What defines fast food?

Gruene town Fido is killing this thread.

Been to In-n-Out once, was underwhelmed. Been to 5 Guys once, was underwhelmed. So my answer is neither, I'll just go to Whataburger.

Being slow doesn't elevate a restaurant beyond "fast food" status, it just means they're slow.

(And I'll take Sarah Jessica Parker, if "both" isn't an option.)

5 guys is a big bag of meh.

In n Out is better among those 2.

but, luckily in Houston we Lankfords and Christian's and Hubcap to choose from.

Just got to Beck's Prime and be done with it.

Five Guys is the burger version of Chipotle.

5 guys is not fast food for the same reason that jason's deli, freebirds, cici's, chipotle, etc aren't fast food. It's not that complicated. It's how they behave in the marketplace. What you think of their food isn't important.

I have never been impressed with In N Out, it's just 'meh' and their appeal in Texas is due to their exclusivity to the West Coast/new entry into our market

Five Guys, on the other hand, revolutionized my tastebuds. Love their fries and the so-called Cajun seasoning (I know it's not spicy, but I still like it). Fills me up every time, even without the double patty.

Shake Shack

It's fast food. Don't try and tell me my s*** is a roll of nickels either.

People like in-n-out because they think they're special since they know about the "secret" menu that's not actually a secret.

Hmmm...I live on the west coast in San Diego. Comparisons to Whataburger don't fly since we don't have those here.

5 Guys is fast food, the fact they lack a drive through doesn't change anything, you can sit down in an In-n-Out and the interiors look nearly identical. Except all the peanut shells littering the ground at 5 Guys.

Out here they are direct competitors but I still don't care for them as much.

The In-n-Out in Barstow, CA is damn near a religious stopping point as it's the 1/2 way point-ish on a road trip to Vegas.

I do agree if they added bacon In-n-Out would hit an all time high. But no milkshakes sinks 5 Guys every time.

Interesting read that I found when using the google.
http://www.qsrmagazine.com/qsr-50/whataburger-way

quote:

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In the Dallas market, Cardwell says, Whataburger is “single-handedly responsible” for residents’ slow response to In-N-Out Burger, a similarly heralded chain in its home state of California.

“I think people go to In-N-Out Burger and they think it’s good, but say, ‘We already have Whataburger,’” Cardwell says. “Plus, Texans are pretty protective of their brands.”

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In-N-out is good. It's fast food people. At the end of that day, none of it is really all that good. As far as Whataburger goes, the best thing about that place is their ketchup. I don't care for room temperature burgers.

The sad part is that at most of these places, the fries are terrible. It's like they are an afterthought.

Fuddruckers are better than both, more choices of size and type of burgers, cooked to order and all the produce you want.

In N Out is the best fast food burger by far. Way better than Whataburger in my opinion. But it's a fast food burger. Fast food sucks.

Five guys is a decent greasy burger. Fun to eat occasionally.

Between the two I would choose Five Guys.

5 Guys, no question.

Sarah Jessica Parker - If I had to choose.

Five Guys is OK. I hate their soggy fries. In n Out is OK, too, but WB is better. Mooyah is about the same as Five Guys. Steak and Shake is my new favorite.

Fudds, Millers, and Tookies still get the nod before these others mentioned.

I haven't tried twisted root. Thoughts?

As a Californian Implanted (by choice) in the Republic, I'd say five guys is better than In&Out. It's just a "Hey we are West Coast" thing for In & Out. I mean its a good burger but five guys is awesome if you like all the mushrooms and onions and everything else with it. But nothing is as good as Whataburger.

InO sucks. The "secret" menu makes it even worse. I am sorry but not being able to just walk into a new restaurant and order off the menu is bull****.

If you tell someone you didn't like InO, they will ask what you got and then spend 10 minutes how you ordered it all wrong completely ignoring the fact that there are three items on the ****ing menu.

"Oh, you didn't get it whatever style? and you didn't get yoru fries extra crisppy? No neoplolitan shake? Man, you did it all wrong!"


5 guys is a good burger with decent fries (provided that you eat them with vinegar) but is over priced.

twisted root tries why to hard.

YOu can get a good burger there and I like their pickle selection but the whole "here is the name of some b-list celeb/character that we will call instead of your name" thing annoys the crap out of me and it really inefficient with out any benefit.

If you can't get a simple burger with cheese right, no secret menu can redeem your experience.

Had my first In & Out a couple of weeks ago and I thought the double double was rather good, and priced right.

quote:

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'5 guys is not fast food for the same reason that jason's deli, freebirds, cici's, chipotle, etc aren't fast food. It's not that complicated. It's how they behave in the marketplace. What you think of their food isn't important.

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Freebirds and Chipotle aren't fast food?

I'd rather eat at In and Out than Jason's Deli.

If this isn't fast food...then I don't know what the hell is.

Freebirds, Chipolte and Five Guys are fast casual.

I would have to choose 5 Guys. Been to both multiple times.

quote:

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InO sucks. The "secret" menu makes it even worse. I am sorry but not being able to just walk into a new restaurant and order off the menu is bull****.

If you tell someone you didn't like InO, they will ask what you got and then spend 10 minutes how you ordered it all wrong completely ignoring the fact that there are three items on the ****ing menu.

"Oh, you didn't get it whatever style? and you didn't get yoru fries extra crisppy? No neoplolitan shake? Man, you did it all wrong!"


5 guys is a good burger with decent fries (provided that you eat them with vinegar) but is over priced.

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Exactly, although I would say it still is one of the better option when out west.


[This message has been edited by Jock 07 (edited 8/11/2013 9:42a).]

quote:

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What defines fast food?

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For me, if you
- order
- pay/get food
- eat
it's fast food.

If you
- order
- get food
- eat
- get check/pay
It's not. There is not a division based on what the specific foods are, since anything can be made ahead of time. Some things survive this better than others, of course.

That's my best working definition, but it does lead to some cognitive dissonance for me. For example, most BBQ would fit my definition, but I don't think of BBQ as fast food. But it's the best operational definition I can come up with. For example, I think the requirement for a drive-through is worse. There are many McD's with no drive-through; that doesn't make those locations not fast food.

fast casual...lol

Whataburger > Five Guys > > > > > > > > > > > In n Out

Ok, so Whataburger's deal is that they say they don make your burger until you order it, right? Then why in the hell have I never had a hamburger from there that was any warmer than room temperature?

^

Because Whataburger sucks.