March 15th, 2010
One thing McDonald’s always had going for them were their french fries. Even if you didn’t love the rest of the menu, you’d put up with it just to have some of their famous fries.
But, in the past year, those fries have changed.
The pressure to steer away from trans fats have forced the fast food giants to re-think how they handle their french fries. McDonald’s, more so than Wendy’s or Burger King, had a lot to lose if they couldn’t keep those fries’ taste and texture intact. It’s commonly known that McDonald’s used a beef extract for the cooking of their french fries. But, now, with McDonald’s forced to make changes to their fries, how would it measure up?
I’d say, not good. In my experiences over the past few months, I’ve found the quality of McDonald’s fries to be wildly inconsistent. They definitely don’t taste like they used to, and the new french fry barely competes with the competition. While I haven’t been a fan of Burger King’s artificial crispiness of their fries, I would actually rate them above the current McDonald’s product. And with the current Burger King value menu containing the $1.00 double cheeseburger, why even go to McDonald’s.
There’s been a food quality crisis at McDonald’s for some time now. Since they went to a clamshell system for cooking the burgers, the quality of those have dramatically fallen off. It will be interesting to see if the competition starts rising up a bit.
Tags: beef extract, burger king, clamshell, french fries, fry, mcdonald's, wendy's
Posted in Fast Food and Restaurants | 1 Comment »
February 7th, 2010
In these tough economic times, the value menu has become an important component in the fast food business. McDonald’s has had their $1.00 double cheeseburger in place on their value menu for quite some time and it had always been a strong seller. Wendy’s answered that by adding the stackers to their menu and, recently, Burger King upped the ante by knocking their double cheeseburger down to $1.00 and adding it to their value menu.
Burger king’s move has caused quite a stir within their franchise system. Franchise owners have claimed they are losing about a dime every time they sell one of their double cheeseburgers. McDonald’s franchise owners had similar issues, which were partly addressed by the fast food giant taking a slice of cheese off of the double cheeseburger and re-branding it the McDouble.
Truth be told, Burger King’s $1.00 double cheeseburger is a pretty good deal. Their burger is larger than the McDonald’s equivalent and, personally, I think it’s a better tasting burger. Many Burger Kings are also offering the double bacon cheeseburger at 2/$3.00 deals, which, again, is a pretty good deal.
The way Burger King probably has to look at this is that these specials will, hopefully, end up being loss leaders, with people adding to those items, therefore increasing overall sales. As a chain, Burger King has been experiencing somewhat of an identity crisis for years. These value meal additions are strong enough to draw people in. From there, it will be up to the execs at Burger King to take advantage of it.
Tags: bacon double cheeseburger, burger king, double cheeseburger, mcdonald's, mcdouble, stacker, value menu, wendy's
Posted in Fast Food and Restaurants | 2 Comments »
November 14th, 2009
A few months back, Consumer Obsession featured this review comparing Dunkin’ Donuts to Krispy Kreme. Our opinion was that, while it was hard to deny that Krispy Kreme’s fresh, hot donuts were and are very good, once cooled, they became very average, even sub-par. The donuts at Dunkin’ Donuts, on the other hand, were consistently very good in taste and texture.
But, an unfortunate change has taken place at many newer Dunkin’ Donuts franchises: The donuts are not being actually made on site; they are being brought into the stores frozen and then baked on site. Dunkin’ Donuts has stated that is a more efficient way to make and sell their donuts. It keeps the shelves stocked and cuts down on waste. While all of that may very well be true, this change has had a seriously negative effect on their product.
In our region, a new Dunkin’ Donuts opened in the past year. There was an obvious difference right from the first bite. The donuts, which had always been relatively light, now seemed heavier and less fresh. The glazed, which had always been very good, now tasted like sugar-coated cardboard. Repeated visits offered the same results, to the point that we simply stopped going. We weren’t alone. Many other long-time Dunkin’ Donuts devotees would tell me the same thing: These are not the same donuts that we loved.
The brass at Dunkin’ Donuts claims that these donuts and the new methods were taste-tested and that consumers could not tell the difference. Consumer Obsession finds this difficult to believe, as the difference is major – major enough that the donut we formerly gave high praise to, is now nearly in-edible.
Tags: consumer obsession, dunkin' donuts, frozen, krispy kreme, new method
Posted in Fast Food and Restaurants, Snacks | 2 Comments »
October 14th, 2009
For the past few years, Wendy’s has found themselves struggling to excite the consumers with new sandwich ideas. Their format used to be introducing a specialty burger that would then be available for a limited time. Some of these specialty burgers were more successful than others (please bring back the cheddar burger!).
Wendy’s Big Bacon Classic had been a mainstay of their menu for a long period of time and, in my mind, worked well. The concept was simple: the regular burger selection with a couple of strips of bacon added. Very simple…not sexy…but fine. Unfortunately, the modern era of Wendy’s then came in and stomped all over that simple concept. No longer did we have the simple, yet tasty Big Bacon Classic, we now had the Baconator. The Baconator added lots more bacon and cheese and, of course, the edgy (and ridiculous) name. The Baconator was too much. No longer did we have the subtleties of the Bacon Classic….now we we were being slammed over the head by it’s 100 lb. gorilla relation.
