Tag: Fast Food

REVIEW: Burger King Fiery Bacon Whopper

Marvo 1 Comment

Remember Burger King’s Angry Whopper? I want to call the new Fiery Bacon Whopper the Annoyed Whopper. Not quite angry and not quite calm. Although, if I remember correctly, the Angry Whopper wasn’t that angry. Angrywho, this comes with 1/4 lb flame-grilled beef with crispy fiery-seasoned bacon, pepper jack cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, and a creamy fiery sauce n a toasted sesame seed bun.

It’s part of BK’s Fiery Menu that lets you have it your way if that way is with a bit of heat. We’ve already covered two of the five menu items with various heat ratings, with this Whopper in the middle. But using my personal five-point heat index, I’d rate it a two. Its mild heat isn’t anything that would make me put my mouth under any ICEE spigot behind the Burger King counter, and it might’ve been spicier without the vegetables.

Because most of the accoutrements are standard Whopper fare (patty, bun, lettuce, and tomato), I won’t go too deep into them. The two special additions—the Fiery sauce and fiery-seasoned bacon—do make themselves known, not only with their spiciness but also with their flavor.

The creamy sauce had a great smoky and peppery taste that also brought a little heat. Being creamy probably prevented it from getting too spicy, but I appreciate that because it allowed the sauce’s flavors to come through. Surprisingly, the seasoned bacon seemed to be spicier and more peppery than the condiment, but it’s a heat that doesn’t take away from the bacon’s smokiness. Unfortunately, while BK claims the bacon to be “crispy,” the strips I got were chewy. But I’ll forgive them for that because I enjoyed their taste.

As for the pepper jack cheese, I didn’t notice any heat from it, but it added a pleasant mild cheesiness. But I imagine its creaminess also prevented this from getting too mouth burn-y.

While I enjoyed Burger King’s Fiery Bacon Whopper, my favorite bites were the ones towards the end without the lettuce and tomato. With those last bites, I could really taste the seasoning and sauce, and it made me wish there was a BK Fiery Stacker with just the beef patties, fiery bacon, fiery sauce, and bun. Maybe for next year’s Fiery Menu, Burger King?

Overall, the Fiery Bacon Whopper was a pretty tasty burger. However, how much I paid for it took some of the taste out of my mouth. Yes, as I will mention at the end of this review, I live in a part of the country where things can get expensive, but even at eight dollars, it would’ve been pricey.

Purchased Price: $10.29* (sandwich only)
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 800 calories, 47 grams of fat, 18 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 130 milligrams of cholesterol, 1690 milligrams of sodium, 58 grams of carbohydrates, 6 grams of fiber, 16 grams of sugar, and 43 grams of protein.

*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.

REVIEW: Popeyes Caramel Apple Cheesecake Cup

Marvo Leave a comment

As I type this, fall is almost in the air, and leaves are getting ready to let gravity guide them to the ground to be raked. Popeyes is welcoming the season with its new Caramel Apple Cheesecake Cup. Although, Popeyes, who uses orange everywhere, looks like it’s always welcoming autumn.

According to the chicken chain, the new dessert features rich cheesecake swirled with a sweet, tangy caramel apple filling over a buttery graham cracker crust. This isn’t Popeyes’ first foray into pre-made cheesecakes in cups, having also offered Oreo and Strawberry flavors over the years.

Popeyes’ description didn’t specifically mention the apple bits throughout the dessert. They’re larger than rice grains and had a crunch you’d expect from the actual fruit, but they didn’t provide much flavor. To be honest, they were kind of unnecessary because the caramel apple filling did all the heavy lifting with its artificial tart fruit flavor.

However, the level of apple varied from bite to bite. Sometimes, I got a noticeable apple and caramel flavor. Other times, I tasted more caramel than apple. And there were moments when I didn’t taste any apple, just the caramel and cheesecake. As for the caramel, it looked like it could be gooey from the top, but it was not. Instead, it blended in with the cheesecake’s texture. The cheesecake itself had a pleasant tang to it beyond what the filling provided, and it had a dense texture one would expect from the dessert.

