294358 Wed Oct 08 03:11:05 -0700 2003 28 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1614065 Has anyone tried Hardee's Thickburger? I've heard through a biased source that they're aberrantly good (they're made from "Angus beef" (is that the same as Black Angus, or are they playing games?), and Hardee's is generally trying to make themselves over as the super-high quality alternative in fast food. The nearest Hardee's is 150 miles from me. I'm just not willing to go that far to disprove the theory. Anyone? ciao Link: http://hardees.com/pressroom_details.cfm?id=23 Wed Oct 08 03:11:05 -0700 2003 0 Jim Leff 1 1614072 Certified Angus Beef isn't exactly Black Angus. It is a marketing trademark. CAB® Here is a quote from there site with the exact page listed. No herds are "certified" and no living animals are actually "Certified Angus Beef." That is the trademark for Angus beef product that, after meeting the live specification of being at least 51% black-hided, the U.S. Department of Agriculture verifies as meeting eight carcass specifications. The most difficult carcass specification to meet is a quality grade of middle Choice or higher. Last year, some 9 million fed cattle that appeared to be Angus-type were evaluated at the 32 licensed CAB® processing plants across the U.S., and 1.9 million of those cattle had carcasses that met the specs and became CAB® product. The owners of those cattle at the time of sale to packers realized a premium if they sold them through some form of value-based marketing. http://www.certifiedangusbeef.com/sd/caqs.htm#certify Link: http://www.cabprogram.com/ Image: http://www.cabprogram.com/images/Mouthwatering/logo.jpg Wed Oct 08 09:14:21 -0700 2003 1614065 0 The Rogue 2 1617560 Maybe we should start calling it "Dangus" beef. Mon Jan 26 20:22:08 -0800 2004 1614072 0 flavrmeistr 1 1614079 I think they are pretty good. Especially compared to all the other fast food burgers out there. And their fries are decent too ! Wed Oct 08 09:56:58 -0700 2003 1614065 0 jilli42 1 1614080 I think they're on the right track - I would definitely pay more for a good burger. Maybe McD and BK will follow suite. Of course none of these places would cook these things right - all well done, I'm sure. Here's a product idea: 12 oz sirloin burger from iradiated top choice/prime beef cooked medium rare. These guys are trying hard to recapture market share - something like this for $5-6.00 would get me back in. But then, they're not trying to get me back in, just my kids. Where is the nearest Hardee's? Don't they have them in New Jersey? Wed Oct 08 10:00:37 -0700 2003 1614065 0 applehome 2 1614088 Looks like PA is closest. see link (and just plug in state names...there's no "fuzzy logic" on the city/zips). Link: http://hardees.com/finder.cfm Wed Oct 08 11:46:06 -0700 2003 1614080 0 Jim Leff 1 1614089 I haven't tried one yet, but thought I'd add this: Visiting my mother in northern Alabama recently, I saw Hardee's new TV campaign based on the Thickburger. It features black-and-white "documentary-style" shots of good-looking young men -- quite obviously blue-collar types (presumably the folks who know a good burger) -- talking about how they tried a Thickburger almost by accident (had to buy lunch for the guys on the construction crew, starving and stooped to stopping at Hardee's, etc.) and were amazed by Hardee's new burger. Actually fairly engaging stuff. The kicker is the tagline: "It's how the last place you'd go for a burger will become the first." I'm tempted. Unfortunately, there are no Hardee's in Chicago. Wed Oct 08 12:09:06 -0700 2003 1614065 0 Vicki W. 1 1614090 There are several qualities of ANGUS BEEF. The best one is CERTIFIED ANGUS, everything else is just the name of the Breed and may not be anywhere near as good. Come to Calif and we'll have "Hamburger Class", I mean, we will find a good one, even Kobe beef(Wagu)is possible in LA, but my favorite meat is at the Pacific Dining Car(fresh Ground per order). I think Carl's JR owns Hardee's, if true that's not a good thing when it comes to quality. Wed Oct 08 12:10:20 -0700 2003 1614065 0 russkar 2 1614110 You are correct!! If you go to the Hardee's Finder link on Jim Leff's comment below, you'll see the Carl's Happy Star logo! Wed Oct 08 13:39:26 -0700 2003 1614090 0 LesThePress 3 