Big Hardee
What I Got: Hardee’s “Big Hardee” Burger $2.29
With the debut of the Angus Third Pounders at McDonald’s and their obvious similarities to the Hardee’s signature Thickburgers, Hardee’s has decided to strike back and create their own version of McDonald’s signature “Big Mac” sandwich. So, armed with an empty stomach, I decided to give the Big Hardee a try.
Let’s start with the basics. The Big Hardee is a triple patty burger with two slices of cheese and lettuce on top of a sesame seed bun with a special with a tangy “Big Twin” sauce. It looks similar to a Big Mac, but is missing the middle bun that you would see in a Big Mac. Also, it obviously has one more meat patty than the Big Mac.
As for the taste, I will say this was better than a Big Mac (not that being better than a Big Mac takes much) so Hardee’s suceeded there and maybe that’s all they were going for. I would severely doubt that and personally, I was not impressed by this burger as it failed in several respects, so let’s list them out:
1. I expected thick patties similar to a Thickburger but not quite that big, but the patties were thin and just like something that you’d find at any other run of the mill fast food joint. This caused the burger to be much smaller than I would have ever anticipated.
2. The fact that the patties reaked of that process meat taste that you would get any any other fast food joint. The lack of processed meat taste is what makes Thickburgers good and this burger is missing that.
3. The Big Twin sauce was physically on my burger because I could see it, but I could hardly taste it.
4. The lettuce was mushy and disgusting. Put some fresh lettuce on this thing and you might have something.
They did succeed in one respect as there was a lot of cheese on this thing and the cheese actually had a nice taste.
Would I Buy It Again? No, not a chance. Stick with the Thickburgers at Hardee’s and you should be okay. Don’t waste your time or money on this thing.
Also, this thing clocks in at 730 calories and of those calories, 460 of them are made up of fat calories and that is not good (your fat calories should only be about 1/3 of your total caloric intake of food). Had the burger been good, I might not have cared but since it wasn’t, I wish I had just stuck with my normal oatmeal lunch.
-IndianapolisEater
Tags: Big Hardee, Big Mac, Food, Hardee's
I’ve been avoiding this one…although $2.29 seems pretty cheap for a triple burger. The thing is, I’m perfectly fine with one patty. I’d rather eat 3 small cheeseburger over one big sloppy triple. I HATE limp lettuce! That’s something that I applaud Wendy’s for…they always have the freshest lettuce/tomato/onion. Big Hardee looks like a Big Messy Disappointment. Thanks for taking one for the team Ry…
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That sucks to hear. It looks awesome on the commercial (shocking, I know). Guess I’ll have to stick with my Frisco.
Oh gawsh. I have been dying for a real, live, non-healthy burger (aka, not a turkey burger). Too bad it sucks. But it at least it looks good.
Head Lettuce… I just cannot eat this stuff anymore. Their Thickburgers remain among the best in the midwest.
By the way, Indianapoliseater: Thank you for the timeliness of this. I stopped at a Hardees late tonight. Had it not been for the review I would have tried the Big Hardee. Instead, I stuck with my Frisco and it RULED. As usual.
Hey, glad we could help! That’s what we are here for!
I normally like Hardee’s burgers and the commercial made this one look good. So I tried it. WORST BURGER EVER! They should call it “The Big Piece Of Crap”. It should never be compared to a Big Mac. And the burger is a lot smaller than the commercial makes it appear. I honestly thought they gave me a junior burger by mistake. Nope, it was “The Big Hardee’s”. Terrible!
Bought one of these tonight, it really made me live up to my screen name. That picture you have here actually looks more appetizing than this burger actually appears in real life. Greasy, mealy, small disgusting patties and what the hell was that sauce all about? And why why WHY the soggy chunks of iceberg lettuce core? Why? I took mine back and demanded my money back.
McDonalds has nothing to worry about with this thing.
The lettuce was absolutely terrible, just totally ruined the entire thing. I would have to order one without lettuce to come to a firm decision on it, but I doubt it would be worth buying again. Pathetic, Hardees, absolutely pathetic.
i ordered one because of the commercial makes it looks so good. i got it and thought they made a mistake, i took it back because looked to only have two patties. the manager came out to show me there was three. she made me pull the burger apart to prove to me it had three. it was the size of a small sausage patty. i dont think i will ever go back to this location, much less ever eat this burger again. wish i would have read these reviews before i tried this crap of a burger.
