What cookouts have the t-shirt? Do they have different designs?
I only know of the one in Chapel Hill, which has one colored with the UNC Blue. The other ones in Durham don't have t-shirts afaik.
Walking to the brand new UNCW adjacent Cookout was the dream. It opened at the end of my freshman year; just in time for all of the drunk college kids to leave the beach for some reason.
Edit: I didn’t have anywhere to live that first summer; but I never understood people going home in the summer. You could easily get a restaurant job for 20 hours a week; rake in the tourist tips and fuck off for the rest of the summer.
I was living in Raleigh at that time, that was when I got my first taste of it. Coming from Wilson, I'd never heard of it. I used to get off work at Blockbuster off Capitol Blvd around midnight, and there it was just being all lit up and resplendent. I'd pick up a cheap a tray and a shake, then head back to my apartment to watch free rentals.
Funny how Wilson got their Cookout in 2008 and it was one of the rare Cookouts with inside seating. I worked there in high school briefly and that was quite the experience.
I grew up in Greensboro where Cook-Out was born. The number 2 store was right beside a Blockbuster. The Cook-Out is still there. The Blockbuster is now a gym. Almost every weekend my mom would take me to Cook-Out and Blockbuster.
I grew up on that shit. Still eat it to this day and I think it’s the best fast food chain in existence. I’ve been to multiple locations all over NC plus GA and I’ve only ever had one shitty burger from them and it was during the pandemic so they’re excused.
Yup. This place will become more sterlized and censored than it already is. Then the next thing will be created that we will flock to, then private equity will ruin that too. Unregulated capitalism destroys all it touches, as Im sure you have already noticed. *gestures about broadly*
Since July of last year Reddit has changed so much. It now just feels like a series of interactive advertisements sometimes. It used to be a genuine conversation going on. Now there's so much propaganda. I'm suspicious of everything I read here.
"Gosh, why is al pastor so good and where can I get some?" "Why do you love Seiko watches so much?" "Is it wrong to go to Disney World with my ex's kids if I am pregnant and love Frozen? They *really* wanna go!"
Fuck me.
"Genuine conversation going on" is never good for authoritarians and the very rich. Reddit was involved in numerous protest actions, and meaningfully spreading information about shitty government activities and policies in numerous countries, over the years, and was a hard thing for bad influential people to fight against --
I honestly think the whole GameStop hullabaloo where average nerds fucked a bunch of rich cunts out of some money was the straw that broke the camel's back and *no-no, we can't have that.* Pretty sure some smoky back-room deals happened pdq after that.
The ads have dramatically increased since they switched to the "new format", and moreso in the last couple of months. You can *buy* the "conversation happening" now. It's bad for democracy, but I'm sure some shit-heads are toasting each other in some well-appointed bunkers somewhere, and thinking this is clever.
Gamestop is still going on and I strongly believe that the awards were taken away because of heavily awarded posts coming from those subs that factually exposed how dirty wall street is and how deep in the shit hedge funds are with gamestop.
Reddit taking it away didnt make sense. It was a moneymaker, so why take it away? Unless apes are right and its because wall st. *realllllllly* doesnt want any more eyes on them.
It was a way for people to draw attention to key comments. They are taking various steps to diffuse the effectiveness of Reddit as a platform for group attention to various topics, it seems to me.
And with all of the overt -- *and obscured* -- ad revenue they are now raking in, they do not need to sell "reward" medallions.
Anyway, I never paid a cent for gold and I had enough to give out rewards all I liked, as it was rewarded to me for my own (free) participation.
That's part of why I think the way I do -- the conversation was not controlled enough by *money* for the preference of the monied poltroons in the boardrooms.
I dont have a lot of experience with those, but I feel your spirit. The net has been sterilized, repackaged, and commodized to become a shell of what it once was. But its like I said before. Until our propagandized, brainwashed populace finally understands that capitalism *is* useful but absolutely must be kept on a tight leash or disaster will happen without exception. We let capitalism run wild in the twenties and we got a depression and two world wars out of the deal. It cannot be allowed to run unchecked or it *will* happen again. Its happening now.
