Latest news with #BurgerKingWhopper
Miami Herald
03-08-2025
- General
- Miami Herald
Top-10 burgers list deals blow to McDonald's, Burger King
Which fast-food chain has the best hamburger has no definitive answer. Some people love the familiarity of a Burger King Whopper or McDonald's Big Mac while others swear by regional favorites by In-N-Out Burger, Culver's, or Five Guys. There's no real correct answer here as taste is subjective and what people expect from a hamburger can vary, but USA Today did its best to solve the problem. "USA TODAY 10Best editors and a panel of burger lovers teamed up to find the tastiest picks on the menu. Then, readers stepped in to vote for the best of the best," the newspaper shared on its 10Best website. The results will likely spark endless water-cooler debate: 10: Double Char from Habit Burger & Grill (They took first place in 2024)9:Papa Burger from A&W 8: Jumbo Jack Cheeseburger from Jack in the Box7: Double-Double from In-N-Out Burger6: ButterBurger Cheese, Double from Culver's5: Cheeseburger from Five Guys4: ShackBurger from Shake Shack3: Freddy's Original Double from Freddy's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers2: Whopper from Burger King1: Double Meat Whataburger from Whataburger The results are especially embarrassing for McDonald's (MCD) because the chain has gone through a multi-year process to improve its burgers. That's something the chain bragged about in a press release: "Our chefs have been cooking up small but tasty improvements to the Big Mac sandwich, McDouble burger and our classic Cheeseburger, Double Cheeseburger and Hamburger – and we can't wait for fans across the U.S. to get a taste. The magic is in the details: Softer, pillowy buns that are freshly toasted to a golden brown Perfectly melted cheese that will make you want to savor every last bit off the wrapper Juicier, caramelized flavor from adding white onions to the patties while they're still on the grill Even more of everyone's favorite Big Mac sauce, bringing more tangy sweetness in every Big Mac bite Those efforts may have helped the chain sell more burgers, but it did not crack the top-10 list. Related: Burger King CEO shares key news on the chain's future Still, McDonald's seems happy with its efforts. "We found that small changes, like tweaking our process to get hotter, meltier cheese and adjusting our grill settings for a better sear, added up to a big difference in making our burgers more flavorful than ever," shared McDonald's Senior Culinary Innovation Director Chad Schafer. While it wasn't the winner, Burger King executives are likely happy that The Whopper made the list. Restaurant Brands International (QSR) CEO Josh Kobza talked about his chain's iconic burger during its second-quarter 2024 earnings call. "Recent menu initiatives, such as the Adams Family Menu, featuring Wednesday's Whopper, the Million Dollar Whopper campaign and the Melts platform have reinforced that guests crave innovation and high quality food at a great price," he said. Melts were a variant on The Whopper which have proved popular both in a burger and a breakfast variant. He clearly sees The Whopper as a pillar of the company's success. "For 2025, we'll continue leading into our key differentiators of Flame Grilling, the Whopper, and 'Have it Your Way,' while enhancing quality and consistency through menu renovation and operational improvements," he added. Kobza believes The Whopper is something the company can keep coming back to. "You'll also see us focus on the Whopper again. We had some very successful activations, things like the Million Dollar Whoppers where we had guest created versions of the Whopper that really appealed to guests and I think puts the Whopper in the right place as a premium product. So you should expect to see more Whopper innovation in 2025," he added. Burger King's Whopper ranked No. 2 on USA Today's best burger list McDonald's Big Mac didn't make the top 10 - despite recent upgrades BK is doubling down on Whopper innovation for 2025 The fast food burger battle is heating up and so is the value Burger & Grill took the top spot two years in a row. Related: Tariffs cause August grocery price surge: Five foods hit hardest The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
Time Out
23-07-2025
- General
- Time Out
This California chain was just named best fast-food burger—and it's not the one you think
While California is renowned for its breakfast burritos, sourdough bread, fish tacos and the aptly named California roll, it's also known for its burger prowess, and one fast-food chain is renowned beyond the "Golden State" borders. Of course, we're talking about arguably the most popular burger chain in the state, In-N-Out Burger. But, while patty-loving patrons clamor for the brand's juicy double cheeseburgers and "animal style" fries, according to USA Today readers, In-N-Out isn't even the best burger joint in the state. There's another lesser-known Cali-based burger chain that's not only making a superior burger but also apparently making the best burger in the country. (Yes, you read that right.) As part of USA Today 's Readers' Choice 2025 Awards, Habit Burger & Grill 's Double Char was named the best burger in the entire United States, although In-N-Out did make the list at number four overall. The Double Char is as classic as burgers get. There's no random barbecue sauce, onion rings, or overly hot jalapeno slices—instead, it's made up of two chargrilled beef patties, a smattering of caramelized onion, lettuce, tomato, pickles and mayonnaise on a toasted bun. What doesn't it include? Cheese. It's so flavorful, it doesn't even need it. (You can add it, though, if you want to.) Other burgers that made the top ten include the Double Meat Whataburger, the Burger King Whopper, Freddy's Original Double, Shake Shack's ShackBurger, Five Guys' Cheeseburger, Culver's Double ButterBurger Cheese, the In-N-Out Double-Double, the Jack in the Box Jumbo Jack Cheeseburger, and the A&W Papa Burger. While it might not have the national appeal of In-N-Out, Habit Burger & Grill is not an upstart operation. With its genesis in 1969, this burger chain began in Santa Barbara, California and now includes more than 350 locations. Stop into one of these locations to try the best burger in the country.