Thanks for the review, and the additional comments. Guess I’ll just stick to my favorite ( wopper with cheese). Even though the BK “king” commercial is creepy. All these companies are fighting for domination in the market place. Wish they would spend more money on the food, their employees, and less on the marketing. But most resturants live or die by the votes (feet)of persons that eat their food. And the best ones don’t have to advertise. They have lines of persons waiting to get in. Same with car dealerships, banks, motels, insurance companies, etc… The best ones don’t advertise. They dont have to. One thing that amuses me is “jack in the box” commercials around here. They are on every station. only thing, their is not a JITB within 100 miles. It would be like inandout advertiseing on the east coast.
I’m going to have to respectfully disagree with you on the matter of the BK King. He is awesome and I wish they’d bring back those commercials where he was playing in NFL Games.
Just bought your Big Hardee sandwich. You’ve got to be kidding me. On the comercial it looks a whole lot bigger than a Big Mac when in fact it was a whole lot smaller. There ain’t no way I’d ever give up the Big Mac now for the Big Hardee. It was puney.
This is blatant false advertising!! The “Big Hardee” is nowhere in size and scale of the Big Mac. In fact, when I got it in the bag…I thought they’d made a mistake. It was no larger than a regular size burger in the wrapper. All of the success of the thick burger campaign will surely make for a disappointing Big Hardee campaign. I will be surprised if they don’t pull it from the menu w/i three months. It was pathetic! Small burger patties that were literally thinner than pancake width. It was a joke!!
I never really was big on Hardee’s simply because they never had anything that looked good to me on their menu. However, I was lured in by the commercials for the Big Hardee. When we left the drivethru, I seriously thought we had the wrong bag. It was as small as their regular hamburgers. Anyway, I thought I’d give it a try. BIG MISTAKE. This burger is awful and in no way compares to the Big Mac. I ate two bites of this “burger”, threw the rest in the trash and headed to McDonalds for something edible.
This burger was a big let down. First of all, a Big Mac comes in a box – so at least the bun stays somewhat “bread like” in its presentation. The Big Hardee comes wrapped up in a burger wrapper so the bun is essentially compressed and soggy. The special sauce is not so special. The 3 patties were there but, as said above, were pretty small. The cheese was good but was ruined by the presence of some limp lettuce that had definitely seen the adverse effects of either a long soak in the heat lamp or a few too many turns in the microwave. The marketing picture looks great while the actual burger is pitiful. Best, and funniest, part of buying this is that I had to ask the girl if she gave me the wrong order – her response: “Yeah, we get people asking that all the time”.
I’ve yet to hear a positive review of this sandwich, so I am very curious as to why Hardee’s keeps it on the menu. It sounds like your experience (and mine) are more of the norm and not at all the exception.
When I first saw this burger on the menu, I was a bit hesitant of buying it at first because I thought it would be too big for me, but then I decided to go for it and buy one. I was like, “It may kill me, but I think I’ll do it. I’m buying me a Big Hardee!”
If there was ever a time in my life that I felt disappointed, it would be now.
The burger looked nothing like the picture, which looked amazing. The picture made you think it was one of the Thickburgers, with huge patties, crisp lettuce, soft and fluffy buns, everything that made me like Hardee’s. Instead, I go the exact polar opposite. The burger was tiny, with tiny, greasy slips of beef, or at least what I think is beef, and tiny, limp, soggy slips of lettuce lightly sprinkled on top of my patty. Good lord was this thing greasy. I had to constantly grab napkins from the dispenser, and after eating it about half an hour ago I’m still licking and wiping my lips. It’s the kind of grease that refuses to go away.
I think the only good thing from eating this pile of shit was the sauce, which I could taste, and to me it tasted good, and the cheese, and there was a LOT of cheese on this thing. I think they could’ve given me a wad of meat and cheese, and even then it’ll probably be better than this thing.
Do NOT order this sandwich. It’s terrible!