We grab fast food lunch going to and coming from the country, 2 to 3 times a month. We bounce between/among several favorite taco trucks, Subway, Carl’s Jr., Arby’s and BK.
Subway’s spicy Italian sub with mayo, chipotle mayo, lettuce, tomato, red onion, a “handful” each of dill pickle and jalapenos, on a wheat sub bun is my standard order. Fresh ingredients, satisfyingly zesty. We each order one, specifying garnishes.
Carl’s Jr. spicy crispy chicken sandwich on a small combo feeds both of us. One of these sandwiches each is too much. Split, and with fries, just right. Good size and well prepared chicken breast, juicy and crunchy. Good bun and sauces.
Arby’s fish sandwich, again on small combo, was excellent but apparently only available during lent.
;Currently, we like usually unloved BK for their crispy fish (small combo) sandwich. It really depends on the branch you visit and who’s on duty. Yesterday’s was brilliant. Hot, super crispy, good fresh flavor, lots of lettuce, pickle and sauce. Perfect. Would be nice if consistency was their forte.
This is our rat track (CA highway 12 west through Lodi) and we are always in the market for new lunch options.
If you’re headed to Minnesota …,
Years ago there was an A&W in Clements - I think it was sold and became a burger stand but had local produce, real milkshakes, etc.
Used to be a couple of the farm stands west of Lockeford (I recall one had a big red barn) had excellent local grilled sausages, too.
Do y’all have Port of Subs? We FAR prefer it to Subway. Check it out if you see one.
Not fat - big boned!
And I’d love to know the answer. I was heartbroken when the Mcdonalds by us (Glendale/Pasadena) said they were no longer doing breakfast all day. This was a year ago, so maybe pandemic related but - dang! We didn’t even want a hash brown, just wanted an egg mcMuffin for lunch. Cuz it’s the best.
M
It was pandemic related. Right after the first lockdown, McDonalds dropped all day breakfast. Before the pandemic, it was a great success. Can’t remember how much the revenue bump was but it was significant.
Some locations are bringing all-day back themselves. Sadly, I don’t expect corporate to do it in the foreseeable future.
This sucks breakfast is basically the only reason I stop at McDonald’s and I don’t usually eat breakfast so it was always a nice treat to get a sausage egg McMuffin for lunch or snack etc.
Agreed! Sausage McMuffin* was my go to late night meal.
*should say McMuffins
What a bunch of F***** teases!!
Why push this message to me after breakfast hours?
Bastards!! Piss off, clown-man!
Ronald is just mocking you!!!
not necessarily “fast food” but thought this belonged here
Last year they always had a $3 double whopper.
But this is still a great deal for 1/2 pound of meat. I get extra tomatoes, extra lettuce, extra onion and extra pickle.
Serious girth, both the burger and me.
I figure this belongs here:
I finally got around to trying Raising Cane’s. They’ve been open around here (greater Sacramento) for a while now, but there just hasn’t been a good excuse to go out of my way for one.
Lady Lectroid demanded to go see Top Gun: Maverick, Bonchon was closed Mondays, so Raising Cane’s was it.
Much like the film, the verdict was: Meh.
I mean, it’s chicken fingers. They were not actively BAD, so in that respect, they were fine. Crinkle cut fries were nicely crispy. But their ‘secret sauce’? It’s a VERY very standard thousand island/ketchup-mayo combination. Heat? No. Interest? None. The most I can say for it is it lubricated the chicken, in which capacity it was… fine. I guess.
The whole thing left me rather puzzled as to why this chain had ANY sort of buzz or following at all. I mean, Jack in the Box tacos are odd enough, different enough from other things out there to have their niche. Hell, Taco Bell tacos are their own thing, the archetype ‘gringo taco’.
If it has anything going for it, their iced tea is certainly a thing. The unsweetened version is, well, iced tea. Tea leaves. Water. It’s fine. The SWEET tea, though, tastes like it was made with 2:1 simple syrup. It is tea flavored sugar water. It is SWEE-EEE-EEET. I am aware that is a thing. If that is your thing, then this might be enough for you.
But this is chicken fingers. Not marinated, not secretly flavored. Just competently battered boneless chicken meat. And that’s fine, but, well, I can get a bag of that at Trader Joes.
Ultimately, it passes the “At least it’s not Subway” test. If it were the sole fast food place attached to a highway rest stop and I needed food, I’d happily eat it (unlike Subway, where I’d rather take my chances with gas station pastries).
But I could also live out the rest of my days happily without ever feeling the need to go into a Raising Canes again.
One last note: It has the GOOD ice, a/k/a “Sonic” ice, a/k/a “pellet” or “nugget” ice. If I was in the car and REALLY wanted a coke, and a Raising Cane’s was nearby, I’d stop there, just for the ice.
Movie note: If you have a big nostalgic soft spot for the original Top Gun, Maverick is worth your time. It checks all the things you probably loved about the original back in the 80’s, and is otherwise as disposable and forgetable as, well, a meal at your average fast food place. If you do not feel a deep need for a little light military propaganda and some beach FOOTBALL (hey! They switched it up!) than you can (and probably should) skip it.
Thanks. I’ve wondered about this place. I won’t rush out.
My 5 year old granddaughter loves chicken fingers. They can be microwaved for all she cares. I’ve never understood why they exist and a stop at a Raising Cane’s didn’t answer the question for me. The one near our son’s house sometimes has 30+ cars in the drive thru line. Not as many as the In-n-out across the street. THAT attraction I DO understand.
Personally, I’ve never gotten the attraction of In 'n Out, either, but then, hamburgers aren’t really my thing, and their fries suck. A former coworker raved about their shakes, but the couple of times I’ve tried them I was less than impressed.
That said, I CAN see why In n Out has at least some nostalgic, regional appeal to Californians generally and southern Californians in particular. I do NOT understand any of the appeal of Raising Cane’s.
“What if McDonald’s, but with 1/20th of the menu?”
Really? That’s it?
I agree. I didn’t even find them that crispy. The truth is, that Chicken fingers are a popular restaurant meal for kids and there isn’t that many fast food places that do them well (the thing Raising Canes has is truly TENDER tenders). But for me, I would rather buy the tenders from Johnnys or even Dave’s Hot Chicken and pay a little more for crispy…
Agreed. Plus they don’t have ranch dressing (gasp!), which is a nonstarter for my stepdaughter. A true chicken finger connoisseur if there ever was one.