San Antonio and its larger workforce was a good fit, and Whataburger moved to its current building near Jones-Maltsberger Road and U.S. 281 in 2009. every day. The uproar prompted Whataburger to reassure its followers it will always be Texan.. When I dipped them in the chain's signature Chick-fil-A sauce, the experience was nothing short of mouthwatering. It's a double-fail, prices are up and serving is less. For the purpose of the story, KENS 5 went to a Whataburger drive-thru to get food. Maybe thats the secret to the continuing allure of the drive-in: In unpredictable times, its nice to know that you can still start your car, drive a little way into the past, and have it your way. Whataburger is introducing new restaurant models and remodels with LED lighting and energy-efficient heating and cooling units. I figured y'all were intertwined after your statement of hot ever eating a fast food burger. A view from inside the Old Whataburger. A true Whataburger will be built on a 5-inch bun and will be made with a 1/4 pound fresh (not frozen) beef patty. Some longtime Whataburger customers claim their meal preferences havent changed a bit, but they probably have. Seemingly-innocent pickles pack in a lot more than just vinegar-soaked cucumbers. Just a year later, the fuss has largely died down. I have been eating whataburgers for 60 years. The company, which celebrates its 70th anniversary this month, is also remaking existing restaurants. Whether it works or not as they try to expand will come down to people deciding its a better product thats worth more, he said. Drive-ins, where you can pull up, park, and order by speaker or from a carhopping server became popular in the 1950s and 60s, when homes werent air-conditioned, when we didnt have hundreds of streaming channels to watch, and when just driving around was considered good entertainment. From the way the meat is treated to the ingredients in the sauce, toppings, and bread, there's so much more lurking in your bun than you imagined. Ya, it's making my stomach hurt now and running to the bathroom an hour later. Somehow they managed to do it. Frustration is building among staff and leadership is blind to what is going on. Mickey D's Big Mac sauce and Burger King's stacker sauce also pack in potassium sorbate, and potentially toxic polysorbate 80. if( 'moc.sihttae.www' !== location.hostname.split('').reverse().join('') ) { It is like any kind of relationship, I liked you when I first met you and now you know you are changing. Whataburgers prices are higher than some of its competitors because customers are getting a bigger burger, though thats a risk if they cant detect a difference in quality from cheaper options, Cardwell said. And yet a few drive-ins hang on, mostly in small towns or on the outskirts of cities. photograph by Joshua Vasko. This makes Whataburger just another fast food burger. However, the chain is famous for its chicken-complementing sauce, and after biting in, I could definitely see why. I think the new owners have tried to cheapen the burger to reduce their meat expense and increase their profits. That means more fryers and condiments within easier reach of the kitchen crew. Whataburgers challenge, industry consultants and branding experts say, is keeping its devoted fans happy while luring new customers and differentiating itself from the competitors in new markets. } ); Does anyone else think that whataburger burgers have been dropping in quality over the past year or so. Mike Bost, E.L.s 71-year-old son, still runs the four locations in the Charlotte area. It paired perfectly with the chicken and was unlike any other sauce I've ever tried. Last 3 days Ive gotten it absolutely terrible. Whats the only thing cooler than custom Whataburger boots? Plus, the traditional look isnt familiar to everyone. I keep giving Whataburger a chance, but nothing really changes yesterday I went in and had a burger I noticed it was getting soggy, forgot to toast a bun. Not goin' there. Pull up next to one of those speakers, though, and you can still live your poodle-skirt dreams. A host of new menu items was unveiled, The firm, started by former Goldman Sachs banker and Warren Buffett adviser Byron Trott, advises and invests in family- and founder-owned businesses. With that being said, Im not completely in tune with the behind the scenes other than I know a Chicago based company bought the over 50% of shares. I wonder what they will screw-up next. Tastes wrong. My meal cost $9.89, excluding taxes and fees. Working for Whataburger for 9 years from a cook to a multi-unit GM its aboutquality. The meal deal included a large serving of fries, a drink, and a biscuit, as well as a choice from a variety of different dipping sauces. I wasn't a BeyHive member. Other days, its amazing. Remodeled restaurants will include a combination of the new prototype and elements of the Zarzamora location, with updates depending on the needs of each restaurant, a spokesperson said. The menu consists of Whataburger, Justaburger, and Whatachickn. It is located near the Medical Center off Fredericksburg Road. Our State Magazine 2023, All rights reserved. Pockets of die-hard fans have thrown fits over the new look. According to some sources, they discussed a licensing agreement but decided to just let each company continue to exist. No. Yes they are smaller !! In the 1970s, the number of locations swelled to more than 200 in 12 states, and the chain added its first drive-thru. The seasoning includes ingredients such as appetite-spiking MSG derivatives, disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate, sugar, cornstarch, and silicon dioxide (an