I really miss Fuddruckers. None close to me anymore, sadly.
5 Guys is overrated garbage. At least the one nearest me is. Better burgers across the street at a mini-chain place that has all of 4 locations. Cheaper, too.
I see several comments about the cost of a Five Guys burger. How expensive are they? (for me, it would have to be crazy high to discourage me if they were good). (never had one).
I don’t often go to them, but here’s a recent story:
Because I seldom go to them, I can’t speak to normal pricing, but this seems high.
The OP has some comparative pricing for their location. Over $10 for a double.
I don’t eat burgers very often but enjoy them when I do. I know McDonalds is famous for producing consistent products at every outlet. Is that something that all of these chains strive for? Are the specific techniques that one chain uses really consistent at all of their locations? Can you folks really distinguish between each of these dozens of hamburger chains and be confident that you’ll have the same experience elsewhere?
Most of the time I find the burgers at small local establishments better than the ones at any chain, but it’s a crapshoot and I get that predictability is valuable, especially when you’re on the road. But wow, the amount of hairsplitting over burgers is impressive, especially the kind where you don’t even get to specify “rare” or “well done.”
In general I’ve been reluctant to expect the #5 combo meal at Red Robin in one location to be the same experience as the same combo at another. As several posters have noted, there is quite a bit of up and down at different locations, for Red Robin in particular perhaps. But are other chains consistent? Are their burgers clearly distinct, or are there other factors like fries and other special menu items that make particular chains stand out for you?
I’m just naive about chain restaurant operations.
I am in Lake county. May try that. A cheeseburger that my ex bought me (story) at BWW was good, but 13 dollars.
I had a good burger at a place called Milwaukee Burger Company. They will actually cook it to order and I had an honest juicy medium burger for the first time in forever.
I’ve never had Culvers. One look at their crinkle cut fries assured I would never go there. I’ve never seen a Shake Shack IRL. I say I like Five Guys but this thread got me to thinking; do I really? It was a group favorite at my office when we brought lunch in. Everyone would be excited and we’d all gorge ourselves on the endless fries but if I really think about it, the patties are thin and overcooked and the fries, while plentiful, are it really nothing special.
I don’t put much of anything on my burger. I know I’m in the minority with that but I say if it’s not good undressed, it’s not good (go ahead, pervs, let the jokes begin).
Of all the chains mentioned here, my favorite is Fuddruckers.
I mean, I think all these places are similar in terms of consistency. I don’t think McDonald’s is as consistent as it thinks it is. Sometimes I will go through kind of an obsessive phase where I’ll eat all McDoubles for lunch for like 7 meals, and then, months later, all Sausage McMuffins for breakfast for a couple of weeks, and so on/ I find they can vary not just from location to location, but from one staff to another staff at the same location. There is generally a certain baseline, but there is a reasonable amount of variance. It got to the point with the Sausage McMuffins that every morning I would rate them, and my scale was generally 5-10 (keeping in mind I’m ranking the Sausage McMuffin against itself.) So, yes, all these restaurants strive to have consistent products across their various locations. Some I would rank more consistent than McD’s, at least the McD’s around here (Chicago.) I’ve never had an In N Out, for instance, that was any different than any other In N Out I’ve ever had, but my sample size for that is only in the dozens.
I think Culver’s is generally outstanding for what it is (in comparison to most of the others mentioned so far in this thread, anyway), but I do get the mashed potatoes/gravy combo instead of the fries.
I do like the option to pack things onto the Five Guys burger, though I agree that the burgers themselves are nothing special. Haven’t been there in years.
Yeah, and I can’t even make it through their regular burger and an order of fries at one sitting. So the numbers are big, but it’s like those people who are outraged about inflation because they paid a shitload for a meal at the airport.
Our local Five Guys has consistently awesome fries, easily the best I’ve ever had. And the burgers aren’t as good as mine, but then I’ve only been to one place ever that I would say that about. Their burgers are certainly very good, easily better than the fast-food places crank out.
The chains people in this thread are comparing them to aren’t anywhere near me. Looks like the nearest Shake Shack to me is at National Harbor, which is further than I’d go for a burger, and besides, it would mean I’d have to pay $10 just to park there.
There’s a Culver’s in Plant City, FL where the in-laws live, but it’s only been there for a couple of years, and we’ve been too busy to try it when we’ve been down there. Given the wide range of opinion about them in this thread, I’m very curious now.
That would be my expectation. I appreciate your comments on McD’s variability, too. I tend to feel that it must be natural for really giant operations to provide more and more prepared components to the outlets for a number of reasons, and specific fry oil temps and times must be part of the formula. But I’m pretty daunted by the prospect of identifying which of the dozens of burger joints I prefer based on brand.
And one thing that mildly annoys me about Five Guys is that their “regular” burger is two patties. If you only want one patty you have to order a “little” burger (which is still pretty big). Virtually every other restaurant would call those a double and a regular burger, respectively.
Of the fast food or fast-casual chains, their fries are my favorite. Problem is, I will never order them if I’m eating by myself because they just give me wayyyyy too much and it’s too much a temptation to finish them all. That said, I usually don’t order fries with my burger, because the burger is more than enough food for me and I truly don’t need the extra calories anymore. Typically, I’ll just pick at a couple that my kids and wife haven’t eaten and leave it at that.
It’s funny, we have a place here in Chicago called Au Cheval (which has the best damned fast-food style hamburgers I’ve ever had, though the place itself is decidedly not fast-food), where they serve a “single cheeseburger” on the menu, which has two patties, and a “double cheeseburger”, which has three patties. (They’re $16.99 and $18.99 respectively, so … yeah. Want some bacon on it? That’s an extra $6.99.) Nowhere on the menu does it mention, that I remember or reviewing the menu online, that a single is two and a double is three.
I’m just annoyed by the fact that that’s mathematically wrong. What they’re calling a “double” is actually only 1.5x the size of what they call a “single”.
I always order a small size and it’s still too much for the two of us.
Or you could think of it as a getting a bonus patty for free!
I just checked on line. We do have a 5 Guys nearby. The little burger is around $9.50 and the little fries are $4.99. So, $15 for the meal, and I guess it would be plenty of food. It’s more than McDonalds, but not out of reach. Perhaps I’ll try it if I can convince my wife. I like that you can order them custom (no crap you don’t want added).
What place doesn’t allow custom ordering these days?