Fatburger is quite the interesting eatery. Not the euphemism-for-bad kind of interesting, but the kind where you are genuinely interested. What interested me was the attitude of the place: it reminded me of an In-N-Out Burger or a Krispy Kreme. They seemed to have a thing and stick to it. Simple menus, simple decor and and a focus on the food. Me likey.

I ordered the standard Fatburger — plain of course — and a vanilla shake. I was offered the choice between “fat fries” and “skinny fries”, which confused me for a moment, until I realized that it referred literally to the thickness of the fries rather than to their purported effect on my BMI. I chose the skinny fries, as fatter fries always irritate me because if I wanted a whole potato in my mouth at once I would just shove in a Russet myself.

After quite a bit of a wait at the counter, we received our food. I was expecting a great deal more love to be poured into my burger than actually was, which was very disappointing. No one even thought about it enough to melt the cheese onto the patty. Really? It’s 2008. Get a clue.

The meat however, was quite fresh and vibrant. It really felt as if I were eating an actual food product rather than some kind of crazy genetic synthesis monstrosity that you might find at other fast food joints. (Wendy’s, I’m looking in your direction.) I definitely appreciated that, so at least there was some semblance of love in this burger.

The skinny fries were sub-par. Lifeless. Pedestrian. Didn’t even come close to my expectations.

The milkshake was quite good, for a milkshake. I felt like they used French Vanilla, which was a nice touch. I don’t usually get vanilla though, so I’m not really sure how it compares to other places.

In conclusion, the cold cheese and the subpar fries makes this reviewer call into question the restaurant’s slogan “the last great hamburger stand”. More accurately it would be “an acceptable hamburger indoor seated restaurant”.

Fatburger. That’s right, Fatburger. Now I know what you’re thinking: Fatburger? Is that like a regular burger but fat? I had this same expectation going in, but I was surprised to find the answer is: no.

I ordered the Kingburger which is like the traditional Fatburger but larger. It really did turn out to be a quality meal. Fatburger’s combination of pickles, relish, onions, cheese, meat and bun is produced in a careful manner and you can tell in the final piece of food you get.

Unfortunately, no matter how much time is put into making this burger, there’s nothing that makes this burger special. It’s simplicity and lack of uniqueness, are the only two knocks that I have on this burger.

The onions rings were okay. Not great. They tried to be better than they were. Yeah, that’s it.

Now the chocolate shake, that’s a different story. It was rich but light enough to drink while eating the burger and not need water. It was smooth but thick enough to have substance. This was the highlight of the meal for me.