The Cilantro Lime Loaded Bowl. Right: Tristan Wheeler staring down the Loaded Bowl.
This Review article is part of a Narcity Media series. The views expressed are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.
Once again, a brand new menu item has come to Tim Hortons. The "Loaded Bowl" is a grain, veggie and chicken bowl, drizzled with a creamy sauce that launched across Canada on June 20.
There are two variants of the bowl available — cilantro lime and habanero chicken — and for the Tim's super fan, those two flavours might sound familiar.
The Canuck coffee chain recently announced two Loaded Wraps with the same flavours, just over a month ago
And let me say — as a precursor to my thoughts — that those wraps are a much better way to experience similar ingredients.
Speaking of ingredients! This bowl features either crispy or slow-roasted chicken, a grain medley, lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber and there is also a vegetarian version available.
Along with those more "healthful" elements, my bowl also had a few tablespoons of fried crunchy bits hidden away. A fun little surprise!
A close-up of the sauce on the bowl.Tristan Wheeler | Narcity
At my local Tim's in Toronto, the Loaded Bowl ran me $10.16 after taxes. And while I wasn't fully disgusted when I was handed my food, I was a bit disappointed by what it looked like — a bowl of mush.
Opting for the cilantro lime, my biggest worry was the sauce that doused every part of the dish.
It just didn't look that appealing and, tucking into it, my fears were warranted.
While not tasteless, it was pretty bland. The crispy chicken was alright and the spice blend on the grains was solidly "meh."
The salad part of the bowl was dismal, with everything placed on top of a single giant piece of lettuce.
A first for me in the world of salad construction.
The single piece of lettuce.Tristan Wheeler | Narcity
None of this was helped along by the cilantro lime dressing which could be called "just alright" or "actually gross," depending on how much I got in a single bite.
The more, the worse.
After a few mouthfuls, I found that the bowl sort of felt like the Tim Hortons equivalent of a big expensive Netflix movie; it doesn't take any chances in the hopes of having a broad-based appeal, but its middle-of-the-road-ness ends up being its downfall.
A piece of the chicken on a fork.Tristan Wheeler | Narcity
It felt like I was eating a meal that future scientists would make in a lab to approximate what 2022 food was when the only thing they have to base their study on was a grocery store flyer.
Ultimately, it sorta felt like eating a bowl of generic "food." Sure it wasn't bad by any stretch, but that's what made it bad. It just wasn't a very exciting meal.
So, if you're ever at Tim's looking for lunch or dinner and this still sounds intriguing, I recommend forgoing the bowl.
Just get the wrap.
It's cheaper, it has the novelty of being in tortilla and the proportions are executed way better. Plus, it feels better biting into a wrap than slowly forking your way through something that is just a big, saucy bowl of ingredients.
