# Has Fuddrucker's gone down in quality? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 12, 2010, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277 "2010-03-12T18:34:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/41 "2010-09-15T14:12:37Z")
> [@Nametag](#): > > In-n-Out uses fresh potatoes, and I suspect they don’t double-fry. This results in a limp, pallid, flavorless french fry. Alton Brown has pointed out that potatoes stored in the freezer have some of their starch converted to sugar, which caramelizes in the fryer. Both this and double-frying contribute to the crispness and flavor that makes good french fries appetizing even when they’re cold. It might also have to do with the method they use for take-out. I knew a place with fantastic fries… but they also sucked if you took them out of the store. The reason was that they were still shedding moisture after cooking. If you put them in a bag or a box, they couldn’t steam off enough, and got soggy. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/42 "2010-09-15T16:55:58Z")
I remember my first Fuddrucker’s burger when they opened a restaurant in the Chicago area where I lived when I was in high school. When I went off to college in Houston, they had one there, too. Still very good, but like an earlier poster said, it wasn’t as memorable as that first one. > [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > When I lived in Houston in the 80’s my friends and I used to go to Fuddruckers and I remember them being really superior… Huh–I lived in Houston in the 80’s, too. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/43 "2010-09-15T17:05:44Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Well, that’s your opinion. I don’t see any support for it beyond your apparent desire to hang out with your food for awhile before eating it. Only that I want it to at least survive 10-15 minutes so I can get home to eat it. ---
**Author:** ![fjs1fs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9e8a1a/32.png) [@fjs1fs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fjs1fs)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/44 "2010-09-15T17:09:09Z")
> [@warmnprickly](#): > > i don’t know. I had have had several great burgers at fudruckers recently. They were all cooked perfectly to order, and if they had been “preformed”, i couldn’t tell. The toppings were toppings no worse than i would have at home. Of course, of season tomatoes are just plain bad anywhere. They are definitely the best burger in my town. The next best is red robin. tough town! ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/45 "2010-09-15T17:22:31Z")
Slate has a timely [article](http://www.slate.com/id/2267129/)on the topic: taste-testing the new elk burger at Fuddrucker’s. Verdict: bleah. The writer tried it twice. One burger (ordered medium) was “completely grey… flavorless and dry,” and the other (ordered medium-rare) was “bleeding rare, not medium rare—tasting slimy and metallic, like a wastewater oyster.” So there you go. Bleah, like I said. ---
**Author:** ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/46 "2010-09-15T19:09:13Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > It’s not that they **rot**. It’s that they turn to utter crap if they get the slightest bit cold. McDonald’s fries are great for hours. In-N-Out’s are good for seconds. So you’re saying that In-N-Out’s fries are not zombies, unlike this thread? ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/47 "2010-09-15T19:32:44Z")
> [@WarmNPrickly](#): > > I don’t know. I had have had several great burgers at Fudruckers recently. They were all cooked perfectly to order, and if they had been “preformed”, I couldn’t tell. The toppings were toppings no worse than I would have at home. Of course, of season tomatoes are just plain bad anywhere. They are definitely the best burger in my town. The next best is Red Robin. Actually, that last sentence explains the rest of your post. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/48 "2010-09-15T19:39:55Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Well, that’s your opinion. I don’t see any support for it beyond your apparent desire to hang out with your food for awhile before eating it. I haven’t been in a Starbucks in years so I don’t know if they still do this, but back in the '90s when they were a real coffee-lover’s shop instead of the joke about excessive capitalism that they’ve become, they used to dump their coffee down the drain if it wasn’t served within 20 seconds of being brewed. If you mean “espresso” where you typed “coffee” they still have that rule. If the shot sits so long that the crema and body get separated, it’s a stale shot and it gets dumped. A new shot gets pulled. If you really meant coffee…I can’t imagine any coffee shop ever working that way. It would be literally impossible to even attempt that. You’d just end up brewing and pouring away pots of coffee all day long. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2010, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/49 "2010-09-16T21:01:15Z")
> [@Enderw24](#): > > > [@Cisco](#): > > > > Well, that’s your opinion. I don’t see any support for it beyond your apparent desire to hang out with your food for awhile before eating it. I haven’t been in a Starbucks in years so I don’t know if they still do this, but back in the '90s when they were a real coffee-lover’s shop instead of the joke about excessive capitalism that they’ve become, they used to dump their coffee down the drain if it wasn’t served within 20 seconds of being brewed. > > If you mean “espresso” where you typed “coffee” they still have that rule. If the shot sits so long that the crema and body get separated, it’s a stale shot and it gets dumped. A new shot gets pulled. > > If you really meant coffee…I can’t imagine any coffee shop ever working that way. It would be literally impossible to even attempt that. You’d just end up brewing and pouring away pots of coffee all day long. 20 seconds I don’t believe, but 20 mins I would. IIRC, Tim Horton’s had a commercial saying they dump theirs after 15 mins. As for Fuddruckers, last time I had one it was still good, but that was several months ago. It was also a carryout order. I haven’t actually eaten at the place in over a year. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2010, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/50 "2010-09-16T21:39:32Z")
> [@TBG](#): > > > [@Enderw24](#): > > > > If you mean “espresso” where you typed “coffee” they still have that rule. If the shot sits so long that the crema and body get separated, it’s a stale shot and it gets dumped. A new shot gets pulled. > > > > If you really meant coffee…I can’t imagine any coffee shop ever working that way. It would be literally impossible to even attempt that. You’d just end up brewing and pouring away pots of coffee all day long. > > 20 seconds I don’t believe, but 20 mins I would. IIRC, Tim Horton’s had a commercial saying they dump theirs after 15 mins. I’ll have to ask my dad to clarify. I don’t drink coffee and never have, and thus only very superficially even know the difference between coffee and espresso, but he was a big Starbucks fan in the early/mid '90s, and he bragged about this point a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2010, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277/51 "2010-09-16T22:29:41Z")
I’ve only been to Fuddruckers a few times, all within the last few years, but have never ordered a beef burger from there. They just don’t look THAT good. First time: Tried ostrich-burger. Didn’t care for it; it was mushy. Eww. 2nd time: I got the nachos. OMFG awesome. So awesome that the next half dozen times I’ve gone, I’ve gotten the nachos, and always been happy with that decision. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-fuddruckers-gone-down-in-quality/532277.md?page=2)