Went to Wendy's today, first time in 35 years.

[kc7jty]

Oh Gawd... this is whitey food. The cheeseburgers were so bland tasting.
Never did like their hamburgers but I had a coupon.
another 35... ?

dahgum chee-boygie was $3.89.
buy 1 get 1.

[N2CHX]

Never really did like Wendy's. Then again, I never really did like any fast food.

[kc7jty]

Sometimes Mickey's sausage, egg, & cheese biscuit can be pretty good. I like a Whopper on occasion even though they are carcinogenic and make laboratory test rats violently ill.

[WØTKX]

When Wendy's first came out they did not overcook the burgers, and had a decent salad bar.

[K7SGJ]

That was before Dave died. Always used to like their chili bar and salad bar. Haven't been to one for a long time.

[kc7jty]

It had a 1/4 pound of meat though, I think the Whopper is down to about half that now.

[K7SGJ]

You can get the weight up, just order it medium with extra grease. Should go 5-5 1/2 oz,

[kf0rt]

I'm pretty sure Wendy's didn't even exist 35 years ago.

Their food isn't horrible. Not great, but not bad. You can get a salad instead of french fries - the salad is mo betta. Try that with the spicy chicken sandwich.

I'm convinced that fast food lunches will kill me. For a good time, go to Chick-fil-a and order a chicken strip salad (Ranch dressing) and a small chocolate milk shake. It'll run you about 9 bucks, but it's worth every penny. You can put that on my obituary.

[kc7jty]

For $7 (senior price) I can get a Korean lunch buffet that's not bad. Chocolate milkshake?

I knew there was a Wendy's in my area of PA before I moved to Idaho in 1977:
http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/8787/21428056.png

[kf0rt]

Got me on the dates. I don't recall seeing any in these parts until the early 80's.

[NQ6U]

Only one fast food place even considering:

http://www.restaurantdiningcritiques.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/esq-in-n-out-logo-080709-lg-480721701.jpg
If you don't have one in your neighborhood, eat at a real restaurant. Or at home.

[W4GPL]

Mmm, In-N-Out Burger -- one of the few reasons I like to go to California. :)

[K7SGJ]

Mmm, In-N-Out Burger -- one of the few reasons I like to go to California. :)

Gotem in AZ too. Good stuff for ff.

[W3WN]

I'm pretty sure Wendy's didn't even exist 35 years ago.
< snip >It did. Wasn't as big a chain as it is now (one of the majors, but Hardees was for a time bigger), but it was around.

The BK I worked at was permitted to sell burgers to the local MickeyDee's or Wendy's if they ran short. We weren't allowed to buy theirs though. McD bought a case or two from us about once every two weeks, Wendy's never did.

The Whopper is still a 1/4 pound. Problem is, they now microwave it to reheat it or to melt cheese, instead of the good ol' days when they used a "steamer" to reheat/melt & reinject moisture. So they now get double-cooked and the taste, such as it is, is destroyed.

By the way, the regular BK burger is about an 1/8 pound (weight before cooking, of course). So if you want the meat, get a double burger instead. A little cheaper, a little less bread. If you order your Whopper without Lettuce or Tomato or both, you'll save indirectly because you're not paying for the stuff; you pay for it as part of the Whopper whether you get it or not.

Wendy's, by the way, does not charge extra for lettuce or tomato. BK does, and I think McD's does as well.

[W3WN]

< snip >
Their food isn't horrible. Not great, but not bad. You can get a salad instead of french fries - the salad is mo betta. Try that with the spicy chicken sandwich.
< snip >Or a baked potato instead of fries. Healthier for you. Don't get the sour cream, and keep the (fake) butter to a minimum.

[W3MIV]

The healthiest option of all is to not go at all.

[kf0rt]

I sit corrected. And agree with Albi. ;)

[kf0rt]

Or a baked potato instead of fries. Healthier for you. Don't get the sour cream, and keep the (fake) butter to a minimum.

I sometimes think I've hit my lifetime quota of potato.

[kc7jty]

Microwaved baked ​potatoes are the pits.

[K7SGJ]

I sometimes think I've hit my lifetime quota of potato.

Me too. More peeling than consuming. Thanx to the US Army.

[kf0rt]

Me too. More peeling than consuming. Thanx to the US Army.

And now we find out that the peel is the healthiest part.

[K7SGJ]

And now we find out that the peel is the healthiest part.

True, but I always liked the skin. It's the best part of the potato, I think.

[W3MIV]

I never peel 'em, not even for mashed. If'n ye cain't handle the skins, eat elsewhere!

[kc7jty]

I never had a problem with skin.

http://snsimages.tribune.com/media/photo/2011-06/260086300-02171918.jpg

[suddenseer]

The skin is where the nutrients hang around. I eat red potatoes with the skins. I remember Wendy's introduced the drive thru window to my town. All the rest copied that concept.

[W3WN]

The healthiest option of all is to not go at all.Well, there is that.

[n2ize]

I always enjoyed those little White Castle hamburgers. When I was in college they saved the night many times hen we;d be working in the computer lab or studying till very late. My Mom and dad always liked them so sometimes when i was coming home I;d bring a sack of 20 or 30 of those things to make sure there were always plenty left over in the fridge. Matter of fact just thinking about it is tempting me to take a run down to the Bronx and pick up a couple dozen of those things.

[kc7jty]

Hayzus Crisco! The thought of those things fresh from the steamer at White Castle is enough to cause uncontrollable body shudder. Left overs from the day before in the fridge? Good god man, don't you have any consideration for your fellow man?

[WØTKX]

Sliders are Sublime!

[W3MIV]

Sliders are Sublime!

Only when they beat the ball.

[kf0rt]

The only way to get White Castle here is frozen (supermarket). Must admit to never having the crave.

