Burger Disappointment- The Memphis BBQ burger at Carl's Jr

You've seen the commercials. The 2 hotties in dazy dukes and bikini tops trying to hoist the behemoth Memphis BBQ burger to their mouths. The burger bursting with BBQ pulled pork with Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce, cheese, and onion strings on top of a flame broiled patty. The marketing image makes the burger look big and highly appealing- however, what you actually get is nothing like it is advertised- even if you get the $6 restaurant burger version.

The Memphis BBQ Burger at Carl's Jr.

The Burger patty came dry, only had a few onion strings and the pulled pork was barely noticeable making this burger a wimpy wanna-be of Carl's Jr. marketing. I won't be trying one of these again.

Aburgeraday rating: 3/10

Cheeseburger at In-N-Out

In-N-Out frequently gets ranked as one of the top burger chains in America, and even though it's only found on the West Coast, it's fame is known nation wide. This fame is partly due to quality, partly consistency, part affordability and partly for their not so secret menu. You can order your burgers "animal style" which grills the mustard right into the burger, or 'Animal Fries" which are fries topped with spread, melted cheese and grilled onions. You can check out the entire secret menu here.

In-N-Out Burger

First opened in 1946 in Baldwin Park in SoCal and has now has over 250 locations in Cali, Utah, Nevada and Arizona. When new locations open up, the line-ups can be miles long and they often don't settle down for months.

The menu (apart for the secret menu) is remarkably simple. Burgers or Cheeseburgers, Fries, Sodas and Shakes, and like other joints with limited menus, they do those few things really, really well.

Cheeseburger at In-N-Out

Today I ordered the cheeseburger. A single 4oz patty topped with fresh onion, lettuce, tomato, american cheese and spread. The bun was lightly toasted, warm, soft and chewy. The burger was a nice medium-well doneness that was juicy and flavorful, however I would have liked a bit more beef (next time I'll order the double instead). The spread had a nice vinegary tang that cut through the fattiness perfectly.

In-N-Out has to go down as one of the most affordable quality burgers around. The burger was only $2.30 and a double is just a buck more- which is a hell of a deal and why In-N-Out is a real contender in my search for the best burger around.

Aburgeraday rating: 8/10

Cheeseburger at 5 Guys Burgers and Fries, Fremont, CA

Originating on the East Coast, 5 Guys opened their first location in 1986 in Arlington, Virginia. 26 years later they have grown to more than 1000 locations that span across the US and Canada.
The menu and philosophy are quite simple- High quality, fresh ingredients and a limited menu that allows for cooking perfection of the few items that they make. At 5 Guys it's 100% never frozen beef burgers, hand-cut fries fries, hot dogs and soda's- no shakes, no chicken, nothing else- nada.

Five Guys Burgers and Fries

Burgers can be ordered with a single beef patty (Little hamburger) or double (Hamburger) then a long list of toppings. Seems very common to order burgers "All the way" which includes mayo, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, grilled onion, grilled mushrooms, ketchup and mustard. 

Cheeseburger "All-the-way"

Today I tried the Cheeseburger "All the way". I really liked 2 things about the burger above all else- The beef- it was moist, flavorful and was about as American as you can get when it comes to burger flavor. No Chili or pastrami to mask the flavor, just good 'ole american beef. The second was the grilled mushrooms- they were chewy with a griddle top sear that added a portobello like flavor injection that complimented the beef perfectly. The rest of the toppings sung in sweet harmony- not overwhelming and not creating an overly messy burger.  For $5.89, the burger is pricier than competitor- In-n-out, but it's well worth the money. From now on, 5 Guys is my local go-to location when I'm cravin' an all American burger.

Aburgeraday rating: 8/10

Wendy's Dave's Hot 'n' Juicy 1/2lb Double, Anytown, USA

In an effort to regain slumping market share, fast food giant Wendy's decided to remake their 42 year old hamburger in late 2011. There's a great article in USA Today on the process that Wendy's went through where everything changed...except for the ketchup.

Of all the National fast food joints- McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's, I'd always prefer a Wendy's burger over the other 2- even after my dad always called Wendy's burgers "bone burgers" due to always finding a shard of bone or ligament in almost every burger he ever ate there over the years- that aside, I still like the place.

Wendy's Dave's Hot N' Juicy Double

Today's Dave's hot n' juicy double was- well...wasn't so juicy. The meat was somewhat dry and crumbly and had average flavor, lacked good fat content, moisture and tasted like the patty had been cooked twenty minutes ago. The bun was chewy and toasted just right, but the iceberg lettuce- even though crisp, was white and tasteless. When Wendy's launched their new burgers, they removed mustard and went for mayo instead, which I think I prefer and complements the burger better. The purple onion and fresh tomato is a nice touch to round out the burger. The cheese was processed american and was hardly melted at all, probably because the patty had been cooked a while ago. Even though this isn't the shake shack- it's still an OK burger.

Aburgeraday rating- 5/10