Best fast food burger?

In N Out Burger or Five Guys

  • In N Out

    Votes: 23 54.8%

  • Five Guys

    Votes: 19 45.2%
  • Total voters
    42
  • Poll closed .
I've never been overly enamored with FIVE GUYS. The fries are good, but the burgers are not appealing to me. Of the major chains, I'm still a BK fan. Of the lesser chains, we've got one that's Raleigh based (but has an outlet in Davidson I frequent) called Char-Broil that I like.

Carl's (and their influence on the Hardee's chain, which formerly had a terrible burger before they were bought out though in their early days was pretty good) is probably the best of the "BIG TIME" chains.

I kind of liked the Roy Rogers Double R Bar Burger. We've got a company here that resurrected that chain. Marriott had sold the original Roy's chain to Hardees who promptly destroyed the value of the chain by converting them all into Hardee's which turned them into losers. There was a lot of chiding by the owner of Carl's about that fiasco which allowed him to buy up Hardee's.
 
BK is okay if you can get the morons to understand "NO FREAKIN MAYO"....last time I was at a BK, had to send the burger back 3 times before they managed to understand that No Mayo, means to not put it on the sandwich to begin with, and I will not take it back after you sent it back and scraped some of it off.
 
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Habit Burger, hands down. I like Inn & Out fine, followed by Carl's Jr. They really aren't bad. Habit and Inn & Out are very consistent and always fresh, where Carl's, just like any other mega-chain, is variable. I can cite better burgers, but they won't be fast food.

I tried Five Guys once, and was terribly disappointed with them. I would actually rate them near the bottom.
 
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Like I said, Inn & Out is fine.

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Five Guys? Nah. I like that they lettuce wrapped it. That's all I liked. Ugh. They didn't even put mayo and mustard on my burger, they gave it to me in tubs. F that. No, that's not true. I asked for mustard, they gave me no mustard, but packets of ketchup.
 

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  1. In-n-Out, although the nearest one is 780mi away
  2. Five guys (very close second)
  3. Hardees/Carls Jr
  4. All the rest except for
  5. McDonnalds (although I like McD for breakfast)
 
Jack's (chain) in Alabama, good burgers, fries overly seasoned. My all time old favorite was Burger Chef!
 
Mike Smith said:
Hamburger King in Montgomery Al. Has the best hamburger and it isn't even close. That's all they do, 11-2 M-F, i mean, that's all they do. There is no menu, ordering consists of a number, how many? Between the two poll choices, Five Guys.
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Yeah been hearing about that place. I'm gonna try it next time in Montgomery.
 
Craig said:
BK is okay if you can get the morons to understand "NO FREAKIN MAYO"....last time I was at a BK, had to send the burger back 3 times before they managed to understand that No Mayo, means to not put it on the sandwich to begin with, and I will not take it back after you sent it back and scraped some of it off.
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That is 100% true. Half the burgers I get at BK have mayo squirting out when you grab ahold of it. Dude if it's squirting or dripping it's way to much.
 
I actually like mayo on my burgers, but I can understand the sentiment. McDonald's though, is by far the most inflexible chain when it come to special orders. I saw a guy once get in to a screaming match with the cashier trying to get them to put some lettuce on a Quarter Pounder.

The cashier won.
 
One of my other huge frustrations with most of the chain places, is that I almost always do not want cheese on my burger. If I order a burger that normally does not come with cheese, then when in heaven's sake do you ask me if I want cheese on it! If I wanted cheese on it, I would have ordered a cheeseburger don't you think?

It may seem like I am a bit hard on counter or waitstaff, but in reality, I'm not. When we go out to eat lots of times, we end up getting a new trainee working our table. We have a little fun with them, quietly help coach them a little and have a huge reserve of patience as they learn the particular restaurant's ways of doing things.
 
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NoHeat said:
One thing I especially like about In-n-Out is the lettuce they use in place of bread, when you ask for it that way. Their lettuce leafs are BIG, and fresh, and overall in great condition.
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Yes, and they know how to do a good job of it. Carl's will do it too, and they do a reasonable job of it. Habit does by far the best job of it - they use triangular cut portions that will work close to how a bun will work. Lettuce wrap is a basic requirement of mine. That's why McD's and Burger King (and I do love Whoppers) are not on my regular burger rotation.

Five Guys did a reasonable job of it, I have to hand it to them, at least for that. Now the rest of the package, well...
 
There was a place in Waco called "Ptomaine Tommys". It was a sort of run down looking building but the hamburgers were great, if you could get past the name.
 
to bookend the list, worst burger ever is Smashburger ... flatten a patty into a thin little piece of something, grill the crap out of it until it's nothing but grill scraping, then serve it like it's all that ... what a horrible excuse for a burger.
 
Craig said:
Mike, did they close the University Drive location too?

I've been to In-N-Out twice and both time it tasted like I was chewing on a salt lick.....yuckkk....

Outlaw in Justin is decent, but I prefer Fuddruckers.
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The one on Sunset (near University Drive) is still open, but it was never the exact same as the one on The Square. Different owners who did the main receipes their own way and you could tell the difference.