While the cheesecake part of the dessert was great, the crust made this dessert for me. It was buttery, mildly sweet, and gritty, contrasting texturally and flavor-wise with the sweet and tart filling. I loved it enough in this dessert that those sporkfuls I scooped out sans crust made me slightly sad.

Four bucks might seem a little pricey for Popeyes’ Caramel Apple Cheesecake Cup, but it was a tasty way to celebrate autumn’s coming. Although I admit, the 18 grams of saturated fat makes me hesitant to eat this at the end of a Popeyes meal.

Purchased Price: $3.99*
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 480 calories, 29 grams of fat, 18 grams of saturated fat, 1 gram of trans fat, 115 milligrams of cholesterol, 390 milligrams of sodium, 43 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 30 grams of sugar, and 5 grams of protein.

*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.

REVIEW: Sonic Smasher

Brandon 11 Comments

If you’ve read any of the Sonic reviews I’ve written for this site over the past eight years, you’ll:

  1. Know that I tend to love nearly everything I try.
  2. Possibly recall the one time I said Sonic is better than In-N-Out.
  3. Probably discounted anything else I’ve subsequently said on account of B.

In my defense, I will once again point out—as I do each time—that it is one magical Sonic location in particular; I know that not all stores are created equal, and, in the parlance of online absolution, “your mileage may vary.”

It was with this predisposition of enjoyment that I tried the new Sonic Smasher, which features “two Angus beef, seasoned patties smashed and seared, crispy on the edges and juicy in the middle… two slices of melty American cheese, a creamy, tangy Smasher sauce, crinkle-cut pickles, diced onions, and…a pillowy soft potato bun.”

So, you know, a smashburger. With special sauce.

Pretty standard stuff.

That said, HOLY HELL was this delicious.

The patties—delightfully thin and crispy around the edges—had a beautifully earthy beef flavor, far better than any other major chain’s patty. The cheese was your standard fast food American, but it melted exquisitely into the meat. The sauce was a pretty run-of-the-mill burger sauce, Thousand Island-style, but maybe a bit sweeter than the sauce from the Sad Clown’s Big Mac. The next time I get one (which can’t come soon enough), I might try regular mayo; Sonic does good mayonnaise, and it is my preferred burger sauce. The onions were perfect, and while I’m not typically a pickle guy, these were leagues better than the regular floppy discs that adorn most chain burgers. (Though I will say, I feel like many places have upgraded their pickles over the past year or two, so maybe these are par for the course.)

My only complaint about this burger is that I didn’t go three patties. Well, and maybe also that I’m of an age where I shouldn’t responsibly consume more than one of these a month. But if my heart health was of no concern, I’d eat one of these a week, easy. I genuinely hope that Sonic keeps these around for the long haul and that you have a Sonic near you as good as the one on 91st.

Purchased Price: $6.59
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 600 calories, 37 grams of fat, 14 grams of saturated fat, 100 milligrams of cholesterol, 1530 milligrams of sodium, 30 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 3 grams of sugar, and 35 grams of protein.

REVIEW: Subway Spicy Nacho Chicken Sub

Karen 5 Comments

In our house, Subway plays the role of the last line of defense before the tofu is deployed. When I’m all ready to make my famous (in my own mind) tofu and veggies stir fry for dinner, my husband will often say, with forced casualness, “Dear, you’ve had a long day. If you don’t feel like cooking tonight, you know, I could always just run over to Subway…”

Now, I should tell him that he will eat his gosh-darned tofu, and he will like it, but sometimes I give in to the lazy out he’s giving me. Then I watch as my family consumes subs heaping with cheese and deli meat that probably have more saturated fat than the entire Cheesecake Factory menu put together. I might be a bad homemaker.

Fortunately, Subway’s offerings are a little more extensive than just Italian Double Meat BMTs. It’s got some new offerings this summer, including the Spicy Nacho Chicken Sub. This fairly ambitious sandwich is made with rotisserie-style chicken, green peppers, red onions, jalapenos, cheddar cheese sauce, creamy sriracha, and “SubKrunch.” SubKrunch is a new option at Subway, little fried crunchy bits that add a nice bit of texture.

