Editor’s Note: During this week’s update to the FFC website and server, there were a couple files found to be corrupted, which had been causing problems. In the process of deleting those files, 2 reviews accidently got trashed. Both reviews (Arby’s / Hardee’s) have been recovered, and are being re-posted below.

I’ll start off by saying I hadn’t been to a Hardee’s in a long time. At least 5 years. Before that, it had probably been another 5 years. I was on the road this weekend and came across one, so I decided to see what I’d been missing. Since when did they begin delivering orders to your table? I thought it was a nice change from the usual fast food service. Something that differentiates one place from another is always welcome. Are there any FFC readers aware of other fast food places doing the same thing?

Anyway, I decided to try the Frisco Thickburger. At $3.59, it’s a little on the expensive side, but to be fair, it’s big enough to satisfy most appetites. Consisting of a 1/3 pound charbroiled 100% Black Angus beef patty, 2 strips of bacon, 2 slices of Swiss cheese, sliced tomato and a special onion flavored mayo, on buttered and grilled sourdough bread. As a combo with fries and drink, the total price was $6.39 plus tax.

The beef patty was big and hanging over the bread in some places. The Angus beef was juicy and tasted great, with a nice smoky flavor. I didn’t find a need for the bacon on this burger, and it really didn’t add much to the experience. Something I definitely did not like - WAY too much onion mayonnaise. Even after scraping some aside, there was still pockets and globs of the stuff remaining. It was pretty overwhelming. I know some may disagree but I wasn’t a fan of the mayo’s taste to begin with. If that sounds like a turn off to you too, ask them to go ‘light’ on the creamy white spread.

The burger had sliced tomato which tasted fine, but I think it would benefit from some cool, crisp lettuce. The Swiss cheese didn’t have much impact. Swiss cheese doesn’t pop with a lot of flavor anyway, and with so much going on with this burger, it got lost in the shuffle. By appearance alone the sourdough bread seemed to have a toasted crunch, but it didn’t. The toasting was much lighter than it looked, and limited to only one side. The texture was fairly soft, about the same as a regular burger bun. I was disappointed by that. On the bright side, the bread was sturdy enough that it held the sandwich together with no problem. A pet peeve of mine with big burgers is they often fall apart and create a mess. To it’s credit, this bread remained intact.

Overall, this was still a very good burger, even though I personally didn’t really like the onion-mayo. Maybe some raw onion and regular mayonnaise instead of the flavored variety would improve my opinion. A few changes here and there would have made me happier, but it can’t all be perfect. Regardless, it was a satisfying big burger with terrific tasting Angus beef. I doubt I’ll wait another 5 years for a return trip to Hardee’s.

Price: $3.59 / Website: Hardees.com

Fast Food Critic Score: B+

Click here for rating system details.

Nutrition Facts - Hardee’s Frisco Thickburger.

Calories - 910
Calories from Fat - N/A
Total Fat - 68 grams
Carbs - 39 grams
Saturated Fat - 23 grams
Trans Fat - N/A grams
Cholesterol - 115 milligrams
Sodium - 1720 milligrams
Protein - 34 grams

A fast-food pork chop? No way! That’s what I was thinking yesterday when Philip sent me a message saying he saw a new Hardee’s advertisement with a pork chop and gravy on a biscuit. Today, the folks at Hardee’s contacted me with details. This new breakfast item features a boneless, breaded pork chop, covered in sausage gravy, served on one of the chain’s ‘Made From Scratch’ biscuits. It sells for $2.99 and is also available in a combo meal for $4.59 that includes hash rounds (small circular hash browns) and beverage. It’s actually the company’s second version of a pork chop sandwich.

“We first introduced a Pork Chop Biscuit a few years ago and, even though we stopped selling it last year, we still get many requests from people asking us to bring it back,” said Brad Haley, Hardee’s Executive Vice President of Marketing. “And, since we had many reports from our restaurants that people were ordering a side of our famous sausage gravy to dip the biscuit in – which I usually do myself, by the way – we decided to re-test it with sausage gravy already on it and it was more popular than ever. So, I guess the old saying among our test kitchen people is true: The only way to make it better is to add gravy to it!”

No Boobs at Starbucks — The Fast Food Maven reports that Starbucks will soon be pulling the image of the topless mermaid from it’s coffee cups. The “Heritage” logo as it’s called, has created a small controversy since it appeared in April, at the same time the company’s new version of Pike Place Roast coffee was introduced. I see my friend Jeff from Knowzy.com has already been there and posted, but I’m sure the boob topic had nothing to do with it. Right Jeff?

Prime Rib on a Hamburger? — Yes indeed, Hardee’s (sibling of CarlsJr) has just introduced a new product called the Prime-Rib Thickburger. The company describes their new creation as — “A one-third pound 100% Black Angus beef patty topped with thinly-sliced prime rib, horseradish sauce, Swiss cheese, and grilled onions on a Ciabatta roll served with a cup of Au jus for dipping.”

Alabama gets Dunked — Dunkin Donuts has announced plans to expand into the state of Alabama. They are actively seeking people interested in starting their own DD franchise. They plan to open 142 locations in the state over the next few years. For more information about starting your own Dunkin Donuts store, visit DunkinFranchising.com or call toll-free 1-877-9-DUNKIN.

Chick-fil-A does Pizza? — Not exactly, but the 87 year old founder of CFA, Truett Cathy, has opened a new pizza restaurant located in Fayetteville, Georgia, called “Upscale Pizza”. The 90-seat dining establishment offers customers a chance to create their own pizzas, sandwiches, hot wings, and hot dogs by choosing toppings and sauces. They also serve pie, ice cream, and feature a kid’s menu. Despite the ‘Upscale’ name, the environment is casual and family friendly. There are no plans for additional locations and no direct affiliation with CFA.

Pizza from Subway — Yes it’s true, Subway is serving mini-pizzas. I had another one today, my second this week. This small ‘personal’ pie is similar to the $4 pizzas from Domino’s. The core of the Subway pizza (crust, sauce and cheese) is prepared off-site, then frozen and sent to stores across the country, where toppings are added and the pie gets cooked in a “speed oven” for 90 seconds. I’m sure that serious pizza enthusiasts everywhere are rolling their eyes in disgust, but try to keep in mind this is fast-food. — My review is coming soon.

UPDATE 5/22: The review is now posted. Thank you.