All of this brings us to Wendy’s new bacon-topped offering: the Bacon Deluxe.
The advertising for the Bacon Deluxe promises “Thick applewood-smoked bacon,” which, after ordering a Bacon Deluxe double burger, I saw to be true. I ordered my burger with just bacon, cheese, and lettuce. When I took the burger out of the bag, I thought they had made a mistake. The foil-wrapped burger looked very tall, as if the condiments were really packed on. After unwrapping it, I saw that the height was due to a few dense and thick pieces of bacon were piled up on top of the burger, but under the lettuce (!).
The bacon overwhelmed everything else on the burger. It was too thick to actually enhance anything. Quite frankly, it simply dominated everything. Its hulking presence even made the burger slightly difficult to consume. Any juiciness or flavor from the actual burger was completely negated by this topping.
In my mind, I began to reminisce about the old Big Bacon Classic and its tasty, friendly toppings. But, I guess we live in a different world these days, as those are concepts marketers seem to have forgotten.
Tags: bacon deluxe, baconator, big bacon classic, burger, fast food, hamburger, review, wendy's
Posted in Fast Food and Restaurants | 6 Comments »
August 17th, 2009
With more families eating at home these days, restaurants have found “kids eat free” promotions to be an effective way of getting them back in. With restaurant traffic declining an unbelievable 22 consecutive months, operators are understandably desperate for traffic.
IHOP is the most recent to try the “kids eat free” tactic. They are offering the promotion seven nights a week for the next month. Even the mighty McDonald’s is getting into the picture with free Happy Meal nights at some of the restaurants. Others such as Denny’s, Applebee’s, Eat ‘n Park, Fazoli’s and Lone Star Steakhouse are trying out the concept in the hope of drawing families back in to their restaurants.
Tags: applebee's, denny's, eat 'n park, fazoli's, ihop, kids eat free, lone star steakhouse
Posted in Fast Food and Restaurants | No Comments »
July 23rd, 2009
The CEO of Pepsico admitted this week that they made a major mistake with their rebranding of Gatorade. In just the first quarter of 2009, sales of Gatorade fell by a whopping 13.7% and have continued to plummet.
When the rebranded Gatorade appeared on the shelves, it was a true head-scratcher. Was this the same old Gatorade? Was it a new kind of Gatorade? Or, maybe it wasn’t even Gatorade. It was near impossible to tell. It’s amazing to me that, in their desperation to appeal to the “hip” consumers, the marketing people at Pepsi would come up with this horrible design. It’s maybe even more amazing that the powers that be at Pepsi would sign off on it.
Gatorade had always been the first name in sports beverages. And even as they faced much new competition, they were still in the position of being the brand most associated with the sports beverage category. So, it’s amazing that Pepsi would take their brand and simply flush it down the toilet. And make no mistake about it, that’s exactly what they did. From the new look on the bottle to the horrible ad campaigns (what, exactly, was going on in those ads?), they destroyed it. You would have sworn that their goal was to make choosing and buying a Gatorade the most confusing task in the world.
In the ultra-competitive beverage market, mistakes like this shouldn’t be made. It shows bad judgement on everyone’s part who had anything to do with it. Pepsico now has the task of rebuilding the brand in the midst of a sports drink war, and they’ve got no one to blame but themselves.
Tags: brand, branding, drink, gatorade, mistake, pepsi, pepsico, rebranding, sports beverage
Posted in Beverages, Grocery Items | 3 Comments »
July 7th, 2009
This past evening, I happen to be out with my wife and daughter. We were in the vicinity of a Red Robin Gourmet Burgers restaurant, and my wife, since it had been some time since we had eaten there, suggested a visit. It seemed like good timing, since Consumer Obsession had just recently featured the Red Robin vs. Fuddruckers piece.
First of all, I was a little suprised that it wasn’t very busy. Usually, in that area at dinner time, it’s hectic to say the least. Then again, as most of us know, people are eating out less right now, due to economic conditions, and after visiting Red Robin and seeing their current prices, I can see why people could be cutting back on the visits.
I decided to go for the old standby, the bacon cheeseburger, though I was a little shocked the see the $9.59 price tag. Red Robin’s burgers aren’t known for being all that big, but they do include the “bottomless” french fries. Their fries still don’t make the price go down any easier, as I found them to be only average. I must say, though, the burger was decent. I ordered it medium, and while it was slightly overcooked, it still had some hints of pink. I found it to taste better than my previous experiences at the restaurant, but I still didn’t think it warranted the high price tag.
A larger and truly great-tasting burger can be had in my area for nearly half the price Red Robin is charging for theirs. And if we are again comparing Red Robin to Fuddruckers, Fuddruckers proves to be a better value. While not cheap, one can get more for their money at Fuddruckers.
