Rating the hamburger chains

[Carolinian]

Classic American fast food joint awarded WORST burger in rankings

Analysts from Tasting Table reviewed online commentary alongside their own firsthand experiences to rank 21 popular American burger chains.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[DrQ]

My fav' is Culver's. When I crave a burger, it's a double butter burger with Swiss cheese. AND, with Lent approaching, they are about to bring back their Walleye fillet season

 

[artringwald]

My fav' is Culver's. When I crave a burger, it's a double butter burger with Swiss cheese. AND, with Lent approaching, they are about to bring back their Walleye fillet season

I like Culver's too. Their bugers are great, and so is their cod fillet. I think they only have walleye in spring.

 

[travelhacker]

I literally came here to say that Culver's is my favorite fast food burger.

 

[easyrider]

We don't have many burger chains here. McDonalds, Jack in the Box and Burger King are abundant here. We do have some mom and pop burger joints I like such as Miners and Majors. I tried an In and Out burger but thought it about the same as most.

I've never heard of Culvers. Are they in Southern California ?

Bill

 

[rickandcindy23]

I am also a Culver's fan. I like In-n-Out just fine. We have one about 3 miles from home.

Chili's has a great burger, but it's not really "fast food." $10.99 for a starter (Rick gets chicken enchilada soup and I get a salad), a burger, and a soft drink.

 

[geist1223]

I have never understood the draw of In-N-Out. Burgers are ok. But Fries are horrible. Also never understood draw of Tive Guys. Now Nancy's (a local) is great.

 

[jeanf]

@geist1223 Absolutely the in n out regular fries are terrible. Always order them well done. I've done that the last few times I was there and they're delicious, almost like McDonalds fries. Also I prefer the grilled onion slice on the burger instead of raw diced. There's a lot you can customize on the burgers and fries.

Well Done Fries - In-N-Out Secret Menu | #HackTheMenu

Learn how to order In-N-Out Well Done Fries from the In-N-Out Secret Menu and you can get your fries extra crispy! This one is worth a try, but can be over done

hackthemenu.com

 

[TolmiePeak]

We don't have many burger chains here. McDonalds, Jack in the Box and Burger King are abundant here. We do have some mom and pop burger joints I like such as Miners and Majors. I tried an In and Out burger but thought it about the same as most.

I've never heard of Culvers. Are they in Southern California ?

Bill

Who needs burgers when you have Los Hernández Tamales?

 

[Carolinian]

I prefer a charbroiled burger over one that is fried. Therefore, I have long patronized Burger King and Hardees. However, in the last few years, we have had a new fast food burger chain in North Carolina, as well as into South Carolina and Virginia called Cook Out, and they have, far and away, the best charbroiled burgers, far superior to Burger King or Hardees. Another plus is that they offer a southern style (they call it "Cook Out style") burger with chilli and slaw. The only other chain I have seen offer a southern style burger is that occasionally Wendy's does so but it is not a regular menu item.

 

[Carolinian]

I have never understood the draw of In-N-Out. Burgers are ok. But Fries are horrible. Also never understood draw of Tive Guys. Now Nancy's (a local) is great.

Ditto on Five Guys. They opened a restaurant on the OBX and I tried it. They had a bigger range of condiments than most burger chains, but they were all the sort of condiments a northerner would put on a burger. No chili or slaw for a southerner, even though they also sold hot dogs and one would think even a northerner would put chili and slaw on a hot dog.

 

[pedro47]

We do not have Culver in our areas in Coastal Virginia.
We have try In and Out burgers in California. It was good, hot and tasty.
I have eaten Five Guys burgers locally, in the beginning their burgers were large and very delicious. Now, I feel they are much smaller in size and much more expensive in costs than McDonald's , Hardee's and Wendy's in our areas.

A small Five Guys hamburger, with fries and a soda is over $10.00 dollars.
Their peanuts are still good as an treat.

 

[DRH90277]

I have never understood the draw of In-N-Out. Burgers are ok. But Fries are horrible. Also never understood draw of Tive Guys. Now Nancy's (a local) is great.

Well, we spent 40 years in California and retired here in North Carolina. I love "In and Out" and miss having one around - you just need to watch them cut those big fresh potatoes into fries, enjoy the other fresh food, see the great clean looking employees selected because they are great, and then enjoy the food.

My other favorite for freshness is El Pollo Loco. I still get their infrequent texts and am stirred by how much I wish they delivered here. North Carolina is great but relying on the tired old chains with their frozen and steamed selections sitting around waiting for a customer is bad.

My other take - Wendy's has the moisten hamburger patty (sitting is a steamer like a sponge draining of any flavor), most have frozen fries, and the same stuff in different cups. Finally, Taco Bell has changed everything away from sane older customers to being over-priced and with that cheesy sause that hides any natural flavor.

