I used to like the Super Papa Burger as a teen. I think it’s called the Papa Burger now, but I’m not sure. (I don’t remember what made it ‘Super’ 30-some years ago.) There’s an A&W combined with a Kentucky Fried Chicken in town.
As I said earlier, 5 Guys tastes a lot like Wendy’s to me.
In-N-Out makes a good burger, but their soggy, limp fries kill it for me.
Gah, the fact that Shake Shack isn’t winning is only proof that more people need to eat there. Best Fast Food burger bar non. Followed by In-n-Out, then maybe Five Guys in a distant third. (although Red Robin’s DGB is pretty amazing too)
My thoughts re: all these chains
Those I haven’t had/or had too few times to form a decent opinion:
A&W - There’s one right down the street from me, but there are much better FF options so I rarely go.
Big Boy - Isn’t this the same as Shoney’s?
Burger Street - Never had.
Burgerville - Never had.
Cheeburger Cheeburger - Had a couple during a stay in Auburn, AL but that was so long ago I can’t give a good review.
Friendly’s - These people fuck up breakfast - I can’t imagine what they would do to a burger.
Jack’s - Never had.
Kewpee - Never had.
Shake Shack - Never had.
Umami Burger - Never had.
White Castle - Yeah, they’re just the “Northern Krystal’s”, but I only ate there once or twice so can’t really rank them.
Really, not very good:
Dairy Queen - They’re an ice cream place and I’ve never had a burger that was no better than a stomach-filler from them. Skip the burger, get a blizzard.
Jack in the Box - Here in SA the JitB’s are low-rent burgers. Never had one that made me feel satisfied.
OK, nothing to write home about:
Checkers/Rallys - Not the worst, and at one time a good option, but there are a lot more (and better) burgers out there.
Burger King - They have their fans, but I’m not one of them. Love their croissanwich’s though!
Carl’s Jr./Hardee’s - Had one of these today. To be honest, I liked their fried chicken better.
Good, but over-rated
In-N-Out Burger - I just don’t get the love for this one. Not a bad FF burger, but the two locations I’ve been to (LAX off Sepulveda, Dallas I-35 south) I got a decent burger but nothing that makes me think “Dayum, that’s one fine burger!” And really, saying they are to burgers what Chick-Fil-A is to chicken sandwiches is an insult to Chick-Fil-A. And that’s a sentence I never thought I would write! 
Whataburger - Good value, but again, don’t get the love for this one. OTOH, they are open 24 hours, serve breakfast 24 hours (have a GREAT sausage and egg sandwich, btw), so they got that going for them.
**Decent **
Waffle House - Good and greasy, prefer their patty melt, a good “3AM burger”.
McDonald’s - It’s the taste of childhood, what can I say?
Krystal - There are times when you want burgers… then there are times you want Krystal’s. Don’t know what that says, but that’s the way it is.
Shoney’s - Small, but pretty good… and they have surprisingly good fries too. OTOH, haven’t been to one in over 5 years, but I’ve never been disappointed.
A cut above the rest:
Sonic Drive In - Pretty good and I occasionally go through phases where I go to Sonic on a regular basis.
Wendy’s - Used to be the best FF burger you could get, back in the late '70s, early '80s, but not so much nowadays. But… THE BACONATOR! Meat, bacon, and mayo… makes you feel guilty to eat one (but not so guilty as to make it impossible.)
Fuddruckers - Good, but one time my Dad and I ate there (back in the early '90s, in Fort Lauderdale, and we both got sick.
Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers - Really, just a Steak 'n Shake burger, rebranded.
Smashburger - Like Freddy’s, a very good replica of the Steak 'n Shake burger. But S 'n S was there first, which is why they are ranked higher.
Mmm, this is a tasty burger!
Fatburger - Just discovered this place and every burger I’ve had makes it into this category.
Five Guys Burgers and Fries - A very good burger coupled with very good fries. Pricey, however.
Red Robin - Burgers are very good, and it’s hard to argue against AYCE steak fries.
Steak 'n Shake - The burger is very good. The sides are even better - chili, fries, boston baked beans. A taste of childhood that I miss.
Your “idiot ass” forgot (or didn’t know) about…
Bigz - A 2-restaurant “chain” here in SA that has the best burgers I’ve had in a restaurant. Unfortunately, they also cater to kids so it’s a LOUD place. But goddamn their burgers are good! I am also not a fan of “other” votes in a topic as important as this one, and since the chain doesn’t go outside the SA area, would really be a wasted vote for most of the readers here. But if they were regional or nationwide, they would get my vote, no doubt.
Backyard Burger - Yes, a very good burger. And waffle fries!
