Eat Random

The idea for this blog is to blog about everything I think about food and food culture. I'll tell you what I like to eat, where I like to eat it and if I thought it was good or if I thought it was crap. My thoughts about food could go anywhere. Hey if you don't like it go blog at methodicaldudereallythinksalotaboutthefoodhesgoingtoeat.blogspot.com

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Thursday, January 12, 2012

Fast Food Review: Culver's

When you go out to grab lunch during a workday it's really easy to get stuck in a rut.  Out of all the times I've went out to lunch in the past 6 months (usually only about once a week) I've probably went to Taco Bell for a plurality of them.  I do like Taco Bell, but let's face facts I go there because it's quick and cheap.  The other day I decided I had enough of the same old same old and decided to not only try some place different but some place I had personally never been to before.  That place is Culvers.

If you're unfamiliar with Culver's they are a Wisconsin based regional chain that has a diverse menu, but one that primarily focuses on their signature "butter burgers".  The butter burgers are fresh ground beef smashed thin on the flattop with crispy edges on a butter toasted bun.  Despite hearing from my co-worker that Culver's serves up a mean fish sandwich also I decided I was in the mood for some red meat.  I decided to go with the double mushroom and swiss burger combo that comes with a drink and Culver's crinkle cut fries.

The first thing I did when I unwrapped my burger was take note of it's appearance.  After all people do say if your food looks good it's more likely to taste good. That is exactly why Sarah Jessica Parker has nothing to fear from cannibals, but I digress. In this case I noticed the size of the burger, with the double patty, was definitely an ample portion and the crispy edges were evident.  The 2 slices of swiss were nicely melted, and the bun looked pillowy and soft.  What turned me off a little was the way the thin sliced mushrooms seemed to be few in number and scattered haphazardly.  Luckily there were more mushrooms on top of the bottom bun and the flavor and aroma of them came through nicely.  There was no mayo or extra "mushroom sauce" here that sometime come on other burgers of this genre.  They were not needed.  The mushrooms here complemented the nice flavor of the meat, and muddling that with sauce would have been a crime.  The crinkle cut fries were also a nice change of pace.  While I'm not putting them on the same level as my favorite fries that are always fresh cut they were crisp and had good potato flavor.  The medium portion size was also larger than I expected.  I should also point out that I tried Culver's own root beer, and while it was good I wouldn't be able to differentiate it between other mainstream brand.

Being a guy that likes fast food from time to time I can't believe I've slept on Culver's for this long. It might still be fast food but they are doing it at a higher level than almost every other fast food burger joint.  I'm looking foward to my next visit, and maybe I'll try some custard next time.

Taste 9/10 Probably my favorite fast food burger.  Could have used just a few more mushrooms. Crinkle cut fries were good, but not as good as fresh cut variety.
Value 9/10 My double mushroom swiss combo cost $7.62 including tax.  Considering how much I enjoyed it that's pretty good in my opinion.  You get enough food that there is no need to upsize. It might be a little more expensive than a medium combo at Wendy's, McDonald's etc but it's not by much.

Culver's on Urbanspoon

11 comments:

IndianapolisEater said...

Seriously, get some custard. Get a concrete mixer and it'll change your life. I LOVE them.

IndianapolisEater said...

Make sure it's one that has a vanilla custard base though. Their chocolate custard is just blah. If you want to go the sundae route, I highly recommend the Turtle Sundae.

Erin L. said...

Love the cheese curds too.

Brent said...

Trust me cheese curds didn't go unnoticed either. That's on the agenda for my next visit along with some vanilla custard.

Tom H said...

my issue with the curds is that - for my preference - they don't always let them get quite hot enough. but the right temperatures are reached... lookout

Billiam said...

Try the Walleye the next time they have it..

Brent said...

The one's here in Indy seriously have walleye on the menu sometimes? That's awesome. Let me know when it's available and I'll jump on that.

Josh said...

The walleye is great, if you like cashews, the caramel cashew sundae is amazing. One of the menu items I like most is the pot roast sandwich. It's a little plain, but I like to take a handful of fries and put those on the sandwich too.

AndreaV said...

Best banana split anywhere.

Andrew said...

My favorite burger there but the Cheese Curds keep me coming back,

online bookie said...

would remain fairly richer cheese