Burger wars

I honestly dont understand the never ending praise for In-n-out burger including from big name chefs like Gordon Ramsey and the late Anthony Bourdain.     People talk about their burgers like they're some kind of divine gift brought down from the mountain by Moses. 

On my list they are a distant 4th..    what are your favorites?

1) Five Guys.    They are the only one with Fresh Cut Fries...mic drop.   Its really over right there.   Couple those with salt and malt vinegar and you could get a crowd just for that.  But their burgers are awesome too and have lots of premium toppings to choose from.   I get mine with grilled onions, lettuce, and A1.    No other burger joint comes close

2) Blakes Lotaburger.   Another Southwest chain mainly in New Mexico, West Texas and Arizona.   You see them alot in the TV Show Breaking Bad.    Green Chilis on your cheeseburger?  Yes please!   They wrap it up in foil right off the grill so it has time to emulsify into one big glob of awesomeness.    Fries and shakes are typical fast food quality.   

3) Shake Shack.    I do like the butter burgers that they smash down and crisp up - similar to the midwest chain called Culvers.     But processed, crinkle cut fries and shakes made with soft serve?  Meh.   Its ok but not worthy of the hype in my opinion.   What are people waiting in lines 30 people deep for this stuff?

4) In-N-Out.    Most overrated burger joint in the United States.  What?  They put thousand Island dressing on their burger?  So does McDonald's Big Mac....and I think they use the same fries which is not a compliment.

I'm not saying its bad but I dont think its any better than Wendy's/Burger King

Honorable mentions:    Whataburger, Culvers

Blake's wins for the green chiles. You can put green chile on anything, even a bowling ball, and it will become edible. But on a burger, they elevate it to fine art.

Five Guys has the best fries, and you get a mountain of them--the Cajun seasoning is da bomb. The burgers are just--pretty good. The only trouble is that the place is expensive.

Shake Shack--big whoop.

In-N-Out: I like it, but I wouldn't go out of my way for it. The fries have a shelf life of about forty seconds. The burgers are OK. I give 'em props for paying their employees decently.

Culvers--gotta try 'em sometime. They're the chain with the custard, right?

I can't get behind Whataburger (despite their willingness to add green chile). I used to live where there were quite a few of them, and I joked that the name used to be longer--"What, you call this a burger?"

I miss Backyard Burgers here at home.  They were just like you grilled them on your patio. 

No really good fast food burgers anymore.  Soggy when you get them home, and fries are shrunken and cold.

Admit I haven't tried Five Guys.  Across town from us, but must try.  No In-N-Out, Culvers, or Shake Shack.

Candy  

Agree, PJ.  People rave about In-n-Out, but I was completely underwhelmed, didn't really seem any better than Burger King to me.  Five Guys does a great job for a chain, and you're right, their fries are terrific; everyone else is moving toward those chemically treated, coated fries; if I were Pope, I'd make those illegal.  Yeah, they're crispy and any moron can fry them and they have a shelf life of a week, but they suck.

i like to add my 2 cents, i was a big fan of whataburger but when the owners sold out so did the quality and consistency.  no longer in my top 20.

shake shack, not available in my area, has good burgers and fries, probably ranked in my top five;

In n Out, used to be couldn't get enough of them when i visited california, even Vegas, but the luster wore off, don't know why. You have to know the secret menu to get something worthwhile there now IMO:

Five Guys, nice, fresh always consistent. they don't scrimp on the servings either and i like that they promote the potato farmers.  my number 2 go to:

Blakes, used to travel to New Mexico just to eat a Blakes. Used to. they changed the lettuce cut, started making burgers en masse, and lost some of the bling. still a good burger, ranked in my top 5; 

Sparky's in Hatch, New Mexico. Yummy yummy and yummy. talk about green chile, these guys are outrageously good. all the time. yes you stand in line, but at least you know you'll be really happy. ranked as my number 1, a treat because its not near by, but number 1. 

in Vegas i was really disappointed in Guy Fierri's burgers outside Harrah's, but still a fun place to go to. 

enjoy the burger. while you can. 

The above mentioned chains all serve thin patties that are cooked very well done. I prefer thick medium rare burgers.  I like all their shakes.

Ramsey on his shows makes his burgers thick & medium rare

Backyard Burgers was good.  Their Chili Cheese Fries were also tasty. 

At the end of the day you like what you like and I'm OK with you not liking what I like,  aka I happen to love in n out,  possibly because we don't have them in New England but we do have 5 guys,  which I also like.   I do however question one thing,  you said that 5 guys is the only one with fresh cut fries; have you not seen the guys in the back literally doing that,  cutting fries from raw potatoes pretty much constantly lol? 

My favorite "big" burger is Red Robin.  While it's a chain, they do know how to make a thick juicy burger with a lot of topping options.  Also the roll stays together for the entire meal, not disintegrate like some other places. Add to that the bottomless fries and reasonable prices and it really works for me.  In and Out is pretty good but not in the same league.

In an entirely different category is White Castle. I was brought up in the Northeast, about a mile from a White Castle.   Used to go there at about 2AM with all the other drunks to get my fix.  This was when they still had some car hops. Originally, I think they often ran a newspaper coupon where you could get 8 or 10 for a $1.   Now down in Texas so I have to wait until I go to Las Vegas to get my annual White Castle "fix".

Some years ago my wife and I tried Fat Burger when we were out in Las Vegas...horrible just about discribes the experience.  Lukewarm and pretty much tasteless.  Maybe we were there on a bad day, it was very crowded, but we won't be going back.

    I tried In and Out once, I was not impressed. I have never been back.