Image courtesy BusinessWire
Burger King garnered lots of attention this week after announcing a national rollout for the chain’s first ever stuffed hamburger.
The Jalapeño & Cheddar BK Stuffed Steakhouse infuses chopped jalapeño peppers and cheddar cheese inside an extra-thick, all-beef patty. Other standard toppings include lettuce, tomato, and a sauce made with poblano chiles, a mild pepper that recipe website A Taste of the Southwest describes as “Mexico’s favorite chile” with “a bell pepper flavor.”
After a test offering in Indiana last summer, this latest addition to Burger King’s XT line of premium hamburgers arrives countrywide with a reduced price of $3.99 — down from $4.35, as reported by Indy Grub Review. Both USA Today and website Burger Business note that the nearly-four dollar price stands out in a month when several of the restaurant’s competitors are heavily promoting value-priced items and combo deals, but the Jalapeño & Cheddar BK Stuffed Steakhouse boasts a price equal that of not only sister entrée, the Steakhouse XT, but also other chains’ premium entrées, such as The Original Six Dollar Burger, found at Carl’s Jr. Furthermore, while variants within the Six Dollar Burger line (like former offering the Prime Rib Six Dollar Burger) can cost as much as $5.89, traditionally, sandwiches like the Stuffed Steakhouse are only found at fast casual and casual dining restaurants, which charge significantly more for their hamburgers than Burger King does for its latest creation. By looking at Burger Business’ list of stuffed hamburgers supposedly more “daring” than the Jalapeño & Cheddar BK Stuffed Steakhouse, a similar product elsewhere might cost between $7.50 and $14.
Despite its lower cost, Burger King’s version of the stuffed hamburger likely will not emerge as a favorite. Although Time Magazine claims that “everyone will be talking about [the Stuffed Steakhouse] soon,” nearly a quarter of respondents to a reader poll on The Consumerist blog reacted with “Gag me!” after learning about the new sandwich. Moreover, Citypages blogger Rachel Hutton describes the Burger King entrée as a “knockoff” of the Jucy Lucy (alternatively spelled Juicy Lucy), a Minnesota creation comprised of sliced cheese enveloped by two separate hamburger patties. In her piece for an OC Weekly blog entitled Stick a Fork in It, Michelle Woo also references the Jucy Lucy, implying that it tastes more “thrilling” than the Stuffed Steakhouse. A review on AOL’s Slashfood blog awards the Jalapeño & Cheddar BK Stuffed Steakhouse a “B-,” in part because “there is no ‘bite’ in every bite.”
Customers can find the Jalapeño & Cheddar BK Stuffed Steakhouse at participating Burger King locations throughout the U.S. now until mid-February, according to Nation’s Restaurant News.
Tags: Burger King, Carl's Jr., Jucy Lucy, Juicy Lucy
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