Culvers 3 Cheese Butter Burger with Cheese Curds

Since the Phoenix Metro West Side is slow coming when it comes to some of these places this was my first trip to Culver's and I sure wasn't disappointed!

I had the 3 Cheese Butter Burger with a side of cheese curds and buddy it was just what The Fungus Ordered!

American, Swiss & Cheddar cheeses add that gooey and tart flavor to the already powerful punch these butter based buns and burgers offer. The crispy exterior of the meat is enhanced by, holy shit, actual seasoning on the meat! You get that delicious crisp bite and then push forward into a juicy, buttery, foodgasm of beef and cheese! The bun, delicious and subtle, not doughy and overpowering like many fast food breads is almost as fun to eat.

The fried curd is a must here, salty and fried to golden brown perfection the cheese curds are nothing like Uncle Silvio's mozzarella sticks, but the authentic Wisconsin cheese and care that's taken to keep these curds fried and not over fried is worth the eventual triple bypass!

The real winner here was my family who all managed to eat a filling dinner (5 of us!) for just over $30.00.

Seasons Eatings!

Related: Is Culvers Better than Smashburger?
Five Guys and Culvers

Fungus Neck's Midnight Snack #1

I used to be a grilled cheezus kinda guy. Midnight was for snacking and the tasty combination of fried bread and cheese was right up my ally!

That is until I discovered, the pepperoni cheezus!

Standard fare here at first, bread, butter, cheese... then you add a few slices of pepperoni and some tomato sauce or pizza sauce to the inner workings of the sandwich. What you walk away with is a taste explosion that more than resembles a nice slice of pepperoni pizza!

Now, I prefer turkey pepperoni, only because the flavor is slightly milder and works well without being overwhelming.

Try it, love it, send me $2.00!

The Arby's Beef 'n Cheddar Sauce Dilema

While this post may mainly be about the Arby's Beef 'n Cheddar sandwich, it's also a bit of a personal retrospective on my experiences with Arby's over the years.  Back in the 80's was the first time I remember having Arby's.  There was a stand alone Arby's at the mall, not a food court full of teenagers, but just an Arby's right there with the rest of the stores which made it a nice little unique stop at the mall.  

As a kid back then it was always an Arby's Jr. for me.  As the years when on, I upgraded to the regular Arby's, which was just the bigger version of the Jr.  Later on as I became more open to try new things, the Arby's cheddar melt and even the swiss melt were great options to change things up now and then.  Finally, the number one choice to grab became the Arby's Beef 'n Cheddar.  It was an upgrade from a cheddar melt at the time in that it came on an onion roll and was a bit bigger.  This became the regular choice for years to come when hitting Arby's, until 1 fateful day a few years ago. 

I remember the day well, we chose to eat at Arby's that day and of course I got the usual Beef 'n Cheddar meal.  As I sat and took the first bite, something was terribly wrong.  The taste was totally different, I didn't know what the hell was going on, but after closer inspection I noticed that Arby's messed up and put some sort of sauce on it.  After pointing this out to a cashier, I was informed that that's how they make them now.  WHAT?  Now for years, Arby's had a selection of "Arby's sauce" and "Horsey sauce" (still don't know what the hell horsey sauce is) readily available at the table, but I always steered clear because no sauces were needed.  Now they've taken the best sandwich there and added some weird sauce that changes everything?

I think just now all these years later is the first time I've taken the time to actually look up what they added to the Beef 'n Cheddar, and it's described as a "zesty Red Ranch sauce" on the Arby's website.  I just don't get it, it was great before, and if anyone wanted sauce they could have added it themselves.  Because of this, my choices have varied when I go to Arby's.  Don't get me wrong, I don't HATE the modern Beef 'n Cheddar and I'll still have one here or there especially since Arby's has a lot of great coupons that make for a real deal, but because of the sauce it's not the ultimate "go to" sandwich it once was. 

Are you a Beef 'n Cheddar fan?  If so, from what era?  How do you see it....sauce or no sauce???

Raising Canes Chicken Fingers in Phoenix AZ Review

Raising Canes in Phoenix AZ, kicks major ass. I love me some chicken but it is kind of hard to find some good chicken. KFC is slimey and weird, Churchs blagh, even Chik Fil A sometimes leaves me with a eh feeling. So finding a place that does chicken right is a blessing. They promise that their chicken is always fresh, never frozen. And the taste is there. They do a system somewhat similar to In N Out Burger. A basic menu of 4 selections, and off you go.

I did the sandwich, which was lettuce, 3 strips, and the Canes Sauce. What is it? No idea, but it is damn delicious. The fries are the old crinkly cut fries, and you can also get a side of texas toast with an order which I think if the toast was used on the sandwich instead of the current bread, it would be the best chicken sandwich of all time.

I hit the drive thru but looking through the windows the inside had a really cool atmosphere, any place that has a Total Recall poster on the wall instantly gets my approval. The service was over the top great. Very friendly, fast, and good.

Next time I am thinking about a chicken sandwich, I am skipping Chik Fil A and heading to Canes instead. You should do the same. They even offer their own home made lemonade and sweet tea!