Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Savor Scottsdale: Whataburger


Admittedly, the title is somewhat misleading. "Savor" implies that the following restaurant is delicious or at least worth enjoying, but this is not the case. My entry for Whataburger is a warning instead. "Savor Scottsdale" is simply the name of my Scottsdale series. See a good Arizona burger at my Stax entry.

More...

I first heard about Whataburger from a San Antonio native who described it to me as the "In-n-Out" of Texas. So when I finally saw a branch of this Southern institution, I was determined to give it a beefy audition.



Upon receiving my meal, a Whataburger combo, I realized immediately the Texan appeal. Apparently, size is everything in the South, because taste sure isn't a factor. They serve 5 inch patties for their classic Whataburger. That 32 ounce drink is a medium. Fries undersalted and underflavored, burger dry and boring. I've had more interesting burgers that come out of my microwave. As you can tell from my Counter and Father's Office reviews, I'm now a big advocate of simple burgers made with quality beef. All the fancy toppings can't save poor meat, and good meat can easily trump any accoutrements. Whataburger was almost as disappointing as my first trip to Sonics, although not nearly as bad because I wasn't constantly bombarded by commercials for a fast food chain that didn't exist within fifty miles of me. Honestly, where the hell is the a Sonics and why do they spend so much advertising in markets without restaurants?

But back to Whataburger, what a garbage interstate import. You can keep your Whataburgers Texas, we'll just keep sending you avocados so you can continue to make everything "Californian."

Update: Whataburger rep for Arizona actually emailed me and invited me back to the restaurant as a guest to try "what a What-a-burger should be." While I won't be back in town, I would go back because I appreciate the effort they go through for customer satisfaction. It may not change the burger, but it speaks volumes about the company.

Whataburger
9990 N 90th Street
Scottsdale, AZ 85258
(480) 767-9281
$5 for a classic Whataburger, fries, and humongous drink

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4 comments:

TaraMetBlog said...

whataburgers are in El Paso Texas where my husband is from, he's a fan, i'm not. I hate that the burgers automatically have mustard on them too.

Kung Food Panda said...

Are you saying no to free food?? :P

Aaron said...

Tara: I wonder if being a native Texan will actually increase my opinion of the place.

KFP: I'm saying no to flying back to Scottsdale for a $4 burger

Gunadic said...

Personally, I think Whataburger's strongest bit is their breakfast: namely the honey-butter chicken biscuit. Man is that droolworthy.