1614121 The Hardees chain was owned by Advantica(formerly Flagstar, formerly Spartan Foods) until it was sold to CKE restaurants in 1998 for $427 million. Advantica is known for its other fine dining establishments such as Denney's and Quincy's (the horror). They own El Pollo Loco as well, which was actually not bad for fast food, but it closed up quick in a town that prefers the standard beans and lard mexican joints. Burgers are cooked well done by law in this state. Is it possible to order a fast food burger to temp in other states? Wed Oct 08 14:26:00 -0700 2003 1614110 0 danna 1 1614093 If anyone out there in fast food marketing land is listening, I would definitely pay an extra buck of two for a quality fast food burger. Just make sure to keep a kiddie size too (1/3 lb. is a bit much for a 4 year old). Wed Oct 08 12:23:56 -0700 2003 1614065 0 sbp 1 1614094 I've had two of them, and I think they're delicious. My favorite is the half pound on sourdough with bacon and cheese. So tasty! Wed Oct 08 12:34:01 -0700 2003 1614065 0 Catherine 1 1614179 Pretty good, when there's no time to cook. I haven't had Hardees for years. But with the Thickburger, I was transported back in time to North Augusta, South Carolina in 1970, when Hardees was unique and good to my taste buds at that time. It really did taste like that again. Wed Oct 08 21:23:49 -0700 2003 1614065 0 shoo-bee-doo 1 1614211 Only 3 people have tried one? I like that response rate to a question about fast food. Hardees moved out of Des Moines a couple years ago. We still have a couple out in the 'burbs. I'm curious myself now, so I will get out this weekend and hunt one down. I'll get back to you. Thu Oct 09 11:26:26 -0700 2003 1614065 0 Bobfrmia 1 1614268 would all you dear chowhounds please be careful before consuming even "irradiated" ground beef cooked rare in a fast food joint? e. coli is no joke. the CDC guidelines are posted below. 61 people a year die from this, guys. 73,000 get sick enough to visit the hospital/doctor and merit national reporting... Link: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/escherichiacoli_g.htm Thu Oct 09 16:05:05 -0700 2003 1614065 0 butterisbetter 2 1614345 Irradiation kills e. coli. Irradiation is safe and leaves the food virtually unaffected (some nutrition is lost). Some folks are fighting the USDA, especially with regard to their approval of irradiation for government beef used in school lunch programs, but there's been years of study done to show that irradiation is safe. The FDA approved the process 20 years ago. I'm sure there were plenty of folks that fought pasteurization - and in fact, we know that some items are better unpasteurized (cheese, beer). But the overwhelming results over the years is that pasteurization works and saves lives. Irradiating meat will certainly become a standard process once it is economically feasible. If the irradiated ground beef is handled after treatment by dirty hands, it can have e. coli - but if it is treated after forming, (certainly most fast food places send patties to the store), it would be safe - it's only the meat left rare on the inside that is a concern, as the outside will reach a safe temperature. I eat raw ground beef at Korean restaurants, so I'm obviously not too worried. I would feel much better if it was irradiated. I feel that the kitchen standards in the places I eat this are pretty good. They don't have minimum wage high school kids that don't care whether they washed hands two weeks ago or not, preparing the Yu Kwe. As far as I know there are no laws for burger doneness in MA. In fact I saw a review of a place that was very proud of their rare burgers, (and their cleanlines standards, as I recall). But most places insist on serving you brown through and through hockey pucks. Ridiculous enough that do-gooders want to ruin your food to save you, but then to have such a workable solution and to not use it... well, that's just insane. Fri Oct 10 00:25:25 -0700 2003 1614268 0 applehome 3 1614379 my only objection and warning is about fast food kitchen environments. what else did you do with YOUR hands when you were 15 years old, earning $5/hour? Enough said. If you trust Hardee's kitchen staff with your food, more power to you, just please don't serve it to your kids or grandmother. I do enjoy