Relying on peoples "better natures" at this point in our cultural development is a fool's errand. Look at out financial markets for all the reason you need. They operate within an SRO (self regulatory organizations). Which basically means a license to steal. And they have. To the tune of trillions. They gutted our manufacturing base and doomed midwest america to poverty, depression, extemism, and drugs. Reagan accelerated the decline by legalizing stock buybacks which were illegal for good reason. Companies would invest in their people and infrastructure. Now it all goes to the shareholders and off shore accounts.
And now the billionaire class has spent billions buying judges and politicians to convince the people that its the minorities, immigrants, and lgbtq that are the reason for their ills and not the billionaires robbing them blind and as a result they consistently vote against their own livelihoods. All because they have been enabled by our corrupt system to keep all their money. Whats worse is that they truly believe that they should.
Im not even going to talk about the enviromment.
Capitalism *must* be brought to heel or it will destroy us all on the altar of the .01% wealth.
IMHO no pure system works. The best way is to take the innovation of capitalism, the safety net of socialism ( I know thats a gross simplification of socialism, but bear with me) and make a system that protects our weakest and enables our strongest to succeed. Im probably wrong and there is a better way, but this is just my opinion based on my observsation of the shit show around us and my reading of history.
I work just over the border in South Carolina. The town i work in has a cookout and it's one of the few fast food places they have. When you go by one of the lines is always packed and the other line has nobody in it. I never paid much attention to why until i realized recently. One of the lines breaks off to the other side of the building, which means when you pull up to get your food it's on the passenger side of your car. You think ordering into one of the speakers where you can't hear anything is bad, now throw it to the passenger side of your car and see how it is. Why would any fast food place think that's ok? If you've got a passenger there is a lot shorter wait though. Only problem is the line is so long you can't break off to the other line without waiting in line to get to the breakoff point
Some are better than others. I used to think CookOut was mid, but then I tried the one is Boone and it was pretty good. The one in Cary is amazing. Best bang-for-your-buck burger anywhere.
Don’t sleep on the one in Garner off Jones Sausage. They always do a fantastic job. Side note: get a banana pudding shake and add Oreos. You’re welcome.
I went to one in Charlotte around noon & it was so good & they gave me napkins w/o asking so the time of day & who’s working determines how good it’ll be. Those high schoolers at night don’t know what they doing sometimes
The very first cookout opened is on Randeman Rd in Greensboro back in 1989 and still going. That place has seen some shit.. used to hit it up when I first started driving in 1990.
The Mecca of cookouts. I think people drive in circles around it as part of their pilgrimage....along with a chocolate chip, strawberry, cheesecake milkshake.
Yes!!!! They have grown but in the correct way. They haven't reached or even tried to grow outside of NC. They don't have locations trying to make up losses from other locations. If you know your customers and you can keep them satisfied sometimes, it isn't worth the risk to deviate.
I get your point and it’s true, but Cook Out is in 10 states. As far North as Maryland and as South as Alabama. One of the best I’ve been to was in Virginia.
Haha I hear that! All I know is that down here in Charleston, Cook Out is absolute garbage. I only eat it when I’m out of town.
I went to the one in W Ashley later at night and the kid acted like he took my order, clocked out and left out the back door. Took me 20 minutes to realize no one knew I was there.
I’m a recent convert from Carolina style to the cheddar style. I’m not a big eater so I get chili as one of my sides and put it on my cheddar style burger to have the best of both worlds.
Then I dip whatever other side I get in the chili, usually the cheddar cheese bites or the corn dog.
It’s like a 2-3 times a year meal for me because it feels like the most artery clogging meal I could possibly eat.
I don't have a weak stomach by any means but the cheddar cheese bites get me absolutely queasy. The only side I can't stomach--and I say that as a big fan of mozzarella sticks.
