I ate breakfast at Popeyes and McDonald's. The Golden Arches has absolutely nothing to worry about.

• Popeyes recently launched a breakfast menu that's exclusive to the UK.
• The company is aiming to bring the UK a "New Orleans shake-up" with its Cajun-infused meals.

McDonald's has long dominated the fast-food breakfast market, but rivals such as Taco Bell and Wendy's are increasingly attempting to challenge the multinational with new and novel offerings.

McDonald's began its foray into the breakfast market in the 1970s, with its iconic Egg McMuffin breaking onto the scene in the middle of the decade, following successful tests.

By 1977, the company had released a full, nationwide breakfast menu, complete with sausages, hash browns, and scrambled eggs, among other items.

The breakfast menu quickly became a core part of the company's revenue stream, and it makes up around 25% of its US sales each year.

One fast-food chain that's aiming to challenge McDonald's dominance is Popeyes.

The New Orleans-based firm, which specializes in fried chicken, launched a breakfast menu in the UK in September. It features some classic sweet and savory options, but customers can also ramp up their meals with Popeyes' signature Cajun seasoning.

The company's chief operating officer, Neil Williamson, said in a press release: "Breakfast over here was overdue a New Orleans shake-up and we're pleased Brits can now get their bold Cajun seasoning fix first thing in the morning."

I decided to put Popeyes' new menu to the test against some of McDonald's classic items.

I started with Popeyes' Big Cajun Roll

The Big Cajun Roll is one of the core items on Popeyes' breakfast menu — and it's not for the faint-hearted. The soft brioche bun comes packed with a sausage patty, Cajun hash brown, egg, bacon, and cheese, with a healthy dollop of Cajun ketchup to finish things off.

The roll certainly packs a punch and it was a filling start to the day. But for me, the Cajun seasoning was perhaps a bit much for breakfast, although some people may get a kick from the early hit of spice.

I'd still opt for the Mighty McMuffin if I were going for a big, stodgy takeaway to get the day started. Granted, the McDonald's muffin is pretty simple — but that's what I'm looking for from a breakfast. I think Popeyes' Cajun ketchup and the Cajun hash brown, while enjoyable in their own right, were a bit overkill before 11 a.m.

I admit that my UK upbringing may make me slightly biased here, as the McDonald's muffin is similar — apart from the addition of cheese — to something my family would whip up on a Saturday morning.

Next, I tried Popeyes' Big Breakfast Roll

The Big Breakfast Roll is Popeyes' more obvious answer to the Mighty McMuffin, filled with a sausage patty, egg, bacon, and cheese in a brioche bun.

In terms of taste, it was certainly a worthy contender for the McMuffin, but the brioche bun didn't quite do it for me. The extra bite from the muffin offered depth to the textures and a more "breakfasty" feel, while the brioche bun meant the Big Breakfast Roll felt more like a Big Afternoon Burger.

Popeyes brought it back with their more traditional offerings

Popeyes' Double Sausage, Egg, and Cheese muffin and the Double Bacon, Egg, and Cheese muffin were both winners, as they were exactly what I look for in a takeaway breakfast — hearty and filling, something McDonald's also nailed with its Bacon and Egg McMuffin.

McDonald's also hit the mark with its hash brown. Popeyes offers its own regular hash brown and also a Cajun-seasoned alternative. Again, the Cajun option was a tasty, novel twist on its own, but I'll be sticking to the regular one during breakfast.

I also tried a few of the slightly less traditional items from each chain's menu, including McDonald's Cheesy Bacon Flatbread and Popeyes' Cinnamon Sugar Biscuit. Personally, I wouldn't get either again, as both were dry and the flatbread lacked filling.

Popeyes suggests dressing the cinnamon biscuit with a layer of Nutella, which does improve things. But again, I wouldn't go and buy this myself.

I also sampled Popeyes' Chocolate Mocha Milkshake to see how it stacked up against McDonald's famous, but sometimes scarce, milkshake range.

The mocha twist was a nice changeup, although I'm not sure I'd be diving into a shake on the way to work.

Simplicity wins

My biggest takeaway from tasting the two menus is that, for me, simplicity wins, and McDonald's advantage in the market must reflect its realization of that.