Big Kahuna Burger - Will say, that did look like a tasty burger!
The one that got my vote
Culver’s - Really people, these are damned good. Wish they were a bit bigger, however their fries are excellent. And, unlike some of the restaurants listed, they are an actual “fast food” chain.
The right amount of salt - usually a considerable amount more than most people think is the right amount - actually makes food taste more like itself. If you grok my meaning.
Fuddruckers isn’t fast food. Poll is invalid.
You missed Harvey’s, my favourite burger place. Why? Because they have an awesome veggie burger and they offer poutine.
Five Guys has good burgers made better with their great toppings selection and the best Fries of any chain.
So, they have great add-ons and their burgers are merely average?
Sort of like “nail broth”?
That’s the rub. Just evaluate the burger on its own merits - discount any sides, atmosphere, or the like. The fact that 5 Guys has better fries than In-N-Out has no bearing on the poll.
One thousand apologies. I gravel at your feet. (But really, I know it’s “grovel”, and I won’t.)
You stole mine! I love Cookout, for their burgers and their shakes. Second choice is probably a tie between Steak & Shake, Wendy’s, and Hardee’s.
A big chunk of that list isn’t fast food:
Fatburger
Five Guys
Fuddruckers
Red Robin
Waffle House
Probably unfair to compare them to the likes of Wendy’s or In-N-Out.
How is Five Guys not fast food? You walk up to the counter, order, pay, wait for them to call your number, grab, and either eat there or take it home. The mechanics are exactly the same as at Jacks and Macs.
I’ll accept that Fuddruckers isn’t…because they have an open toppings bar, and you have to (get to!) tart up your burger yourself with pickles, relish, ketchup, mustard, onions, tomato, etc. etc. The mechanics are different.
But Five Guys? No difference.
(Is anyone saying that a drive-thru is a definitional element of FF?)
Drive through, and real fast food places don’t make you wait for your food.
Burger King’s Whopper, unfortunately, because I’ll never be able to eat them again since I’m boycotting them because of their tax evasions.
I actually love Counter’s turkey burger, but the local Counter closed. :mad:
Five Guys is fast food. Just because you don’t get it in 30 seconds in a drive through isn’t the test…
Yeah. Five Guys and Fatburger are absolutely fast food. Fatburger even has drive through, so I see no possible metric that couldn’t be considered fast food. The others, though, I see an argument for.
Too bad I can only vote for one. I have a fourway tie for first.
First of all, I like a lot of places’ burgers. I’m not a picky eater by any means and most fast food burgers, I like.
I like to consider myself a fast food burger expert, actually, because I eat at at least two or three different fast food places a week and am constantly trying new items that places get as they come out.
That all being said, there is a definite different in the quality of burgers at certain places.
McDonalds, I find, is very good and serves its purpose when I’m hungry and want a good burger…however even it resides on the lower end of the “best FF burger” spectrum. Burger King is another that is very good and that I heartily enjoy…
…but seriously, it ain’t no In N Out.
So the top four burgers I’ve ever had (so far) in my life are:
In N Out (of course)- I’ve eaten here at least 100 times in the last three years.
Five Guys - Amazing burgers with so many topping choices. I think I’ve tried every topping at least once and many combinations thereof…and it remains an A plus burger.
Jack in the Box - Heavenly burgers which has been the longest of my four top faves. I fell in love with JitB back in the early 90s and don’t think there’s a single thing on their menu that I don’t like.
There was also a time I was eating a Bacon Ultimate Cheeseburger a week, which–at over 1000 calories just in that one burger alone–it’s probably a very good thing I’m not still doing that.
Carl’s Jr - Again, everything they have on their menu is amazing. I’ve tried all of their burgers at least twice.
Don’t make me choose just one. Gah.
Okay, okay, if I have to, I guess I have to give the vote to Jack in the Box by the slimmest of margins, but only because I’ve loved them for much longer than any of the others.
But dat In’n’Out, though…
Other honorable mentions go to: Wendy’s, Whattaburger, A&W, and Steak and Shake.
And three burgers that I’ve wanted to try for AGES, but still haven’t yet (and that I’ve heard from many different people are very, very good) are burgers from Fatburger (I can hear JohnnyLA’s voice now telling me to get there ASAP), Smashburger and a place here (in Arizona and, as far as I know, California–although it may be other places too) called Islands.
In fact, I think I’ll try a Smashburger next weekend.
I may have to take another trip out west. I had In-n-Out once and I thought it was ok at best. There is a place locally (96th Street Steakburgers in Indy) which several of our clients from the west coast claim is a perfect clone. It still isn’t my favorite, and I’ll take a Steak 'n Shake any day before that.