Charlotte University - Disappointed and Disgusted!
Written: Apr 04 '04
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Product Rating:
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Pros: wide variety, topping bar
Cons: poor service, overpriced, mediocre food
The Bottom Line: Much ado about nothing.
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| bud41's Full Review: Fuddruckers |
I had eaten at a Fuddruckers some years ago ( another location) and considered it an acceptable dining experience. We stopped in to the University Charlotte location while traveling, and I wish we had gone to the McDonald's next door!
The Restaurant
Entering this restaurant, you had better be prepared to read a lot of stuff in a short amount of time while loud music is blaring and kids are yelling. Sounds great, huh?
You can choose from third pound burgers, half pound burgers, full pound burgers - cooked medium, medium-well, or well. You can get original, with cheese, mushrooms, peppers, grilled onions, southwest style, and about a dozen other ways.
Ostrich is available, and if you are not a red meat fan, you can have chicken or veggie type concoctions such as a portabello mushroom sandwich.
Sides include fries ( fresh cut potato wedges), onion rings, and coleslaw. Chili is available as well as a couple of soups of the day.
Beverages are self- serve from a drink bar. Condiments are dispensed from large pump stations ( does that sound like a sewer?), and hamburger toppings are on the topping bar ( lettuce, tomato, onions, peppers, etc....) This topping bar is the big draw - you can "make it your own way". After dining there, I say BIG DEAL!
Hand dipped shakes and baked items such as pies, cookies, and brownies are available. Prices for these are reasonable ( 49 cents to a couple of bucks)
The menu is extensive, posted in several locations, is a lot to read, and is expensive!
Seating is "warehouse" style in booths or tables. The music is peppy and loud. During our visit it was a mixture of tolerable oldies.
My Experience
We walked in on a Sunday afternoon with not many people in the restaurant. Placards hawking specials and the menu loomed before us and before we could start reading we were asked if they could take our order.
I saw a third pound special with fries and a shake for $8.25 ( gasp) but it was one of the best buys so I ordered that. My wife ordered a southwest burger with fries and a Coke.
The girl at the counter was quite demure and her enunciation was not really good. I had a hard time understanding her. Anyway, we successfully ordered and proceeded to a booth. When our meagar order totaled a little less than $20.00 I almost choked. For HAMBURGERS?! Oh well, these are supposed to be better than average and premium quality beef so I'm sure they'll be great! Sigh, if only that had been true! Once out of desperation I paid $18.00 for a hamburger and a shake at a Holiday Inn in Athens, Greece. It tasted so good I didn't care! This was a different story!
We watched as people who ordered after us got their meals and wondered why ours never came up. It appeared that the show was being run by three people - the order girl, the manager, and the cook. It was not exceptionally busy, but the service was slllooooowwwwwwww.
After a substantial wait, our order came up - they do that by calling out your name. I walked up to the counter and there sat my food - but no shake. They had just left the food there so I had to call over the counter to inquire about the shake. "We'll get it in a minute" was the reply. Why did you call me then?
I went on to the topping bar hoping my shake would be ready when I went back - nope. The "manager" asked me what I was waiting for. When I told him he began making my shake. While waiting I noticed how few fries were on this plate for eight bucks. There was more empty plate than anything else. When he brought my shake I asked him if that looked right to him - so few fries ( it was pitiful). He said " yeah, a small, right?". I said "small what - I paid eight bucks for a burger and fries and a shake and this is what I am supposed to have?". He said yes. It's hard in a review like this to describe the plate. Suffice it to say I am not a glutton but I do like value and this was NOT IT. These fries constituted about a third of a potato.
We ate our meal quickly and left. How was it? The burger was overcooked and dry. It appeared rather small for a third pound patty. The lettuce was crisp and cold and the onions were tough.
The fries ( what few there were) were tasty but nothing special. The shake was poorly mixed but tasted OK.
Overall, the meal was very mediocre and the portions were shameful for the price paid. We will not return to this restaurant.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
bud41
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 - Top 500 |
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Location: Between the Waxhaws and Oklawaha
Reviews written: 198
Trusted by: 39 members
About Me:
Just me - a middle-aged teacher who works to travel.
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