It’s really too bad, because I would eat that Red Robin burger again, but not at that price.
Tags: consumer obsession, fuddruckers, price, red robin, red robin gourmet burgers
Posted in Fast Food and Restaurants | 6 Comments »
July 1st, 2009
Yahoo Finance recently presented an article on America’s Most Endangered Malls. The story covers a few instances of the passing of the mall culture in America. Around many parts of the US, these once busy centers are now starting to fade. Century III Mall from Pittsburgh is mentioned in the article and it is true that that mall seems to be on its last legs. There are a couple of well-known other examples I almost expected to see mentioned, such as Eastland Mall in Charlotte and Randall Park in Cleveland.
The “life-style” center now seems to be the rage. In the Pittsburgh area, it began with the Waterfront complex, which, after seeing it be quite busy recently, seems to be doing well. Discussions focusing on new shopping complexes now revolve around this concept, which seems to indicate that the our beloved malls may be a thing of the past.
Of course, a main issue with malls these days, as with the newer life-style centers, are that they are now all nearly interchangeable. One may be larger than the other, but the tenants are the usual suspects. I was at the Crocker Park complex in Cleveland recently and, while it may have been larger than the Waterfront in Pittsburgh, it was really pretty much the same. I left thinking “what’s the point in visiting these places? It’s all the same.”
Tags: century three mall, charlotte, cleveland, crocker park, eastland mall, endangered malls, life-style center, pittsburgh, randall park mall, the waterfront, yahoo finance
Posted in Discount and Department Stores, Shopping centers and malls | 2 Comments »
June 26th, 2009
Consumer Obsession has stayed away from reviewing many theme restaurants, such as TGIF Friday’s, Chili’s, Garfield’s, etc., because most of the time, I simply find their food to be average or below. I almost always walk out of those places feeling like I paid much more than the food was worth. Texas Roadhouse is another in the long line of theme eateries. There are buckets of peanuts on the tables and shells litter the hard wood floors. Even worse, the waiters and waitresses do periodic line dances to loud modern country music. But, that aside, I’ve found the food and prices to be much better than most of the competition.
It’s worth noting that Consumer Reports has rated Texas Roadhouse very favorably in their last couple of restaurant comparisons and I would have to agree with their findings. In these difficult economic times, a family can take advantage of their “kids eat for $.99 Tuesdays” and get a very reasonably priced, filling and satisfactory meal. Their steaks are never frozen and I’ve found them to be consistently decent. Pork chops, burgers, or a hot dog for the child have all been satisfying.
As we all know, chain and theme restaurants are everywhere these days, but the Texas Roadhouse has proven to be worth taking a chance on.
Posted in Fast Food and Restaurants | No Comments »
June 17th, 2009
Fuddruckers and Red Robin Gourmet Burgers were both born in 1980. Red Robin’s orgins are way earlier, but the current concept was hatched in 1980. Red Robin seems to currently be hitting its stride as far as franchises go. In my area of W. Pa, three Red Robins have opened in the past few years. Fuddruckers, on the other hand, has had a rougher ride. The chain has been bought and sold and quality issues have dogged some of the restaurants, but they continue to hang in there.
But, which is better? Please vote in the poll below. My own views follow.
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In my experience, I have found that non-burger people seem to really like Red Robin. Personally, I’ve never been totally pleased. The burgers are somewhat overpriced and merely ok. I’ve never had to get a refill on the “bottomless” fries they offer, because the initial order wasn’t that hot to begin with. This isn’t to say that I would never eat at a Red Robin again, because I would, but I wouldn’t go out of my way.
Fuddruckers started out right. I remember going to my first Fuddruckers in 1987, on Independence Blvd. in Charlotte, NC. It had the air of something new and special. They had a glass wall where one could see the fresh cuts of meat that would soon be their hamburgers. But, somewhere along the line, the wheels fell off. The original owner left and the chain seemed to be going through an extended identity crisis. The chain seemed to stabilize a bit when its current owner took over in 1998. While the chain seems to still try to be too many things to too many people (family fun center, bar, gourmet burgers), things seem a little more stable.
Fuddruckers’ food is still pretty good. While one will pay more than at a fast food place, it seems worth it. The burgers themselves are not incredible, but they are good. Whether they are better than Red Robin may come down to personal taste preference. I do like them better, but I’m not sure why. Red Robin has probably gotten the “medium” order right more consistently than Fuddruckers, but the Fuddruckers’ burger has that some elusive thing that makes me like it a little better.
The Fuddruckers fries have never been anything to brag about. I’d put them about even with Red Robin. Why are french fries the weak link at many of these places? If you’re a hot dog person, the Fuddruckers dog is also worth trying.
Tags: fuddruckers, poll, red robin gourmet burgers, which is better?
Posted in Fast Food and Restaurants, Hot Dogs | 7 Comments »