I was surprised by how much the SubKrunch added to the experience. They were generous with these little things, kind of like French fried onions, and the constant-yet-not-annoying crunch level was fun. You can supposedly add SubKrunch to any existing sub, and I’m curious to see what my favorite tuna sub tastes like with a bunch of crunch added.

Even though there are jalapenos and sriracha, the heat level never gets that high. I felt the heat from the jalapenos on the tip of my tongue as I ate them, but the spiciness didn’t seem to spread through my mouth that much. The cheddar cheese provides a nice contrast, but you don’t get it with every bite; it’s nice when it shows up. I found the chicken really savory and juicy, which was surprising because I haven’t been enamored of Subway’s chicken products in the past. The bread was, well, bread…it didn’t add much flavor, but the sandwich is so packed full of flavor it doesn’t matter. I’m curious if trying it with one of Subway’s other breads would make much of a difference. The veggies just add a bit of texture, I didn’t really taste them, but they added some vitamins, so yaaay?

On the whole, this is a really tasty sandwich. I don’t know if I’d switch out my classic Tuna Sub with veggies for this new guy, but I’d definitely at least consider it—which is saying something if you know just how many Subway Tuna Subs I’ve eaten in my life. But this is all irrelevant because I’m clearly going to start making vegan, home-cooked meals for my family all the time and not give in to the siren song of Subway take-out anymore…except for possibly Thursdays.

Purchased Price: $11.79
Size: Footlong
Rating: 9 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 890 calories. (No other nutritional numbers for the whole sandwich are available on Subway’s website.)

REVIEW: Taco Bell Jalapeno Ranch Nacho Fries

Marvo Leave a comment

Over the past few years, Taco Bell has reached out to sauce makers most have never heard of to feature their products on the fast food chain’s Nacho fries. Remember Yellowbird? How about TRUFF? Secret Aardvark? But for the latest, Taco Bell uses a sauce made in-house with its Jalapeño Ranch Nacho Fries.

The loaded spuds offering has seasoned beef, jalapeño ranch sauce, reduced fat sour cream, nacho cheese sauce, cheddar cheese, and pico de gallo on its Nacho Fries. There’s also a veggie version being advertised that swaps the seasoned beef with black beans.

The sauce du jour has a pleasant green color that makes it look like Taco Bell’s Avocado Verde Salsa, but it was not as tasty or spicy as the sauce that debuted with the chain’s Cantina Chicken Menu. I’m pretty sure I didn’t notice the jalapeño ranch because it was overwhelmed by the other gloopy condiments, the nacho cheese sauce and the reduced fat sour cream. At times, there was a minuscule level of heat, but for the most part it was tame.

I think my taste buds were more impressed with the addition of pico de gallo. It’s been on other limited-time Nacho Fries offerings, but this was the first time my mouth was experiencing it and I think it should be on all loaded Nacho Fries. Or I’ll just add it to whatever Taco Bell offers in the future since it’s so easy to customize via the app. The acidic punch from the tomatoes and the bite from the onions add a freshness that helps cut through the savoriness of all the sauces.

While I didn’t find the headlining sauce to be too noticeable, that doesn’t mean Taco Bell’s Jalapeño Ranch Nacho Fries are a complete fail. Yes, the combination of the seasoned beef, sour cream, and nacho cheese sauce makes these fries taste too similar to many other Taco Bell menu items. But overall, it tastes fine. Though, I’d recommend spending a little bit more to customize it with more jalapeño ranch.

Purchased Price: $5.99*
Rating: 6 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 480 calories, 31 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 20 milligrams of cholesterol, 1080 milligrams of sodium, 41 grams of carbohydrates, 5 grams of fiber, 3 grams of sugar, and 9 grams of protein.

*Because I live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, things are a bit pricier here. You’ll probably pay less than I did.