[W3MIV]

Must admit to never having the crave.

Pray that continues.

[NQ6U]

I remember how on my first trip back east, my hosts told me how I just must try White Castle burgers, that there was none better. I ate one and called it quits while they chowed down on the rest. Highly overrated, in my opinion.

[K7SGJ]

Some of the grocery stores here used to carry the frozen WC burgers, and we weren't impressed. It might be the fresh ones are better, but a gut bomb is still a gut bomb. I like the burgers we do over a hot bed of mesquite coals at our fire pit out back.

[n2ize]

Maybe its an acquired taste. I agree, if you are going to eat hamburgers few things can outdo cooking on a nice wood or charcoal grill. But there is something about those WC's. Maybe it's an acquired taste. Or maybe an addiction. The steamed roll, the onions, the pickle and somewhere in there that small thin burger. I don't think about them much but when I do the craving sets in.

[W1GUH]

Back to Wendy's.....

Something about some kind of sauce Wendy's used, or had on the table, emitted a very strong odor of B.O. Always kept me away from the place.

And as for WC's.....

Somehow, "Sliders" are now very, very "in." At least fancy ones. A few upscale restaurants now feature "mini-burgers" (aka sliders) as a small plate. And even on the Acela, one of the choices for dinner in first class last Friday was "A trio of mini-burgers."

Burgers over charcoal are, of course, marvelous. But, somehow, burgers fried on a stainless steel grill, as in old-time A&W burgers, wrapped in greasy wax paper, will always be the way "burgers ought to be!"

[kc7jty]

one of the choices for dinner in first class last Friday was "A trio of mini-burgers."
That's a red flag right there.

I can't buy lean grind beef burger at the supermarket anymore. Too unpredictable. Now if it's "100% sirloin", or you have some of those tough as shoe leather petite sirloin steaks ground up you have some decent hamburger.

[W3WN]

I remember how on my first trip back east, my hosts told me how I just must try White Castle burgers, that there was none better. I ate one and called it quits while they chowed down on the rest. Highly overrated, in my opinion.Like many things, it is a bit of an acquired taste.

I never cared for the White Caste/White Tower sliders. In large part because I prefer my burgers broiled or grilled on an open flame, not fried in their own grease. And I always tried to do what my mother used to do when we were kids... get the store to ground up the cut of beef in front of her, rather than by a package of "hamburger" containing lord knows what type of meat. Unfortunately, the local butcher is no more, and the workers at the ultrasuperdupermarket's meat counter look at you like you're from Mars (and I don't mean Mars PA) if you ask them.

[K7SGJ]

Like many things, it is a bit of an acquired taste.

I never cared for the White Caste/White Tower sliders. In large part because I prefer my burgers broiled or grilled on an open flame, not fried in their own grease. And I always tried to do what my mother used to do when we were kids... get the store to ground up the cut of beef in front of her, rather than by a package of "hamburger" containing lord knows what type of meat. Unfortunately, the local butcher is no more, and the workers at the ultrasuperdupermarket's meat counter look at you like you're from Mars (and I don't mean Mars PA) if you ask them.

My mom did the same. And you're right, it's sad the neighbor butcher shop is all but gone. My wife and I have been grinding our beef and pork for years. When we find some good looking cheap meat, we buy 10-15 pounds and make hamburger, stew beef, and what ever else we need. Not only do you end up with a better product, it is less expensive as well.

[W1GUH]

I understand that "lean" beef isn't the best for tasty hamburgers. The fat adds a LOT of flavor. In fact, some "grind-your-own" recipes include added fat.

[K7SGJ]

That's very true. Some people discard all the fat prior to grinding. We've found that some fat makes a juicer and better tasting dish. Depending on the use of the meat, we will add a little more or a little less of the fat to the grind, and mark the package accordingly.

[W3WN]

I understand that "lean" beef isn't the best for tasty hamburgers. The fat adds a LOT of flavor. In fact, some "grind-your-own" recipes include added fat.That's one of the reasons I like grilling burgers. The fat burns off, as part of the cooking process, while adding taste. Frying the burger does not remove the fat.

Lean burgers, in my experience, don't grill as well (taste-wise) for that reason, IMHO.

[kc7jty]

I understand that "lean" beef isn't the best for tasty hamburgers. The fat adds a LOT of flavor. In fact, some "grind-your-own" recipes include added fat.
"Lean" ground beef has 20% fat. I think 15% is plenty for flavor and greasiness.

[kc7jty]

The fat burns off
ah yes... that Burger King taste. Ever see the smoke coming from the exhaust vent at lunch time there?

[W3WN]

ah yes... that Burger King taste. Ever see the smoke coming from the exhaust vent at lunch time there?Try cleaning it every night.:fever:

Some images & smells will never leave me.

[n2ize]

I understand that "lean" beef isn't the best for tasty hamburgers. The fat adds a LOT of flavor. In fact, some "grind-your-own" recipes include added fat.

Lean beef is fine for grilled hamburgers. Too much fat and they flare up on the grill and the hamburger basically cooks in an open flame of its own grease, chars and burns it in the outside and leaves it raw inside. Lean beef cooks better on a grill. It slow cooks over the heat of the charcoal or wood, not the head of its own burning grease. The burger cooks better throughout and picks up the flavor of the hickory, or mesquite or whatever you are cooking over. The result is a very tasty hamburger, grilled and sealed on the outside, cooked throughout but still rare enough to be juicy and tasty throughout. Fatty meat on the grill is more like tossing the meat into an oil fire.

[WØTKX]

Moar Fat!

http://www.cheese-burger.net/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/deep-fried-cheeseburger8.jpg

[K7SGJ]

Just saw Wendy on one of their new commercials. She needs to back off on the burgers, fries, and milkshakes.