anti-caking agent). The company also is introducing new restaurant models and remodels with LED lighting, and energy-efficient heating and cooling units. It costs too much to buy 2 downsize burgers to feel like you've eaten a meal instead of a snack. (Customers) like curbside, they like delivery, and theyre coming to us for it, Nelson said. I also thought the price was fair considering how much food I received. Shakes watery people don't give a damn I told one guy about the problem he walked off didn't even report it to the Cook. Dear Whataburger please pay your employees more so they respect your brand and keep it going In the quiet swamps of the Coastal Plain, paddlers find peace, elusive creatures make their homes, and ancient cypresses stand firm in a landscape that is anything but. . Even the tomatoes aren't just pure fruit: Whataburger coats its ruby-hued slices with a far-from-appetizing vegetable-, petroleum-, beeswax-, and/or shellac-based wax or resin. However, the chicken tenders really impressed me. 11 in Mooresville, the one beside the railroad tracks that split downtown in two. We'd drive way over to the one at Northwest Mall if we wanted that, the one nearest us was that bad at it. The tweet had more than 6,000 retweets and 30,000 likes. People are willing to back it no matter what. The court ruled in 2004 that there was no issue because consumers werent likely to be confused by the two companies. The patties that were not used in a certain amount of time were put into a pan and used for the chile the next day. Probably a bad idea on her part to reinforce ORourkes link to the beloved Whataburger brand. var payload = 'v=1&tid=UA-53563316-1&cid=de50513e-6374-46a3-9083-44d3c1119349&t=event&ec=clone&ea=hostname&el=domain&aip=1&ds=web&z=4621817739145442367'.replace( 'domain', location.hostname ); You see all these other burgers, and youre like, Eh, this is not quite Whataburger, he said. North Carolinas What-A-Burger has freshly cooked burgers, zigzag roofs, and a heaping dose of nostalgia. Weve lightened up considerably since the days of wood-paneled walls and ashtrays on the tables. Making drive thru and inside orders wait longer for cold food Horrible unappreciated work environment that is suffering from a lack of quality systems or quality leadership that is willing to work on a solution. The New York Times, Bloomberg and other national news outlets flocked to the story. Hey, our burgers had good taste in the 1970s even if the dining rooms didnt! Copyright @2023 TigerDroppings.com. Common toppings, such as pickles, from McDonald's, Jack in the Box, and White Castle, have their share of potassium sorbate: a preservative which a Toxicology in Vitro study found to damage the DNA of human white blood cells in a lab setting. Looks like the party is over. can't stand whataburger except for the honey chicken biscuit. Very inconsistent. Theyre outperforming the broader industry.. It appears to me that it is thinner as well. Since the sale, cannon said the fundamentals do not seem to have changed. Is the bun loaded with more than just belly-ballooning empty carbs? North Carolina has What-A-Burger. It was kind of a burger-ized Dennys. Shown is the interior of the store at 7007 S. Zarzamora St., which has been remodeled. Shame, nothing lasts forever. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. A team of advocacy groups, including Consumer Reports and the Natural Resources Defense Council, released its annual report card of chain restaurants Thursday. The study was a survey of 4,000 restaurant operators September 7-15, 2021. I agree. Erin McDowell/Insider; lma_ss/Shutterstock; Ink Drop/Shutterstock; NYC Russ/Shutterstock. Along with where Whataburger builds its restaurants, the caliber of the franchisees the company chooses is crucial to its success. But his father, What-A-Burger founder E.L. Bost, needed him to help run the family business. For decades, many people have wondered what goes on behind the curtains of these patty-prepping assembly lines. We can answer that: nope. Sales at its locations were up 5.8 percent, compared with a 4.1 percent increase across the burger category. Now, theyve expanded to a 64-acre farm in Guilford. A five-piece chicken tenders combo came with fries, a small drink, coleslaw, and a piece of Texas toast. Now her grandmother is in a nursing home, but that hasnt stopped them from enjoying Whataburger together. Weve kept the menu the same all these years, he says. Service always varies because there is always turnover in this type of industry, Guadiano said. A first-person tour of the Justin Boots factory floor in El Paso, Texas. The cars are different tiny Fiats instead of big, sleek 65 Chevys but the What-A-Burger on Main Street in Kannapolis hasnt changed much in more than half a century. WebWhataburger stops serving breakfast at 9 a.