Fast Food Review: BBQZILLA from Checkers

Posted August 22nd, 2011 | 4:35pm by Ryan

I’m on this personal quest to track down and consume every BBQ cheeseburger I can find. A great BBQ burger consists of spicy-sweet BBQ sauce, fried onions and a decent cheesy melt that holds the package together. The beef usually just takes a back seat to other bits and pieces that complete the sandwich. On my grubbing journeys, I’ve encountered cheap and delicious in the form of Burger King’s Rodeo Cheeseburger and I’ve suffered through the likes of the mediocre-at-best Western Bacon Thickburger from Hardee’s. I’m approaching “expert status” when it comes to these burgers… honestly though, I just know what I like. Add the BBQZILLA from Checkers to the list of best fast food BBQ cheeseburgers around. Time to review.

The BBQZILLA from Checkers is very deserving to be spelled out with all caps. This thing is hefty and at $4.69, it’s a big enough burger to satisfy a hearty appetite. The BBQZILLA consists of two seasoned beef patties glued together with American cheese, crispy bacon, fried onion “tanglers” and a sweet-tangy BBQ sauce. I normally abhor mayonnaise in my BBQ burgers and although the BBQZILLA had some coating the bottom bun, it was barely noticeable and not an issue.

There is a lot of good going on with the BBQZILLA. First off, the fried onion tanglers were abundant and full of flavor and crunch. These tanglers were on par with the fried onions found on the very delicious Tumbleweed Burger from Roy Rogers I reviewed last year. When you can actually hear the crunch of your bite, you know you’ve got the good stuff. I’m usually indifferent when it comes to bacon on my BBQ cheeseburgers, but it worked well with the BBQZILLA. My indifference would normally come from how I feel bacon tends to get lost with so much else going on. This bacon stood out, so I came away impressed. Crispy enough, smokey flavor and no rubbery chew earns a thumbs up from me. I felt the BBQ sauce would have had a better impact if it was more spicy-sweet rather than tangy-sweet… minor gripe. The Checkers bun deserves mentioning. Corn-dusted and bordering on bakery fresh… yeah, I couldn’t believe it either.

By now I’m a self-proclaimed connoisseur of fast food BBQ cheeseburgers. So take my word for it, the BBQZILLA is among the best. I’ll still give the #1 nod to the BK Rodeo Cheeseburger for its value menu pricing and best tasting BBQ sauce. The BBQZILLA has a lot going for it, but missed the mark just a bit in the BBQ sauce department. When you have BBQ in your name, you’ve got to make sure it’s the standout hit (personal opinion of course). If you are up for the chest-clutching challenge of the behemoth you see above, I doubt you’d come away disappointed.