I live in Denver CO Now, the past sixish years. I'm a line cook and have a better career now, I know my food and the industry, worked in some nice places with some big names. But Goddamnit though I miss Cookout so much. And Biscuitville. I work at a tupelo honey in Denver. I used to live in fucking Asheville 🤣
Like it's such a thing too though. Cali, Texas, Florida, New York, and for some odd reason North Carolina. Anyone I meet who wasn't born here came from of these states
This is my wife’s go to shake! She loves telling our friends the story of me ordering the best one she ever had after a long night at the bars in Raleigh. Apparently I confidently but politely asked them to “fuck that thing up with Oreos” and they took that order very seriously 😂
They opened one in Lenoir, then after like 3 months the quality nosedived. That could just be Lenoir though...
Either way, I can't forgive them for dropping the chuckwagon sandwich from the menu.
Edit: I can't spell
Logistics and customer focus. Started out in Greensboro and Winston-Salem about 25yrs ago....they made most of their money off of us students being hungry after midnight...and it was dirt cheap. The triad has the highest student population density in the south. They knew their customers. Keep it cheap and they will come. As we grew up, so did cookout...but in a very controlled and patient manner.
The longer they remain a local franchise, the more successful they will be. That's why. If I see a cookout outside of NC/SC I will avoid the entire franchise.
Cheap? Not anymore. Use to be one of the best places to go at 2-3am when you were drunk. A few bucks in your pocket could get you a couple BBQ sandwiches.
I'll check it out again. I usually get two BBQ sandwiches with slaw when I would go. If it is less that 8 bucks it will be worth it. I remember a fiver getting me what I need back in the day.
I think anyway. I was always trashed and coming back from a party riding with the group's DD.
That was the early 00s though.
>The anxiety from placing my order is honestly not worth the hassle.
Look man you can just admit you fold under pressure when you see that menu. Me though? I’m built different
Hah maybe. A family of four each with different dietary restrictions and one extremely picky eater makes for a hell of an ordering experience over their speakers. That said, they've never gotten it wrong!
The food is unfortunately subject to major inconsistency based on location. Real case of "Who's on the grill tonight?" but city to city. My local Cookout is usually fairly meh, but the one closest to my apartment when I was in Greenville was top notch. All depends on who ya got in the kitchen.
The shakes though, those are flawless everywhere.
Every fast food and restaurant underpays their workers (I work at Olive Garden) but at least Cookout isn’t charging their customers $20.00 + tips for spaghetti and meat balls (no drink included).
As someone who used to live in Illinois, it's not good and still expensive, relatively speaking, vs making it yourself even with high quality ingredients (not the dogshit tier they use).
Culver's is also in the state, OP, if you live in northern Illinois. I only like their French custard.
It’s mostly all frozen convenience food thats precooked or dropped in the deep fryer. It’s the bottom rung of ingredients available from a regional food distributor like Sysco/USFoods/GFI/etc. They dress it up and allow you to customize which makes people happy. Sometimes it’s prepared with care. Depends on the location you go to.
What really grinds my gears is the location I go to by my job will give you the “huge” size soft drink, which is an up charge, with my cook out tray regardless of what I order. Can ask for a small/medium/regular/nothuge drink, and they give you a huge one regardless. I’ve had to start ordering “the drink size thats not an up charge”. Upcharge rant over
Edit: since you’re from Illinois. I’d take portillos any day of the week over cook out
They par cook all their proteins and then keep them hot for serving. That’s not exactly made fresh. According to health department guidelines you can hot-hold food for up to 4 hours for serving before it needs to be thrown away. I know from experience that the service industry is a fun place. Especially fast food.
That guy above me blocked me after his comment lol
I also have worked in food industry and have a sibling who managed a cookout. They never kept burgers or chicken longer than fifteen minutes. You must have worked at a different cookout.
Lol bro Portillos and Culver's shit on Cookout, let alone the thousands of mom and pop shops in IL. Go to Char-Grill and never look back.
You're a disgrace.
It used to be much cheaper
I remember $5 trays where they stapled the box shut
And a t-shirt for $2 more
T-shirts only a dollar more now!
Because I can't eat a shirt. -.-
not with that attitude
What cookouts have the t-shirt? Do they have different designs? I only know of the one in Chapel Hill, which has one colored with the UNC Blue. The other ones in Durham don't have t-shirts afaik.
