A Whopping Burger King Review

I've tasted many a burger in my lifetime. Whilst munching on a Burger King Bacon BBQ Stacker King Box Meal today, I thought I should share my thoughts on the experience of ordering and indulging in arguably the second most well known burger chain in the UK.

Until a couple of years ago, my knowledge of Burger King was extremely limited. Growing up, we were very much a McDonalds household. Not too long ago, whilst in our local town centre, we decided to order a Burger King for a change. It was here that an employee enlightened us to their Rewards App. Ever since, we've become a devout Burger King over McDonalds family. Below I will explain why this is and the various reasons why we sometimes choose the latter.

The Home of the Whopper - and it's whopping price?

When compared to it's main rival, Burger King seems quite a bit more expensive. Or at least, that's what I thought! A standard Whopper Meal comes in at £8.59 whereas a Big Mac Meal sets you back £7.39. Until researching for this review, I believed the difference would be much more. Add to this the deals available on the App and suddenly Burger King is cheaper than it's rival. Despite this, I would argue most of the public would wrongly assume McDonalds is better value for money. A kids Meal is also only 20p more expensive, with offers such as 'Kids Eat Free' with a full paying adults meal lingering in the summer holidays. I'd argue you could feed your family for less at Burger King but again, this is not the general publics opinion; something Burger King's marketing team should address.

Burger King - Taste The Difference

There's something about tasting a Burger King and it's smoky, salty deliciousness when you're really craving a dirty burger. The smell of the flame grilled beef patty intensifies your desire to delve in and the salty chips act as the perfect side. Despite still enjoying McDonalds burgers, they leave you with a sense of ickiness compared to the fresh taste of a Burger King. Don't get me wrong, i still enjoy a McDonalds but the quality in taste of their burgers cannot compete. The portions are perfectly sized and you can taste all of the different components. I particularly love the barbeque sauce variety burgers with onion rings and melted cheese.

Convenience and Presence

It's here that Burger King let themselves down. There's circa 1300 McDonalds in the UK alone compared to Burger King's circa 550. Despite this, I can only get to 1 Burger King in a 15 minute drive of my house. I know at least 7 McDonalds, 3 of which are drive throughs. The drive through aspect plays such an important part when you have young children, are stopping for a quick lunch or have certain impairments making getting out of your car inconvenient. It would take me 25 minutes to get a drive through Burger King Meal from my house. There's also an abundance of spectacular marketing for it's main rival. Bus stops, TV ads, newspapers, sponsorships and social media are littered with McDonalds adverts. It's extremely rare to see a Burger King marketing ploy.

The Good and the Bad

Despite loving their food, I also have to mention the annoyance of my local Burger King lately. I've recently seen a shift in the ordering process which has become infuriatingly frustrating. It's come to my attention that both fast food chains now prefer you to use a kiosk to order. I was practically refused to order face to face at Burger King. After signing in at my designated kiosk and adding my rewards codes and my meal order, the kiosk froze. When I returned to the staff they tried to direct me to another kiosk. What would have taken me 2 minutes to order face to face turned into a 10 minute drama. I was only ordering for 3 people. I've never experienced this frustration with McDonalds and have always been able to order with a staff member if desired. This stupidity has occurred the last twice I've gone to order and leaves me deterred to go again. The staff waste more time telling everyone to use a kiosk than they would have taking the order.

Conclusion

Burger King is a great, tasty fast food meal. It's burgers are delicious and I urge you to taste one when you next get the chance. Unfortunately, it's everything except the food which lets the chain down. Price misconceptions, customer service and marketing; all controllable factors, are what's limiting the success of the brand. It's often the case with large rivalries; Pepsi vs Coca Cola, Xbox vs Playstation....it's not so much about the product as it is the surrounding factors, specifically marketing. Burger King has a fantastic selection of meals and I would love to see it's success continued, however the hurdles it faces to compete against current and future opposition leaves me thinking a revamp is needed in multiple departments. Don't change the food Burger King, change the perception.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on Burger King and if you agree with my review. Leave a comment below!