Which fast food restaurant do you like best, and what are your favorite menu items?

When I’m feeling especially fat, I like to go to Chick Fil A and get their chicken mini breakfast, hashbrowns, and orange juice. Think I might tomorrow….

Taco Bell.

I always get two beefy five layer burritos and some mild and fire sauce. I mix the sauces with Sriracha when I get home and dip the burritos in it.

Sausage and cheese biscuit from McDonald’s (no egg).

(I indulge in this cheesy happiness at least 7 times a year)

I don’t have a favorite fast food place but I have 2 favorite items…
MacDonald’s french fries and Burger King’s Whopper (+ cheese, -onion)

Culvers has the best milkshakes ever. Real custard based ice cream combined with real milk. None of that crappy artificial stuff whipped to smithereens and totally useless once it melts and all the air is out of it (I’m talking about you Wendys )

The chili at Wendys. Delish.

The cheese fries at Culvers.

www.culvers.com

The coffee at McDonalds. The only reason I ever go there.

The Double Whopper from Burger King.

Dairy Queen – Regular ole cheeseburger or chicken tender basket w/ a nice blizzard to finish it up.

McD’s or Burger King fries, with one or two salt packets on them. I don’t really care much which place it is. BK fries are a bit better though.

If we had one here, I’m sure Elevation Burger would be my favorite fast food place.

Subway. The sandwich possibilities are endless. Of course, you can order a cholesterol nightmare if that is your wish, but it’s easy to customize a highly-healthy-whole-wheat sandwich that is delicious and nutritious.

If we have fast food (very rare) it is most likely to be fish and chips or pizza.

The Döner store at the trainstation. I really like their Döner.

McDonalds sausage and egg breakfast muffin. I don’t particularly like anything else they do though.

egg mcmuffins

wendy’s chili w cheese

I love a good fish sandwich. The best is Moby Dick. on rye

Oh, man. I’m a freak. I love all sorts of fast food, it just depends on what I’m in the mood for.

Popeye’s spicy fried chicken and Cajun rice.
McD’s regular old cheeseburgers, french fries dipped in a vanilla shake. Egg McMuffin and hashbrown. Every once in a while, a filet-o-fish.
Sheetz anything fried. It’s weird that a gas station shop does the best onion rings and mozzarella sticks around, but it’s true! Good subs and salads, too.
Long John Silvers family treasure chest (all fish), hush puppies, coleslaw.
Roy Rogers bacon cheeseburger. Sourdough breakfast sandwich.

Whataburger serve the best ever burger.

We have an old time burger stand called Scoobies that has the best everything, burgers, Chicago Style dogs, Beefs etc. I love the Italian beef/sausage combo with their home-cut fries and real vanilla shakes. To die for….literally!

http://www.myscoobyshotdogs.com/Scoobys_Cam.php

Chipotle – burrito bowl with no rice. Pinto beans, chicken, grilled veggies, salsa, and a small amount of cheese and sour cream.

@Buttonstc The Worlds Largest Culvers is just over the border in Wisconsin and we stop there anytime we are up that way. The shakes ARE great! Yum!

@Buttonstc I have never heard of Culvers and I lived in Michigan, and travel through the areas of the midwest and south where they have locations. Thanks for the link. I’ll keep it in mind when needing something fast on the road. Maybe next trip to Wisconsin, thanks @Cruiser. But, no butter please. I hope they will hold the butter?

@Bellatrix Funny, I don’t think of pizza as fast food, but of course it is if you can get it by the slice, which isn’t often in the suburban places I have lived. We have one place near me I can, and there was one when I lived in FL. Thing is I almost never buy it that way here, but while in NYC I always do.

national chain
Wendy’s Single with cheese and fries.

local joint
Kelly’s Roast Beef Grilled Chicken Sandwich and onion rings.

Chipotle, or Charley’s grilled subs, or Baja Fresh.

Bastards. Now I’m starving for fast food.

@Adirondackwannabe Watcha gonna get?

@JLeslie I’m going to try to resist. I haven’t had any in years, but fries sound really really good.

