Chain Leader

Lane Cardwell

QSR+
May 14, 2008

I have grown up eating in quick service restaurants. When I was younger they were called fast food. Now they are simply quick. Still fast enough for my needs, though. My expectations have been shaped by countless visits to most of the QSR restaurants across the country. Burger chains, chicken chains, taco chains, seafood chains.  I have grown up with all of the leaders in QSR. I know what to expect when I use the drive-thru, and when I decide to eat in the dining room. When I travel, I like to try the various chains that are not available where I live.
 
I live in Texas. We don't have In-N-Out Burger. We don't have Hardee's. We have Carl's Jr., but not many. But we do have Whataburger, and only 9 other states can make that claim (from Florida to Arizona). Even though we have to share Whataburger with these other states, it is as Texan as In-N-Out is Californian. Jalapeños are a topping option, like cheese and bacon.You may not have heard of Whataburger, but there are over 700, and they have been in business since 1950. As it says on the door, "Family Owned and Operated."
 
Whataburger is unabashedly old-fashioned. Their prototype design is an A-frame roof. Their brand color is orange (the new harvest gold, I am told). In recent years they have added a couple of salads and a grilled chicken sandwich. These additions were probably hotly debated for years as a possible risk that could alienate their core burger customers by simply being on the menu.
 
When I want a burger from a QSR restaurant, I go to Whataburger. I have nothing against the burgers at McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, Jack in the Box, or Sonic. Well, actually I do, but it doesn't seem polite to mention it in a public forum. Let me just say that the burgers at Whataburger taste like a restaurant burger. They are cooked to order. I know they are because it takes a while to get one. And they are big. They are served on a 5" bun. In the world of QSR burgers, that is big. They are more expensive than the burgers at other chains. I assume they cost more for all of the reasons that I like them.

One of the things that I really like about Whataburger is their approach to the customer in the dining room. They don't treat them like they are a drive-thru customer without a car. They treat them like they are guests in their restaurant. Because of the preparation time involved in cooking the burgers, Whataburger gives you a number to place on your table so that they can bring the food to you when it is ready. Most places are content to call your number out, and have you return to the counter to pick up your food. Whataburger approaches it more like a fast casual concept.
 
The thing that really impresses me, and I am easy to impress, is what they do when they bring you your food. They bring a specially designed tray with condiments, napkins, and dinner mints to the table. Forget something? They are offered to you at the table when your food arrives. Such a simple thing. After all, they are going to your table anyway. The first time I experienced this I could almost picture a group of employees brainstorming what they could do to raise their service level another notch beyond the competition. As if bringing the food to the table wasn't enough to be noticed.
 
It took me a while but I realized that there was probably another benefit that they experienced by bringing these condiments to the table.  Waste control. You are unlikely to take too many ketchup packs or napkins when they are being offered to you by an employee. Everything but ketchup is available next to the beverage station for you to pick up yourself, but over time, you are being trained that they will be coming to the table, and can eliminate that step yourself.
 
I would love to have In-N-Out Burger come to Texas. But in the meantime, I am doing just fine sitting in the dining room of a Whataburger selecting my condiments at the table, and trying to decide whether I will have room for that dinner mint. 

Posted by Lane Cardwell on May 14, 2008 | Comments (4)