raw beef from lots of cleaner environments, ground or otherwise, and you've convinced me on the irradiation thing (although, they've got to pick a friendlier name for the process or it will NEVER sell, mark my words). However, Hardee's is not getting my money any time soon. Fri Oct 10 09:45:20 -0700 2003 1614345 0 butterisbetter 2 1614374 On average, 73 people are killed by lightning in the U.S. every year. Fri Oct 10 09:29:21 -0700 2003 1614268 0 AlanH 3 1614382 tell that to the parents of the 4-year-olds killed at Jack in the Box. Fri Oct 10 09:49:30 -0700 2003 1614374 0 butterisbetter 4 1614402 Hey, you pay your money, you take your chances. Fri Oct 10 10:36:43 -0700 2003 1614382 0 AlanH 3 1614439 Alan, you are my new hero. Fri Oct 10 13:15:07 -0700 2003 1614374 0 Bob Martinez 4 1614444 Thanks man. Fri Oct 10 14:23:54 -0700 2003 1614439 0 AlanH 1 1614275 HA! This is great. I worked in a Hardees in Nebraska for one summer in high school. Will research this 'thickburger' with friends still in the area. The grill has a timer on it. You put the burger down, push the button, it beeps when the corporate kitchen has decided it is safe for all to consume. Rest assured, they won't change this method to give people burgers cooked to order. I like Hardees. Still do but there are none in Boston. I've often felt that the Frisco Burger may very well be the finest iteration of the fast food hamburger I've had (In & Out is sort of apples & oranges to it). Little known fact, we technically gave people a choice of sides that were surprisingly tasty. Instead of fries you could have had mac & cheese or peach cobbler (or was it apple?). Fries suck though. Still do. Sigh..memories...$0.99 all-you-can-eat biscuits & gravy on Sundays. Emptying the vats of 400-degree hot oil with a precariously balanced pump. Oh, and manufacturers of oil-based makeup bought our disgusting dumpsters full of burnt oil, FYI. Thu Oct 09 16:22:02 -0700 2003 1614065 0 joypirate 1 1614334 Thickburgers kick the hell out of anything Wendy's. McD's or BK has to offer. Also better than Jack In the Box and Sonic. Kinda messy for dinin' while drivin'. Thu Oct 09 22:21:39 -0700 2003 1614065 0 Jim 1 1614359 Jessh, it's a good burgur Jim. Not worth 150 mile travle or nothen though. Jessseh. I don't like thick burgers. Fri Oct 10 04:10:33 -0700 2003 1614065 0 JoCreek 1 1617556 When the big dog first posted this, I replied that I would try one and report on it. I promptly forgot about it till this weekend when I found myself driving by a Hardees. 3 months is about right for my memory. So, I had the 1/2 lb sourdough with cheese and bacon. The beef is decent. It is much better than the other fast food chains. It better be. At $4.19 for just the burger, it will be hard to get people to switch. That said, it is not a great burger. It was cooked well done, pretty dry, and the toppings were, well, it's a bad time of year for tomatoes. They claim to cook them to order, so you should expect to wait. I waited about 5 minutes and the burger was warm, barely. It was 3 in the afternoon, so I think they over anticipated the lunch crowd. Overall, if I'm in the mood for a burger, I'm not in the mood to cook, The local places are closed for some reason, I would have another. If I'm on the run just looking for fill, only if one happens along. Bottom line being, if I'm willing to spend more for a good burger, I'll throw in another dollar and get one from The Library, a local place with killer burgers. I'm sure most places have something like it. Mon Jan 26 13:44:45 -0800 2004 1614065 0 Bobfrmia 1 1617557 If they don't even serve real roast beef anymore, why would their "Thickbuger" be any good? Mon Jan 26 15:30:11 -0800 2004 1614065 0 2chez mike 2 1617559 Oops. I was thinking of Arby's. Mon Jan 26 19:51:54 -0800 2004 1617557 0 2chez mike 1 1617558 Berkley, where I live is home to the worst Taco Bell in the world, but also just down the road, a Hardee's--I must pass it 16 times a week. I think I've had two meals there in the past 10 years--it just doesn't register on the radar. BUT, for the alpha dog, I will make a trek and try the burger and let you know. (I thought it looked disgustingly huge on the big photo in the window....but hey, anything for the 'hound info pool.) Mon Jan 26 17:56:39 -0800 2004 1614065 0 berkleybabe