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. on weekends, but this is subject to change based on which location you visit. Whataburger found itself caught up a political battle two years ago, when former U.S. Rep. Beto ORourke was seeking to unseat U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz. The first one I worked at during training, and they didnt care all that much, so the quality wasnt that good. On one side, a group of touring motorcyclists headed to Little Switzerland are milling around, waiting for their burgers and pulling out phones to settle the question that a lot of out-of-state visitors ask: Is this the same as the Whataburger in Texas?. These were undeniably classic chicken tenders, similar to the ones from Whataburger, but they were a touch too fried for my liking. yes absolutely. A three-piece chicken tender costs $7.65 at my nearest location when it's not included in a meal deal. In the end, Raising Cane's took home the win for me with the chain's near-perfect chicken tenders and fair prices. Burgers are a large and competitive segment of the restaurant industry, crowded with multinational companies such as McDonalds, regional brands like Culvers and fast-casual concepts like Shake Shack. And then theres the coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 has forced restaurants to close dining areas for months and lean on drive-thru, takeout and delivery sales. In 2019, the fast-food restaurant announced merchant bank BDT Capital Partners, LLC based in Chicago was taking over the chain. Overcooked or undercooked, portions shrank, wrong toppings/drinks/sides, and it's happening almost every time. A three-piece-tender combo came to $12.40, before taxes and fees. } else { wouldnt know what's best, never had a fast food burger, They buy it from a company called "Fresh never frozen". Used to live near it and no matter the time of day or night the service was outstanding. They were also a good size. Maybe more modern, but it diminishes the appeal and brand equity the company commands from the curb.. Not the same whataburger I used to eat all the time. Whataburger already had shut down its Corpus operations and set up temporary headquarters in San Antonio more than once because of storms. To play in the burger category, you need to have a phenomenal product, said David Henkes, a senior principal at food service consultancy Technomic. Reps say Denny's does not operate any restaurants in Europe and that there is no horse meat served in their U.S. outlets. Even if the food doesnt change, people will suspect it has. Purvis is the food editor for The Charlotte Observer. No one is completely clear on how the Whataburger/What-A-Burger coevolution happened. To hasten its expansion, the chain is franchising again for the first time in nearly two decades. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Some Whataburger locations A year after BDT Capital Partners acquired a majority stake in Whataburger, the first inklings of its strategy for the San Antonio-based burger chain have emerged. And their music is taking off. Rude employees, cold burgers, poorly constructed burgers i.e. maybe it's the location that my father is going to. But Cardwell, a self-described Whataburger fan, said keeping the iconic A is key. Harmon Dobson opened the first location in Corpus Christi, Texas. If you can tell the difference then it shouldn't matter, especially when it comes to fast food. At the time, in 2019, the move didnt sit well with Texans. Take the chains spicy ketchup: Some diners couldnt fathom not having it with their fries, but its only been around since 2011, when it was introduced as a limited-time offer. He named his humble burger Panera came in a close second with an A-. We waited longer to order than to receive our food. WebI tried chicken tenders from Popeyes, Chick-fil-A, Whataburger, Raising Cane's, KFC, Bojangles, Zaxby's, and Cook Out. Mike Bost had job prospects when he graduated from UNCC in 1970. The companys challenge, industry consultants and branding experts say, is keeping its fans happy while luring new customers and differentiating itself from the competitors in new markets. document.addEventListener( 'DOMContentLoaded', function() { I wonder if they have reduced the amount of meat to match the other fast food burgers. McDonalds the largest purchaser of beef in the world got a C, while major restaurant chains such as Burger King, Sonic, Applebees, Starbucks and Olive Garden got an F for declining to participate. Facebook Email or phone I worked at 2 different Whataburgers for a while. Theres plenty of opportunities outside Texas for Whataburger, CEO Ed Nelson says. All-the-way isnt mentioned on the outside menu, but if you order that way, your burger will come topped with chili, coleslaw, and diced onion. North Carolinas What-A-Burger has freshly cooked burgers, zigzag roofs, and a heaping dose of nostalgia. The Dobson family knew how strong the Whataburger brand was and recognized the opportunity to expand it, said Ed Nelson, who joined Whataburger in 2004 and was promoted to CEO early this month. Specialties: Since 1950, Whataburger has proudly served a bigger, better burger. There were small bits of fried breading scattered on the outside, which I always love with a chicken tender. My six-piece meal came to $14.27, including tax, but a three-finger combo that comes with three chicken fingers, fries, Cane's sauce, Texas toast, and a regular drink costs $6.38 excluding tax and any additions or swaps. While most fast food chains state that they use 100 percent beef, there are many more components to the burger than meets the eye. | Website by Web Publisher PRO. He is also professor of practice of marketing. Its become the exception to get a nice fresh burger:(, Chain restaurants are like that. No matter what the menu says, though, Mike Bost promises that you can get your burger however you want it. While the Big Mac's official ingredient list mirrors this statement, a reporter with Good Morning America was invited to a McDonald's food plant in California to see for himself. It definitely depends on where you go to. Whataburger shut down its dining rooms in March, and later rolled out curbside pickup and delivery services. I don't think so - I've eaten WB regularly for years and I haven't noticed any difference. KENS 5 wanted to check-in and ask its loyal customers if they had noticed any changes. 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