I just miss D.I. because I grew up with it and it always represented the Denton vibe. And they were good burgers and fantastic skin-on thick cut french fries.
 
gkainz said:
to bookend the list, worst burger ever is Smashburger ... flatten a patty into a thin little piece of something, grill the crap out of it until it's nothing but grill scraping, then serve it like it's all that ... what a horrible excuse for a burger.
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Oh, my god. Yes, I didn't even think about that one. If we were doing worst, that would have come to mind. Yeah, I had one with a side salad, and got a skimpy portion of wilted lettuce, and a charred tasteless hacked up patty, and on top of that the fork I grabbed had dried food goo on it.
 
mscard88 said:
Jack's (chain) in Alabama, good burgers, fries overly seasoned. My all time old favorite was Burger Chef!
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Jacks?? We got one here in Columbus. Only other one I have even seen was in Vernon, AL and nothing but old people hang out there. So When we got ours I thought our town was going down hill. HAHAHA Ill have to give them a try!
 
I'm also rather fond of Freddy's, which has expanded pretty heavily in the midwest recently. Not the absolute best burger I've ever had, but it's damn good.
 
simtech said:
Jacks?? We got one here in Columbus. Only other one I have even seen was in Vernon, AL and nothing but old people hang out there. So When we got ours I thought our town was going down hill. HAHAHA Ill have to give them a try!
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Jack's started in 1960 in Homewood AL, just south of Birmingham, actually borders B'ham. 134 stores now in AL, GA, MS, and TN. Good burgers.
 
asicer said:
I'm surprised that so far nobody's mentioned Shake Shack.
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:smilewinkgrin: I forgot about Shake Shack! Had my first one in NYC near central park a year or two ago. Very good burger, probably is my #2 of choice. Theres just something about In N Out that I love over the rest, between the taste of the burger and the environment of the restaurant seems so classic. It's my treat when I visit the west coast.
 
Burger Chef, there was one in Valdosta GA when I lived there, and one in Columbus MS when I lived there. Seems like there was one in NJ when I was in HS a loooong time ago.
 
I recall Fudruckers from a few years back was pretty tasty. Don't know if they're even around any more.
 
Lots of Burger Chef in Ohio, it was always my favorite. Sad they shut down. Never heard of most that have been mentioned. (Oh right, I live in Ohio)
 
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Mike Smith said:
I am pretty sure Burger Chef was a regional (Alabama) thing. I never saw one anywhere else.
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We had them in the DC Area when I was growing up. They were based in Indianapolis and got absorbed into Hardees.
 
gkainz said:
I recall Fudruckers from a few years back was pretty tasty. Don't know if they're even around any more.
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They have a couple in Norcal. It's been many years since I've eaten at one but to my recollection the burgers were okay but mediocre, but you could top them with unlimited toppings.
 
Ryanb said:
:smilewinkgrin: I forgot about Shake Shack! Had my first one in NYC near central park a year or two ago. Very good burger, probably is my #2 of choice. Theres just something about In N Out that I love over the rest, between the taste of the burger and the environment of the restaurant seems so classic. It's my treat when I visit the west coast.
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There's a neighborhood in Austin, TX where within a 3 mile radius exists a Five Guys, In-n-Out and Shake Shack. Some people have all the luck.
 
I like Liberty Burger. So far only five locations in the DFW area and one in Jackson Hole, WY. My prediction it is going to spread far and wide in the US...
 
asicer said:
There's a neighborhood in Austin, TX where within a 3 mile radius exists a Five Guys, In-n-Out and Shake Shack. Some people have all the luck.
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Man...wouldn't that be nice, only one of the three I have where I am is five guys.
 
Damn Good
epic
any local place where they care enough to grind and blend their own

A'ight
five guys
in-n-out
m burger
red robin
fuddruckers
culvers
smashburger
checkers

Offensive to the horse it came from
billy goat (cheezborger cheezborger cheezborger)
 
mscard88 said:
Burger Chef, there was one in Valdosta GA when I lived there, and one in Columbus MS when I lived there. Seems like there was one in NJ when I was in HS a loooong time ago.
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Not one in Columbus now, but curious where it was if you remember??

Bills Burgers is supposed to be REALLY good here in Amory, MS. Hole in the wall type of place.
 
mscard88 said:
If ya noticed no one is abiding by the poll anyway, as is POA usual. Supposed to be about two burger chains but no one in the eastern half of the country has In&Out establishments or experienced eating one. Man wouldn't you just love to get a franchise for one in the east?
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Not likely...In-n-Out doesn't franchise.
 
asicer said:
I'm surprised that so far nobody's mentioned Shake Shack.

But between In-N-Out and 5Guys, I vote In-N-Out. There's something about the 5Guys buns that turns me off. It just seems doughy and underdone to me.
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asicer said:
I'm surprised that so far nobody's mentioned Shake Shack.

But between In-N-Out and 5Guys, I vote In-N-Out. There's something about the 5Guys buns that turns me off. It just seems doughy and underdone to me.
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I think the problem with 5 Guys is that they wrap their burgers in foil-lined paper. The bun, meat, and other ingredients steam together into mushy glob.
 
James331 said:
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James331 said:
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Please don't take this personally, but: barf. I've gone to Dicks a couple of times since moving to the Seattle area. The first time, I wasn't impressed, and the second time I thought the burger was disgusting. There was actually more sauce than meat. I work with some UW grads who admit the love of Dicks is probably related to drunken burger runs than the quality or taste of the food.
 
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