PHOTOS - "Reality Check" - Carl's Jr. Six Dollar Cheeseburger AD photo VS. the REAL DEAL.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/01/reality-check-carls-jr-six-dollar-cheeseburger.html

Reality Check: Carl's Jr. Six Dollar Cheeseburger

Posted by Damon Gambuto, January 8, 2010 at 10:00 AM



Once again, we investigate fast food burger advertising accuracy with a touch of reality. Living on the West Coast means being inundated with—well, let's call it the Carl's Jr. advertising aesthetic. This time they are pushing their Six Dollar Cheeseburger, which is different than their Original Six Dollar Burger in that it has two slices of cheese and far fewer scantily clad women eating it in commercials.



I tried this burger out of a commitment to our readers and because I can't be trusted around any barely edible hamburger. It was, as you'd imagine, undermined by some seriously overdone and dry beef. It's always an odd choice to foreground the grind (real Angus, in this case) when hyping a fast food burger because, for me, that will always be their biggest weakness. The rest of the burger was passable, if a bit smashed and over mustard-ed.

[Sanity Claws]

1. Six bucks for that?

It looks like something you'd get at a high school cafeteria.

[nomorenomore08]

2. It's actually $2.49. But still, not much bang for your buck.

Carl's Jr. is on the expensive side, as fast food goes.

[Throd]

3. I had one yesterday. It was awesome.

They will never look like they do in the advertisements. I had a friend who was a photographer that did a lot of food shoots. You wouldn't believe what they do to food to make it appear so appealing in print.

[Auggie]

8. A food stylist will earn around $800-$1000 a day

for print. That's on top of the photographer's fee.

[Orrex]

10. I hear that they actually use duct tape to give the burgers more cleavage.

[jobycom]

4. Hell, if anything looked like it did in the advertisement

we'd have peace, health care, and marriage equality already. :rofl:

(It's a joke, I know he didn't promise... it's a joke, okay?)

[tblue]

5. That is one sad burger. Lol!

I'm a veg, so I wouldn't eat it anyway. But seriously, I remember loving cheeseburgers. I would've eaten it. I'm sure it tastes better than it looks.

[MilesColtrane]

6. AMMMFUUUUELLLL!!!

:puke:

[pinniped]

7. Their chicken parmesan sandwich looked like someone stepped on it after it came out of a microwave,.

or before. The actual sandwich showed little resemblance to their advertisements.

The pieces of red bell peppers in the marinara sauce wasn't a good fit.

[Richardo]

9. Wait: "FEWER scantily clad women eating it in commercials"?

What the hell kind of advertising campaign is that?