I never splurge when I go to burrito places, I usually get a chicken burrito, but the other day I had one with steak and shrimp, it was super good.

There is a family-owned chain in North Carolina called the Cook-Out. Their food is freshly made – grilled to order. You cab get corn dogs as a side instead of french fries. If I was going to splurge, I’d get one of their hamburgers with a side corn dog and a milkshake.

I have to think back….. When we are visiting the States, we go to Subway several times. Cheap and good and healthy.

When I lived in the US some 25 years ago, I used to love Arby’s roast beef with loads of horseradish and mayo. Is Arby’s still good?

I had a really good sandwich at a Burger King in one city, but then, trying it again somewhere else and it was horrible.

@cazzie Arbies is still around and so are their yummy curly fries!

btw, the real name is pommes frites, not “french fries”

Traditional fish and chips is my all time favourite but I have always enjoyed MacDonald’s Fillet of Fish meals too. I enjoy a MacDonalds every so often (maybe once every few months) but my boyfriend despises the chain so it’s my dirty little secret!!!

I loved Taco Bell when I was in America but we don’t have it over here :(

@JLeslie

Culvers will happily hold off on butter or anything else you request. They cook everything to order. None of that sitting under heat lamps for hours nonsense. So even tho they’re fast food, its not instant. Its a bit slower than typical fast food places but I don’t mind a bit

It’s a toss up between Subway and Jack in the Box. I have eaten many lunches at both.

I like Jack in the Box because of their real ice cream in their milkshakes.

I like Subway for their veggie subs.

Chipotle: steak burrito (when steak is freshly sliced), white rice, a bit of pinto beans, a bit of corn salsa, and cheese.

Popeyes’ spicy chicken is also quite gourd.

I prefer McDonald’s I guess. Quarter pounder and fries. Definitely McD’s over Burger King if I am going to have a burger. McDonald’s has an frozen coffee drink I once tried, not a milk shake, not regular ice coffee, not sure what it is called that was delicious! But, I don’t drink coffee, generally stay away from caffeine, so I don’t order it. But, it was yummy.

@cazzie Aren’t there fast food places where you live now?

I love a regular Arby’s roast beef with Arby’s sauce, but almost never go to Arby’s, because my husband is not keen on the place. There is one in my airport, so every so often I buy it for a flight.

@Buttonstc Ok, thanks. I won’t be in that part of the country until Spetember I think. I’ll have to try to remember.

If Panera Bread is considered fast food, then Panera. If not, Chick-fil-a. I like their nuggets and fries. Once in a while, I’ll get a milkshake or some cheesecake too.

If you count taco shops as fast food, I almost always get a bean and cheese burrito and then load up on all of the different kinds of salsas. Salsa, to me, is nectar of the Gods! And then I get a big old bag full of the spicy carrots. There’s a few places that serve potato filled rolled tacos that are pretty darned tasty.

My favorite fast food place of all time is in Los Angeles. It used to be a Tastee Freeze back in the 70’s, but then a family that emigrated from China came in and took it over and turned it into a completely vegetarian “burger joint” complete with vegetarian versions of burgers, hot dogs, tacos and deep fried burritos, and they also have some of the best French fries and onion rings I’ve ever tasted. The best part is that they serve the burgers wrapped in that yellow paper in a red plastic basket just like they used to do back in the 50’s! It’s called Covina Tasty and I’m craving it big time right now!!!

I also like Taco Bell’s crispy potato soft tacos from the dollar menu. I ususually get that and a bean burrito (with no onions). I love, love, love their little packets of hot sauce.

Del Taco’s veggie works burrito is pretty good too. I also like their sauce packets : P

I haven’t been to Arby’s in years, because they don’t have any type of a veggie sandwich, but I remember that their curly fries were divine and I used to get a mocha shake whenever they had them, seems like they were seasonal.

Same with Wendy’s, haven’t been there in years, but they have incredible, thick chocolate shakes.

Oh, I almost forgot, Costco has some of the best pizza by the slice you could ever sink a tooth into and it’s only $1.99 pers slice, which you get from the take out window in front, and the slice is a big as your head : )

@JL, I am a bit confused. We don’t buy pizza buy the slice, we go to the pizza place and buy a pizza and bring it home or eat in. I consider pizza to be fast-food and especially if we get it from one of the chain pizza places. Not if we went to a real Italian restaurant but then I would never order a pizza. Too much other nice stuff to choose from.

@Bellatrix In the states, I don’t know why, but pizza isn’t considered fast food here. It’s like it’s own special category, and most people get it delivered right to the house. Papa John’s specialty pizza called “John’s Favorite” is my love. I get it with double pepperoni, extra cheese, and have them bake it ‘well done’. So. Good.

We need a question about ‘what is fast food?’

^^ Exactly, because some fast food does not come from the kitchen very quickly, and pizza can be fast, if it’s like Costco’s slices, or slow if you order it at a restaurant or in between if you order it to be delivered to your house.

Other, non-high end restaurants, seem to be able to deliver a wonderful meal to your table lickety split, but if you’ve ever been to the zoo or sea world or Disneyland, what should be handed to you within less than a minute can take half an hour of standing in line, waiting for them to hand you the food that is sitting right there in front of you and then waiting some more to pay. How is it that a chain fast food place like McDonald’s or Burger King can hand you your food in seconds, whereas the places I just mentioned, which actually have ready made food sitting there under heat lamps can take a half an hour? I just don’t get it.

Rubio’s (which may only be out here in California) makes some super tasty Mexican food, and it’s ususually ready before I’m even finished filling my salsa cups. I love that place! And why can’t the Zoo contract with someone like Rubios???

categories by cookie man

National Chains
McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy’s, In n’ Out Burger, White Castle, Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Popeyes, Sonic, etc.

Regional Chains
Dunkin Donuts, Kelly’s Roast Beef, Boston Market, Checkers

Pizza Chains
Papa Gino’s, Little Caesars, Dominos, Pizza Hut, Papa John’s, etc.

Local Joints (non chains)
• Pizzerias
• Delis
• Sub Shops
• Roast Beef Joints
• Fish Frys
• Food Trucks
• Hot Dog Carts
• Chinese Food
• Tempura Bars

Let’s see…

MacDonald’s (also known as MacDick’s)
Not a fan. They put way too much lettuce in their burgers. What the fuck do they think I am, so kind of caterpillar? A rabbit? And all that goddamn yellow…however, they get major points for having excellent ketchup. Then again that might be the anti vomit they put in your Coke that changes the taste.

Burger King They actually had BK themed video games for the PlayStation 2…a set of minigames, and one is you’re the Burger King. Yes, it actually has a mascot. You run around, sneaking up on people and give them free Whoppers. It’s a cheap imitation of the stealth genre.

If the food there is so good, why the hell does the King have to sneak up on people and force them to eat the food? If royalty wanted to give me free hamburgers, why would I run away? Seriously.
That said, I love Burger King. Their Whoppers are good. They’re huge, they’re packed man, and it’s hard to resist. I don’t care that their food is obviously responsible for breast cancer and terrorism, it’s just so damn good.
Their ketchup really sucks though. And I actually got food poisoning from there once. Haha.

A&W I seriously wonder why there are always senior citizens drinking coffee over there. They’re always there, whatever time it is. Just hanging around, drinking coffee. I’m not being mean, nor do I have a problem whatsoever with this. In fact that’s one reason I like eating there; it’s nice and peaceful. But it is something I’ve observed, and I wonder why they all go there all the time. A&W coffee is less than stellar, personally.

I love the place though. Real burgers, nice and filling, and they all taste so damn good. It’s probably the only fast food place where the pictures of the food matches what you actually get, too. Falling Down. Awesome movie. Besides their Ketchup. It also sucks, I don’t like it.
It’s the most expensive fast food place though, however, they always have cool deals going on, so I can afford to spend cash there if I wanna. Was also my dad’s favorite, he took me there often. They had their classic cream soda back then, but currently, in my area, the A&W restaurants seem to have discontinued it. Ah well…their root beer fuckin kicks ass.

