Review: Carl's Jr. - Big Fried Cheese (BFC) Angus Thickburger

Carl's Jr.'s Big Fried Cheese (BFC) Angus Thickburger features a breaded cheese patty filled with melted cheddar and mozzarella cheese, a charbroiled third-pound Angus beef patty, lettuce, tomato, and Boom Boom sauce on a toasted buttery bun.

I paid $7.29 for one with the third-pound Angus patty but got a second one free with a BOGO coupon.

Carl's Jr. has been advertising "Hotter, Juicier, Hand Seasoned" Black Angus beef patties in-restaurant (but not on their website or on TV as of yet) and I can attest that my Angus beef patty was indeed juicy and hot and maybe seasoned with a little salt and pepper. On the other hand, it was also thinner and possibly wider than before (to achieve a faster cook time I'm guessing). Flavor-wise, it's not as heavily seasoned as before and I mostly just tasted beef (although the flavor was tested by a cheese patty that was thicker than the beef patty). The patty felt smaller overall but it might just be due to the flatter, wider profile.

The fried cheese patty had a thick, crunchy, slightly-flaky breadcrumb crust as well as a thick, melted, oozing layer of cheese inside. The crunch held up pretty well against the Boom Boom sauce that was lightly applied on top. The cheese tasted mostly like American cheese with a mild note of cheddar to it, which is to say it tasted like an extra cheesy grilled cheese sandwich. It was pretty great but overpowered the beef patty.

The Boom Boom sauce added a bit of tang and sweetness as well as a hit of spicy heat.

The lettuce and tomato were pretty standard--not particularly fresh but not wilted or overripe either. The brioche-like bun hit a sweet spot between dense and spongy that held up well.

I ended up saving the second burger to eat later. I took it apart to heat up the beef and bun, added some quickly microwaved bacon, and had myself a pretty nice bacon burger. The cheese patty I set aside for even later and it was surprisingly still crunchy when I finally ate it.

When it comes down to it, Carl's Jr.'s Big Fried Cheese Angus Thickburger really nails it when it comes to the fried cheese patty and the rest of the ingredients turned out well. That being said, it should have twice the meat to balance out the cheese, which makes sense given that they typically give you just one or two slices of cheese and the patty is probably about four slices worth of cheese. I actually liked it better eating the cheese patty and burger separately and would not mind it at all if they just sold the fried cheese portion by itself.

Nutritional Info - Carl's Jr. Big Fried Cheese Angus Thickburger (391g)
Calories - 1060 (from Fat - 560)
Fat - 62g (Saturated Fat - 17g)
Sodium - 1030mg
Carbs - 34g (Sugar - 7g)
Protein - 22g