- I tried the same meal from McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, Whataburger, P. Terry's, and In-N-Out and compared them on taste and value.
- In-N-Out's famous Double-Double was large, undeniably delicious, and great value.
- However, P. Terry's impressed me the most with its big burger and generous serving of fries.
I ordered a double cheeseburger, fries, and a medium drink from Burger King.
The meal as a whole came to $9.12, not including taxes and delivery fees. At $2.29, the burger cost less than what I usually pay for my morning coffee.
It comes with two of the chain's beef patties, American cheese, pickles, mustard, and ketchup on a sesame-seed bun.
Unlike some other fast-food double cheeseburgers, it doesn't come with chopped onions and it has one slice of cheese, not two.
This burger was super filling.
Right away, I tasted the thick beef patties. The burger had traveled a little more than 15 minutes from my local Burger King to my apartment, but the meat was still juicy and the cheese nicely melted.
The pickle slices were thick and crunchy, and I enjoyed the sesame-seed bun, which added a nice textural element. But I thought there was just a little too much ketchup, which will likely vary depending on who's making your burger that day.
The serving of Burger King fries I received was generous.
Fries were spilling out of the carton and into the bag, but I wasn't complaining. An order of medium fries cost me $3.39. The fries were thick and had more potato than some other fast-food french fries I've tried.
But I thought they were a bit bland on their own. They worked well as a vehicle for sauce but could have used just a touch more salt.
I also ordered a double cheeseburger, fries, and a drink from Wendy's.
The burger was about the same price as the burgers from McDonald's and Burger King. The entire meal came to $8.27, not including taxes and fees.
A Wendy's double cheeseburger comes with two junior-size hamburger patties, American cheese, ketchup, mustard, pickles, and sweet onion.
I thought the toppings looked a little stingy, and they were clustered in the middle of the sandwich. I would have liked to see them more spread out.
The burger bun was fluffy and light, and the toppings had a ton of flavor.
I had to get a few bites in to reach the toppings in the center, but they were amazing. I thought the pickles were the most flavorful out of the burgers I tried, and I liked the use of an onion ring rather than diced onion, though I would have liked just a little more.
The fries were fluffy and cost only $2.59, but they could have used a touch more salt.
They were just a bit bland for my liking, but they were also the cheapest fries among those I tried. I felt I got what I paid for.
The McDonald's meal came to $10.27, not including taxes and fees.
The burger was slightly more expensive than Burger King's version but had more toppings. It came with an extra slice of American cheese plus chopped onions, and it was still affordable.
The double cheeseburger from McDonald's comes with two beef patties, pickles, chopped onions, ketchup, mustard, and two slices of American cheese.
I was interested to see if the added toppings would amp up the flavor.
I thought all the ingredients came together well in this burger, but the bun was a little lackluster.
The bun held everything together and was a good size, but it was a little too soft and didn't have a lot of flavor on its own. But I enjoyed the amount of condiments and didn't find them overpowering.
The chopped onions added a lot of flavor, and the burger patties were juicy despite being thinner than the Burger King ones. I liked the added cheese but didn't think it was totally necessary.
The fries from McDonald's cost $3.69 and came with two sauces.
The fries were crispy and well salted, though they were starkly thinner than some of the others, like the fries from Burger King. However, I actually preferred the thinner shape.
From In-N-Out, I ordered a Double-Double burger, regular fries, and a soft drink.
My meal came to $8.25, not including tax, which I thought was a good deal considering how much food I received.
Most Double-Double burgers come with lettuce, tomato, onions, and spread.
To keep my burger similar to the burger I tried from the other chains, I ordered it with onions, pickles, and spread. It cost me $4.50, which I thought was an excellent deal for the large burger sitting in front of me.
The cheese slices were perfectly melted and coated each part of the burger.
The bun was soft and held everything together well, while the special spread had my mouth watering for another bite.
The burger was super flavorful, though classic. I thought when it came to a double cheeseburger, the West Coast chain really nailed it. The burger was beyond flavorful, the perfect size, and shockingly inexpensive.
But the fries were a tad underwhelming, in my opinion.
That said, the regular fry cost me only $2, which I thought was a good deal. They were crispy but could have used a touch more salt. The inside was also not fluffy at all, which I thought gave them an odd texture.
Overall, I was just slightly underwhelmed by the regular fries, an opinion that I happen to share with other In-N-Out diners.
I also ordered a double meat burger with cheese, a small order of fries, and a soft drink from Whataburger.
My meal came to $10.87, not including tax, which made it slightly more expensive than the meal from In-N-Out.
Whataburger allows you to customize your burger.
I ordered mine with a large bun, American cheese, grilled peppers and onions, pickles, and ketchup. It was slightly different from the In-N-Out burger, largely due to the addition of the sliced jalapeño peppers. It also had ketchup on it, rather than spread.
The burger patties were crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. I also thought the toppings added a ton of flavor.
The bun was light and fluffy, but I did think the burger patties could have been a little thicker and juicier. However, I really enjoyed the option to add jalapeño slices to the burger, in addition to other classic options. The cheese was also gooey and flavorful.
I thought the fries were well-salted and crispy.
They were actually among some of the best fries I've tried at a fast-food joint, and they only cost $1.99 before tax. These fries definitely edged out the slightly blander fries from In-N-Out.
My favorite meal came from P. Terry's Burger Stand, a regional chain I visited in Austin, Texas.
There are nearly two dozen of the restaurants in Texas. The burger cost only $4.10, making it one of the cheaper burgers I tried. The meal as a whole came to $7.85, not including taxes and fees.
The burger was less expensive than the burgers from In-N-Out and Whataburger.
While the patties weren't quite as thick as the In-N-Out burger's, it was still thick and the beef was perfectly grilled. I ordered it with pickles, onions, ketchup, mustard, and American cheese.
I thought the cheese could have been more melted, but the size definitely made up for that small detail.
One of the benefits of ordering from P. Terry's is that you can easily customize your burger and add a number of toppings including grilled onions, the chain's special sauce, tomato, lettuce, and more.
I thought the burgers were juicy and the pickles had a tart crunch to them. The bun was slightly underwhelming, but I thought it was an excellent, large burger with tons of flavor, especially for the low price. I also thought the mustard really came through and added a lot to the burger.
The fries were undoubtedly the best out of all the chains I tried.
The huge serving of fries arrived wrapped in paper, giving it a more old-fashioned burger-joint feel. The shoestring fries were perfectly salty, greasy, and weren't underdone or overdone.
In the end, I had to give the win to P. Terry's.
While In-N-Out had my favorite burger, I had to give the win for the overall meal to P. Terry's. Not only was the burger thick and flavorful, but the fries were probably the best fries I've ever received from a fast-food restaurant.
The next time I'm in Texas, I'll definitely be stopping by P. Terry's.
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