My favorite ever is Subway though. Although their food isn’t in the same line as most fast food places, it’s still fast food, and I love it. I try to eat a bit healthier these days, because my body is probably suffering from like, seven diseases. Subway does the trick and I never get sick of it. It’s a good choice for me for lunch, when I’m all busy and working. I love vegetables for one, and their south western sauce kicks ass. Loves me some Subway, best place ever. ^^ It’s just annoying when they get your sandwich wrong, and slam it in the oven when I just specifically said ’‘no thanks’’ when they asked if I wanted it heated. Gaah…but still. Awesome food. The inside of the place sucks though, because it’s all yellow, like MacPenis. The one here had all sorts of cool paintings hanging on the walls, so it was cool then. But for some reason they took em all down. :/

Interesting. I’ve always kind of considered pizza as fast food, especially Dominos, Little Caesars and Pizza Hut. I actually considered pizza when I first answered this question but my absolute favorite is still the sausage and cheese biscuit from McD’s.

Subway is also my favorite because:

I love being able to improvise my sandwiches.
I really like their comprehensive selection of veggies.
The ones we go to are open 24 hours, so we get to go after midnight when there are usually at most about 2 other customers. Consequently, the sandwich wizards always get my order right, and the ambiance is tres more peaceful.

Quizno’s, who used to run ads mocking “Wrongway”, is the Paula Dean of sandwich shops. ;-)

Quizno’s is good too, but easy to get sick of lol.

@Bellatrix I don’t mind counting pizza as fast food. I understand why some people might. I guess because pizza is not quite regular restaurant level to most people? However, pizza usually takes at least 15 minutes from the time you order, it isn’t pre-cooked anywhere I have been to. It just isn’t that fast. Except by the slice of course. If I am driving n the road and want a quick meal, it is not going to be pizza. Pizza is a sit down, or maybe go to the counter, order, wait for them to cook the pie, then finally eat.

@Symbeline Where do you live? I have never seen any lettuce on a burger in McDonald’s.

Québec. Lettuce, salad, I denno what, but they’re leaves of some sort and I don’t like it.

@Symbeline I don’t think I ate in a McDonald’s when I was in Québec. I wonder if they put lettuce on the burgers in western Canada as well? Here Burger King and Wendy’s do, but I don’t think I could get lettuce added to a quarter pounder if I tried in McDonald’s. I could be wrong. Maybe they have some laying around or other sandwiches they would be willing to put in a burger.

I denno. But here they put in so much that by now one would think I could grow butterfly wings out my back. I never figured what was the deal with that. Why sooooo much lettuce?

@JLeslie Don’t they put lettuce on your Big Macs? Two all beef patties, lettuce, special sauce and cheese on a seseme seed bun?

Also, I suppose I see ‘fast food’ more as ‘convenience’ food. So I don’t think of it only in terms of how long it takes to prepare. A burger in a shop here could take just about as long as a pizza to prepare by the time they cook the burger, prepare the bun etc. Same with fish and chips. If I did order a pizza, I would probably phone ahead, go in and grab it and leave.

Yeah I’m done. Lol.

@Bellatrix Oh right, Big Mac. Good point. But something I never order. I figured @Symbeline was saying they put it in a regular burger.

If you order ahead to any restaurant and pick it up it is fast.

MacDick’s has regular burgers…? I’ll be damned. I thought they were all ultimate

Chain pizza is cheap and unhealthy, but not fast. Thus it only meets 2 of the 3 requirements for fast food.

@Bellatrix There you go, @Qingu gave pretty good parameters in my opinion. But, you still could do a question about it, see what answers we get.

You said a burger can take as long as a pizza. A burger at McD’s or Burger King? A burger itself is not fast food, it depends where it is being sold.

@Qingu and there in lies my confusion. I tend to view most ‘fast food’ as being fairly unhealthy and I agree chain pizza definitely falls into that category.

But, a salad at McD’s is not necessarily unhealthy.

I laughed inside where it counts the other day as I had dinner with some friends, and one of the women said she can’teat fast food, but is forced to on the road when she and her husband are driving. She cited having cholestorel means she should not partake, and then preceded to order, at the very nice rather expensive restaurant we were having dinner at, the cheese plate for an appetizer, and then duckbreast for her main meal. My guess is easily triple the cholesterol as a quarter pounder with cheese and fries, maybe the same amount of fat.