On dear, now I'm hungry for "El Pollo Loco" and "In and Out." "Five Guys" is ok and fresh but just so overpriced for me.

I've been to Culvers only twice and found the flavor stripped from their food because of an overabundance of salt.

However, there is hope with the move of "In and Out headquarters" out of CA - keep bringing stores east, we're waiting.

 

[easyrider]

Who needs burgers when you have Los Hernández Tamales?

Love those Los Hernandez Tamales. Especially the asparagus tamales. I haven't had one for a long time.

Bill

 

[DebBrown]

Another Culver's fan here but I have to say that the quality goes down the farther away you get from the Wisconsin border. My favorite, though, is a cheeseburger from Portillos. I don't know if they are national.

 

[Luanne]

I have never understood the draw of In-N-Out. Burgers are ok. But Fries are horrible. Also never understood draw of Tive Guys. Now Nancy's (a local) is great.

You have to request the fries "well done". We do that now everywhere we order fries.

The original Five Guys was wonderful! But all of the others after that have paled in comparison.

 

[Sandy VDH]

shake shack is one I like for burgers.

 

[DrQ]

My favorite, though, is a cheeseburger from Portillos. I don't know if they are national.

They built one at the Grandscape complex by the huge Nebraska Furniture Mart that they built in the Dallas area. I was thrilled to get an authentic Italian Beef sandwich, that it never occurred to me to get a burger.

 

[slip]

I love most burgers. I can't think of one I really didn't like. Having lived in Wisconsin for 40 years, Culver's has a good burger. Not many places on Molokai have burgers but I have come to like Molokai Burger.

I usually have a Big Mac or Whopper whenever we travel to the other islands since we don't have those options here.

 

[Luanne]

When I was pregnant, ages ago, I had to have a few fasting blood tests for gestational diabetes. It meant no food and the tests usually lasted until about noon. What I craved when I was done was a Burger King Whopper, fries and a milk shake. I would stop and get that after the test and on my way to work. I haven't had one of those since then.

 

[ScoopKona]

There's a bumper sticker, "If this car is parked at any burger stand other than Fatburger, I've been kidnapped."

It's the only one that makes something close to what I make if I feel like making a burger from scratch. In-N-Out means lousy fries and the worst cheese (seriously, the cheese was formulated to stand up to high heat). I'd rather have cheese. Not "formulated cheese." And all the "animal style" and "well done" in the world won't fix fries that aren't cooked properly.

Culver's and Habit are OK. Not in the same league as Fatburger. But OK. I'll go to a supermarket deli before I'll go to any of the other burger chains.

EDIT -- That isn't fair. There IS a way to fix In-N-Out's fries. Here's how.

1) Order fries, unsalted. That's it. Take your unsalted fries to a table, spread them out on the dining tray and let them cool down for 20 minutes.
2) Put the fries back into the fry container, take them back to the counter.
3) Order a burger without cheese -- because that cheese is really, really nasty. Hand them the fries and ask that they be fried again. "Just a few minutes, please. And you can salt them this time."
4) Enjoy your correctly-cooked fries and burger without nasty formulated cheese.

Or just go to Fatburger. Their fries aren't great, either. (This isn't Belgium, after all.) But they're passable. And the burger makes up for it.

The McDonald brothers inadvertently recreated the pomme frite frying process by batch-frying the day's spuds in the morning; cooling them in the dry San Bernardino air, and then frying them again to order. That and beef tallow is why there's a McDonald's in half the towns in North America.

 

[PigsDad]

I have never been a Burger King fan, so seeing them ranked toward the bottom doesn't surprise me. SmashBurger and Five Guys are probably my two favorites, but there are no SmashBurger locations in SW FL. For the more basic fast food burger places, I like Culvers and Wendys. Not sure what @DRH90277 was talking about w/ Wendy's burgers being steamed, but I have never seen that (and I used to work at one back in the day). Their patties are fresh, never frozen and seem decent to me.

Kurt

 

[easyrider]

I love most burgers. I can think of one I really didn't like. Having lived in Wisconsin for 40 years, Culver's has a good burger. Not many places on Molokai have burgers but I have come to like Molokai Burger.

I usually have a Big Mac or Whopper whenever we travel to the other islands since we don't have those options here.

Those are my road trip burgers. Sometimes a chicken sandwich. For the morning it's hard to beat the McGriddle and coffee, imo.

Bill

 

[slip]

Those are my road trip burgers. Sometimes a chicken sandwich. For the morning it's hard to beat the McGriddle and coffee, imo.

Bill

I always like the Sausage McMuffin with egg. Molokai Burger has their own version and it's pretty good too.

 

[DrQ]

My favorite, though, is a cheeseburger from Portillos

Speaking of Portillo's, DW told me about their Chocolate Cake Shakes OMG! My blood glucose spiked just imagining it: