Chicken Sandwich

This meal consists of a standard chicken patty with a bun, and usually a side of Doritos. The actual sandwich is a little bland and dry, but this can easily be fixed by putting some ketchup or hot sauce on the patty. Most of the times, the patty is good quality, but every once and a while you get a chicken tender or two instead of a patty which makes the sandwich noticeably worse. Additionally, although they have stopped making its as much, the spicy variant of the Charleston Chicken Sandwich is a little better, adding a little flavor to the patty, and making it less dry. The side of Doritos raise the rating by half a point though, because you cannot go wrong with Doritos.

6/10

Chicken Wraps

This meal consists of chicken, lettuce, tomato, and dressing inside of a tortilla wrap. As far as calorie and nutrient content goes, this is one of the best options in the cafeteria. The chicken is not fried like almost every other meal, and the inclusion of lettuce and tomato make sure it is a well balanced meal. As far as taste goes, the chicken is hit or miss, sometimes tasting fresh and full, and other times smaller portions with lower quality chicken. The lettuce and dressing usually taste fine. I have to note that I am slightly biased for this meal, as I am not a fan of tomatoes, so whenever I get this option I take them out without trying them. From what I’ve seen though, they usually look decent, but sometimes look smashed in there, or falling apart. Like the chicken sandwich, they also usually have a buffalo option to help increase the flavor. These chicken wraps also come with Sun Chips, usually either Harvest Cheddar or Garden Salsa. Both are pretty good, and go with the whole “healthy option” theme, but they are not good enough to add any points, and honestly I would prefer Dorito’s with them most days. Sometimes these also come with apples which are hard to go wrong with. These can be hit or miss, but overall a solid healthy lunch option.

5/10

The New General Tso’s Chicken

Like most people I was devastated, when the General Tso’s chicken was discontinued. As a senior, I watched the rise and fall of the orange and general Tso’s chicken, from twice a week my freshman year, to having its own line every day my sophomore year, to once a week my junior year, and finally discontinued my senior year. The new option is available on Tuesday’s and has much to live up to, so time to get into the actual review. To start the side of vegetables are a little different than the former option, with the old option usually containing either carrots or broccoli, and the new option containing a combination of carrots and green beans. The carrots are the exact same, and the green beans are the same as in other meal options. These both taste fine, but I’m not a huge fan of green beans, and they can be soggy sometimes, so I tend to mostly eat the carrots. Additionally, I was a fan of the broccoli with the old option, so I do somewhat miss that. As for the rice, the old rice was brown rice, and the new option is white rice. Although brown rice is healthier, the new white race is a major upgrade, tasting much better, and being softer in general. The old rice would also have hard or crunchy pieces every once in a while, and there was none of that in the new rice. As for the chicken, I think it is a downgrade from the older orange chicken. The sauce is a little more spicy, but less sweet and flavorful overall. The actual chicken quality is pretty good though, and there are no over cooked or burnt pieces, like there usually were for the old options. Overall, one of the better lunch options, but just cannot live up to the legacy of the old options.

7/10

Chicken Tenders

This option consists of 4-5 chicken tenders with a side of Doritos. In my opinion this one of the worst lunch options available. The chicken tenders are super small and not filling. Additionally, the actual taste of the fried chicken is worse than all of the other fried chicken options, like the sandwich patties, and chicken nuggets. If you decide to get this option, I would recommend a heavy amount of ketchup or hot sauce to help manage the taste. The Doritos do give them a slight boost in rating, but not enough to make them a viable or recommended lunch option. Additionally the lack of a healthy side limits the overall nutritious value of this meal.

2.5/10

So that concludes the second edition of my Magnet lunch reviews. Like usual, there are some winners and losers in this edition, but feel free to let me know your opinions on the ratings and what you think of the new General Tso’s Chicken. Additionally are there any ratings you disagree with, or a go to meal that I snubbed? Finally, make sure to tune in for the third and final edition of the magnet lunch reviews, coming soon.