Subway. I usually eat there twice a week.
Italian BMT on herb & cheese bread, with lettuce, cucumber, onion, peppers and olives, with a little ranch dressing.

I don’t like burgers much so I don’t generally go to McD’s or Burger King, but round here, Burger King do the better fries.

Pizzas are my favourite though, and my favourite pizzas are from my local independent takeaway. They’re not “fast” by any means though. I’ve learned to order an hour in advance of when I want it.

@JLeslie Little Caesars pizzas are precooked. You can walk in, ask for a large $5 pizza and walk out in less than 3 minutes. I’ve spent more time waiting for chicken strips or a chicken sandwich from McD’s because the chicken had to be cooked. Little Caesar’s is the only pizza place I know of that already has the pizza ready for its customers though.

@jonsblond I had no idea, thanks. I don’t like their pizza, so I guess that is why I was unaware. I have had it delivered before, but that would not clue me in to how it is prepared.

@JLeslie we have McDonalds and a Burger Kings but they are crazy expensive and absolutely crap here. We have a chain of sandwich fast food like Subway and they are called ‘Big Bite’. They are OK, but the bread is never as fresh. Eating out here, unless you go to a top notch restaurant and spend a month’s salary, is crap. My idea of fast food now is grabbing a ready made sandwich at the deli counter of the grocery store and eating it on a park bench. It is cheaper and fresher than anything in a cafe here. They just don’t know how to do food here.

@cazzie Interesting.

mc dumb and urgher king are crap everywhere.

My favorite fast foods are the ones we don’t have in town. So when we go out of town I look forward to eating at Taco Bell, Hardees, Burger King, Long John Silvers—just about everyone! It’s a real treat.
Have yet to try White Castle. My husbands says it’s awesome.

@Dutchess_III I have fast food all around me, but so rarely eat it. When we road trip is when I indulge, and I enjoy it also. I think other people look at like an annoyance that they have to eat it with few other choices on the road.

What I REALLY like to do is go to the small towns and ask around for the best Mom and Pop cafes.
If people feel like they don’t have any other choice than fast foods on the road, then it’s time for them to STFD!!!!

Over here we have Nandos and it is divine. It is also healthy although you said that did not matter. I love their skinless chicken in rice, with their tasty very hot sauce.It is popular too as sometimes the phone is engaged for hours. I also love KFCs hot wings mmmm.

Starbucks: Breakfast Sandwiches.

It is a rarity that I’d eat at a fast place. Starbucks is one of the only options I’d choose besides Chipotle. I’d rather wait and take out food from a restaurant.

@SpatzieLover I got a darn good fresh mozzarella, tomato and pesto sammich at Starbucks. Who knew?

Yep, tasty!

You know what else is good? Trader Joe’s has this set of 2 pre-packed tofu filled spring rolls with some of the yummiest dipping sauce I’ve ever tasted for less than 4 bucks. Inexpensive and quick and delicious. I think they also have one with either chicken or shrimp inside.

You can see them Here

Yeah @Kardamom That’s more my idea of fast food. We won’t have a TJs until summer. But Whole Foods Deli is our current fast food source.

Those look super yummy!

Whole Foods has this amazing lemon herb tofu in their cold deli, and the macaroni and cheese in the hot deli is just about the best on the planet. They also have woodfired pizzas that they make all day long and then they just hack off a hunk for you. Yum!

You are going to love Trader Joe’s! Mostly because it’s a lot less expensive than WF.

My local chip shop makes its own steak and kidney pies which are superb. I can’t tell you how good they are.

@flutherother I imagine they must be a lot better than the ones that Helena Bonham Carter made in Sweeney Todd, right?

There is a barbers shop next door, but that’s just coincidental. I think.

