Favorite burgers: a poll

Cafe Society
1

I heard someone saying how great In N Out burgers are and I got my hopes up, but I wasn’t impressed. I wonder if we love what was popular wherever we grew up, like it “defined” the expectation of what a burger “should” taste like. Anyway just for giggles, here’s a poll. You can pick up to three of your faves.

  • Whataburger
  • Steak N Shake
  • In N Out
  • Culver’s
  • Fuddruckers
  • Red Robin
  • McDonald’s
  • Burger King
  • Sonic
  • Wendy’s
  • Mooyah
  • Smashburger
  • Hardee’s/Carl’s Jr.
  • Five Guys
  • Shake Shack
  • Other (list in comments)

0 voters

2

Apologies, I should have included White Castle…

3

I’m in Canada and some of the options don’t exist here. I voted for Burger King and Wendy’s. Wendy’s used to be my go-to burger place and I still like it. But recently I was driving someone around and while waiting I decided to go over to a nearby Burger King and pick up a “whopper with cheese”. I was pleasantly surprised. My last recollection of an urban Burger King location was that it was dirty and obviously badly managed, and the meat in the burger tasted somehow off. Trying them again years later, it was quite good – flame-broiled smokiness. I’ve had a couple more from a local BK and enjoyed them.

I’ll still get Wendy’s once in a while. The closest and most convenient outlet is a McDonald’s just up the street, but their stuff is just crap and I hardly ever go there. I used to go to McDonald’s when I still had Bernie, my Bernese Mountain Dog, just to pick up cheeseburgers for him. He was a fan of McDonald’s (he was entitled to his opinion as a dog; I don’t judge).

There is no burger in the world better than Wolfpup’s homemade burger, but that’s a different discussion!

4

Red Robin and Fuddruckers are different, IMO: they are sit-down restaurants that offer fancy burgers.

For regular old fast food burgers, I like BK because their old veggie burger was good, the new Impossible whoppers are awesome and because I can eat their fries.

5

I voted steak and shake/In and out. Plus other, Jack in the Box sourdough jack

my thinking was this more about fast food hamburgers. Besides fuddruckers and Red Robin. I’m not sure even smash burger or five guys fit into that category. more expensive and made to order. more fast casual than fast food.

6

I realized when I made this poll that it would be problematic. For instance, I do enjoy Wendys hamburgers and think they’re great for the price point. They seem to use decent lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, and other accoutrements, something I wouldn’t say about the Fuddruckers I visited . But if I want fries, Wendy’s is dead last. Still, they do have chili and that frosty ice cream thing…

I grew up in the Midwest so Steak and Shake had my vote.

Damn, why did I forget Jack in the Box? Used to love their chili cheese curly fries!

7

HabitBurger

8

I like Wendy’s, mostly because the others just don’t grab me. My favorite burger was by Esskay and would show up at various Mom & Pop establishments around the region I grew up in.

9

I see that Five Guys is currently at the top of the ratings. Actually, they do have them here, and relatively nearby, but I’ve never tried them. Maybe I should!

10

DOH! I wonder if they’re still selling them. No, don’t tell me! Heart attack in a box…

11

That’s what I was going to say. My top three picks are In-N-Out, Five Guys, and other (Habit).

For those of you who aren’t from California, The Habit is another California based chain, although I’m pretty sure they’ve expanded outside the state by now. IIRC they were founded in Santa Barbara in the 1960s.

Well, I grew up back east, didn’t try In-N-Out until I moved to California when I was in my 20s, and I instantly became a fan. Maybe it was because I grew up with chains like McDonalds, Burger King, and Hardees, which were fine but not particularly exceptional in any way.

IMO the thing that sets In-N-Out apart from other fast food burgers is the freshness of all the ingredients.

Although the absolute best burger I’ve ever had was at a place called Dad’s Kitchen in Sacramento, but since they’re not a chain I’m guessing they don’t count for this thread.

12

I definitely agree that there is a large amount of ‘what you grew up with’ being a key factor in expectations, which goes hand-in-hand with regional preferences.

My voter was for ‘other’, and I had two places in mind, one is for the ‘fast food’ category and one in the ‘sit down’ but not expensive category. And I don’t have any attraction to ‘gourmet’ burgers that cost $20+ and have things like truffle oil or gold foil :roll_eyes:

For Fast food, my first love will always be Blake’s Lotaburger of New Mexico fame. For anyone who hasn’t been to NM, they’re about as common as a ‘second tier’ FF restaurant, so behind Burger King/McDonalds, but around the same as Wendys, a bit ahead of Carl’s Junior franchises. They do ‘old fashioned’ burgers cooked from fresh on an actual griddle by guys in white paper hats. And the norm is green chile cheeseburgers, because, well, in NM, even McDs has GCC on the menu.

The ‘not fancy but not fast food’ choice is the Owl Cafe in Albuquerque (technically, the original in San Antonio NM is just as good, but it’s in the middle of nowhere) has one of the best green chile cheeseburgers in the state, thus the nation and therefore the world. What elevates it is the spices that are part of the handshaped, loose meat patty, along with everything else.

Sadly, I live @260 miles from the closest Lotaburger, and have for 2 decades. I normally only get one every other year or so if I drive to southern NM to visit family (@630 miles).

Of the voteable list, I have fondish memories of Whataburger, because when I worked 2pm-11pm many years ago, most places were closed (this was before extended hours at most McDs and Wendys and I’d rather not eat than have Taco Bell) but the 24/7 of Whataburger was there for me. It was never a favorite, but, it was there for me.

13

Limited to mostly Southern California, Tommy’s with chili is my favorite chain burger. There is a place on the Central Coast with just three locations that is my all around favorite called Sylvester’s. They have a burger with bacon, cheese, avocado, and a fried egg that I sometimes wake up in the middle of the night craving.

14

Barack thinks they’re good.

Checking them out…here’s the store locator.

And if you’re in Cambodia…

15

The Habit is my go to place for shakes.

16

Steak 'n Shake is my fave. Unfortunately the nearest one to me is about 90 miles away.

I miss Fuddruckers. It left my area completely. Nearest is about a 7 hour drive.

White Castle is also a fave crave, nearest one is about 75 miles.

17

Tie between the “Market Burger” from the Tap Room in Inverness Park and the Angus Bacon Cheeseburger from the Whoa Nellie Deli in Lee Vining.

18

I love in-n-out and have driven up to 100 miles out of my way to eat at one and a year ago my wife and I waited almost 6 hours in line (not intentionally) to eat at the first one in Colorado. I never at at one until I was 13 and my wife’s first time was when she was 28.

Jack in the box is my favorite of the generic national fast food chain. I didn’t vote other though.

I miss fudruckers out of the fast casual burger chains.

19

“The Great American Disaster” in South Kensington, but it’s been gone for decades.

20

Man, next time I’m in Cali I’m gonna have to check out an In-n-Out just to see what all the fuss is about.

Myself, big Five Guys fan for over a decade.