Miami Herald
26-03-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Wendy's menu drops popular item, adding new ones
Back in the 1960s and 1970s, fast-food menus rarely changed. In order to offer the "fast" part of fast food, chains had to keep their menus simple. That began to change in the 1980s and 1990s when limited-time offers became popular. Many of these were simple variants of regular menu items. Related: Struggling popular pizza chain closes locations, no bankruptcy yet It's not hard to add barbecue sauce to a Burger King Whopper or a McDonald's Quarter Pounder, but simple changes enabled these chains to market new offerings. In recent years, the pace of these developments and limited offers has increased. Seasonal items, like various chains' fish sandwiches, come back at roughly the same time each year (in this case, for the Lenten season). Others, like the McDonald's Shamrock Shake or Starbucks's Pumpkin Spice, are highly anticipated and seem to come earlier and stay longer each year. In other cases, various limited-time offers come and go on no real schedule. Some, like the McDonald's McRib, depend on the availability of the pork scraps that make up the sandwich, while others are used to drive customers to stores during slow times. In certain cases, fast-food kitchens have only limited capacity, meaning that one menu item must go away for another to appear. That's what's about to happen at Wendy's (WEN) . Wendy's locations have the capacity to make only two Frosty flavors at a time. Since chocolate is the classic flavor, it's kept on the menu, while vanilla gets swapped out for any new options. The chain is currently offering Chocolate and Girl Scout Thin Mint Frosties. That flavor was actually layered on top of the base chocolate or vanilla Frosty. "The Thin Mints Frosty combines the Classic Chocolate or Vanilla Frosty, swirled and topped with a rich, minty cookie crumble sauce inspired by the flavor of Girl Scout Thin Mints," the chain shared. "With both chocolate and vanilla to try, fans can choose their favorite ways to enjoy the Thin Mints Frosty." Those Frosty variants have been on the menu since late February, but they are expected to make way for new special Frosty flavors in both April and May. "I am counting down the days until Wendy's drops the new Frosty Swirls and Frosty Fusions! Enjoy the Thin Mints Frosty while you can because it's amazing, but we've got some crazy ones coming this spring," posted Snackolator on Instagram. Restaurant closings: Popular retail chain to close unprofitable store locationsBankrupt retail chain unloads store leases, key assetsPopular discount retailer files bankruptcy, closes all stores He shared that some flavors are coming in April, with new variants being added in May. "First we'll see the Frosty Fusions, which is effectively adding flavor swirls to either a chocolate or vanilla Frosty in brownie batter, caramel, and strawberry," he explained. "But then we get wild soon after with three mix-in options including toffee pieces, Oreo cookies, and Pop-Tarts." All these new options enable Wendy's to keep both vanilla and chocolate on the menu. Wendy's closed its year strongly, according to Chief Executive Kirk Tanner. "In the U.S., our traffic and dollar growth outpaced the [quick-service-restaurant] burger category," he said on the chain's fourth-quarter earnings call. "Growth was led by the success of our collaboration with Paramount, celebrating SpongeBob's 25th anniversary. At its peak, this fan favorite drove an impressive 20% lift in same-restaurant sales with increased traffic and an average check, including a Crabby Patty with nearly double our typical size," He also noted that more typical limited-time offers helped, too. "Growth in the quarter was also supported by innovative limited-time offerings, including our Salted Caramel Frosty and Mushroom Bacon Cheeseburger," he added. "The morning daypart continued to be a strong contributor to U.S. growth with sales up over 4% compared to the prior year." Related: Another big-name food brand files Chapter 11 bankruptcy The Frosty is an important part of the chain's plans going forward. "Our innovation extended beyond the breakfast daypart with a series of new menu items, including our Saucy Nuggs that expanded our chicken offerings," he said. "We also featured new limited-time Frosty flavors tailored to each season to provide fresh, exciting experiences that resonated with our customers throughout the year." The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
The Independent
05-03-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Martin Lewis falls to floor after struggling through live TV appearance
Martin Lewis dramatically threw himself on the floor after a challenging episode of The Martin Lewis Money Show Live saw him present while losing his voice. The 52-year-old finance expert returned to UK screens this week where he and co-star Jeanette Kwakye offered money saving advice to viewers, including how to get a free Burger King Whopper on Wednesday (5 March). However, towards the end of the episode, Lewis began to struggle and cough, admitting: 'That's it from me! My voice has gone... JK?' Laughing, Kwakye said: 'I was going to ask you what is going on for next week...' An exasperated Lewis took a gulp of water and replied: 'We're probably going to do wills and power of attorney and difficult conversations. But it may change. I don't know. I might be doing savings! Let me know which you prefer.' He then comedically added: 'Thank you to Jeanette, thank you to the audience, thank you to everybody upstairs... I'm going for a lie down!'' Lewis then threw himself to the studio floor while the audience chuckled and applauded as the show came to an end. Elsewhere, Lewis has warned savers they face an 'urgent deadline' of just a few weeks to top up their pension pot by as much as £50,000. Most people under 73 have until 5 April to boost their state pension amounts for retirement in just a few straightforward steps. This is the deadline to 'buy back' any missing national insurance years from 2006 to 2018 – a crucial element in securing the most out of the state pension. 'Getting those is what can be worth tens of thousands of pounds,' Mr Lewis told viewers. Speaking on Tuesday evening's show, the money expert joked: 'I suspect I've probably crashed the government's website.' Although no link has been confirmed, users were reporting issues accessing HMRC and Universal Credit later that evening and into Wednesday morning. The government put the deadline in place to ensure that those who could be affected by the new state pension transitional arrangements have time to secure the full amount. It covers the years between 6 April 2006 and 5 April 2018, while people can continue to always fill in gaps over the last six years.