I recon a good grocery store deli in the US beats the crappy fast food chains any day. To me, eating out at cafes and proper restaurants is cheap, compared to what I pay here in Norway for crappy, poorly made, stale, old shit. When we were in New Orleans this past summer, we went CRAZY eating at every little specialty pub and some flash restaurants. Even going to the Super Walmart and buying groceries and deli items there was 10 times better and half the price of what we get here. It was SUCH a treat to tell my son, ‘YES! you can have cantaloupe for breakfast EVERY morning.’ We gorged on fresh fruit and veg platters from the deli. It was so hot I had to leave the house every morning with two bottles of frozen water, so that when we stopped for a break, we would have cold water to drink. Paradise. No McDs was eaten for those two weeks.

@cazzie I feel like that when I travel to other states, but your situation seems more extreme than the complaints I make about Memphis, TN. The grocery store Publix has an excellent deli where you can get made to order subs/heros (I can’t remember what part of the states you are from) but we don’t have a Publix where I live and the delis are mostly for shit. Not just horrible in the grocery, but everywhere. Here they don’t know from good bread or deli meats. One of my supermarkets actually has Boars Head brand deli meats, excellent quality, but several times the meat went bad in a day once I purchased it. They leave it open too long, and then it is expiring very quickly once you get it home. I don’t buy any deli there any more. It is so frustrating for me here.

New Orleans is known for great food, I have never been there, and the southern most points in the US are going to have good produce all year long. I rarely buy fruits and veggies out of season in Memphis, because the quality is horrific. Even in season it is risky. I guess your climate is so cold, growing seasons are fairly short.

(@JLeslie, I grew up in Northeastern Wisconsin, but I live in Norway now, just a short car ride to the arctic circle. At least not liking the food here has kept me thin. I should add, just to be fair, that I lived in New Zealand for 15 years and the food and lifestyle there was a hundred times better than here.)

@cazzie I only mentioned asking where you were from because I was not sure whether to use the word hero or sub. I guess now everyone knows what a sub is since Subway is a national chain, but only a few people know what a bubbler is :).

@JLeslie I’ve never heard of a bubbler. I’m guessing that’s not the same as bubble and squeak huh?

Don’t forget hoagies as another word for sub. I think that’s more midwestern.

We have a new place out here, from the east coast, called Jersey Mikes that blows Subway away.

but then again, I’ve never been a fan of subway, they make you pay extra for avocado, on a vegetarian sandwich even though you aren’t using up any of their meat!!!

@Kardamom Right, hoagie, I should have added that. Bubbler is a water fountain in WI.

@Kardamom Here is a Q for you, various words and expressions around the country. It is one of my favorites.

@JLeslie That was a real fun thread to read. But it’s kind of sad that you seem to be the only person still on Fluther. That was before my time. What happened to all of those people?

Just for the record: Californian here so it’s soda, firefly (never have had the pleasure of seeing one) sprinkles, though jimmies are common too (never heard any racist connotation to that word, and we use the term for chocolate as well as other colors) either half hour or half an hour used equally often. We mostly say sub, but another one that is used less often is torpedo.

Subway…seafood and crab but sadly looks like they got rid of that sandwhich, although you can still get it in my parents’ town in Iowa.

Arbys…curly fries.

Mcdonald’s…fries

Taco Bell…soft shell tacos and the nacho grande plate.

Hungry now.

Yeah, @AshlynM They did get rid of that sandwich. :( :( :(
Headin’ to McD’s now. Starving!

Never heard of that sandwich…big fan of Subway though. Sounds like a good sandwich, I wish they kept it, seafood kicks ass.

It WAS a great sandwich.
I think I’ll do Sonic instead of McD’s.

Ohh, that is hard.
Burger King, Whopper Jr. with cheese and onion rings. Also love croissants egg, bacon and cheese sandwich and tater tots
Next is McD’s big macs and fries
Next is Wendys burgers and bake potatoes
Next is Subway ham and turkey subs with red wine vinaigrette
This is a horrible question to read at this hour. I haven’t eaten much of anything today because I’ve been feeling sick. Now I’m starving.

I am rather pissed and I want some hot chips.

I had a Wendy’s salad at the airport yesterday. I have not been to Wendy’s for years, and was very impressed with the freshness and selection. Best was they make it at the moment so you can add or subtract what you want.

A&W and KFC/Taco Bell