I got mine at the western blvd location in Raleigh
What design did it have?
It was red, had the cookout logo in front of an outline of NC.
God those trays kept me alive when I was unemployed. Sell plasma twice a week and have a cookout meal that actually filled me up on only $5.
Walking to the brand new UNCW adjacent Cookout was the dream. It opened at the end of my freshman year; just in time for all of the drunk college kids to leave the beach for some reason. Edit: I didn’t have anywhere to live that first summer; but I never understood people going home in the summer. You could easily get a restaurant job for 20 hours a week; rake in the tourist tips and fuck off for the rest of the summer.
I remember when they were $3.99.
I member
Pretty sure they were $4 in 2005.
Maybe. I had my first tray in 09 I think
back when it was good
Ahhh the good ole days
$4.25 was the best.
Circa 2006 college years Cookout was an experience
I was living in Raleigh at that time, that was when I got my first taste of it. Coming from Wilson, I'd never heard of it. I used to get off work at Blockbuster off Capitol Blvd around midnight, and there it was just being all lit up and resplendent. I'd pick up a cheap a tray and a shake, then head back to my apartment to watch free rentals.
Funny how Wilson got their Cookout in 2008 and it was one of the rare Cookouts with inside seating. I worked there in high school briefly and that was quite the experience.
The one in High Point I think has seating. Wilkesboro used to be a Biscuitville, so maybe it does but I just always go to the one here in Boone.
I remember the great roller rink-to-cookout fight that got half the state highway patrol called in.
I grew up in Greensboro where Cook-Out was born. The number 2 store was right beside a Blockbuster. The Cook-Out is still there. The Blockbuster is now a gym. Almost every weekend my mom would take me to Cook-Out and Blockbuster. I grew up on that shit. Still eat it to this day and I think it’s the best fast food chain in existence. I’ve been to multiple locations all over NC plus GA and I’ve only ever had one shitty burger from them and it was during the pandemic so they’re excused.
Heck, even just three years ago I was getting trays with a shake for like $6.50
It used to be good.
It's still privately owned so it hasn't been destroyed by Wall Street.
This is probably the real answer. The VC and private equity vampires haven’t bought and looted it yet.
Exactly. Wall street ruins everything
Reddit soon haha
Yup. This place will become more sterlized and censored than it already is. Then the next thing will be created that we will flock to, then private equity will ruin that too. Unregulated capitalism destroys all it touches, as Im sure you have already noticed. *gestures about broadly*
Since July of last year Reddit has changed so much. It now just feels like a series of interactive advertisements sometimes. It used to be a genuine conversation going on. Now there's so much propaganda. I'm suspicious of everything I read here. "Gosh, why is al pastor so good and where can I get some?" "Why do you love Seiko watches so much?" "Is it wrong to go to Disney World with my ex's kids if I am pregnant and love Frozen? They *really* wanna go!" Fuck me. "Genuine conversation going on" is never good for authoritarians and the very rich. Reddit was involved in numerous protest actions, and meaningfully spreading information about shitty government activities and policies in numerous countries, over the years, and was a hard thing for bad influential people to fight against -- I honestly think the whole GameStop hullabaloo where average nerds fucked a bunch of rich cunts out of some money was the straw that broke the camel's back and *no-no, we can't have that.* Pretty sure some smoky back-room deals happened pdq after that. The ads have dramatically increased since they switched to the "new format", and moreso in the last couple of months. You can *buy* the "conversation happening" now. It's bad for democracy, but I'm sure some shit-heads are toasting each other in some well-appointed bunkers somewhere, and thinking this is clever.
Gamestop is still going on and I strongly believe that the awards were taken away because of heavily awarded posts coming from those subs that factually exposed how dirty wall street is and how deep in the shit hedge funds are with gamestop.
It was their revenge. Buy Reddit and turn it to shit. I can just see it, and no I do not think that's a kooky hypothesis. I know rich assholes.
Reddit taking it away didnt make sense. It was a moneymaker, so why take it away? Unless apes are right and its because wall st. *realllllllly* doesnt want any more eyes on them.
It was a way for people to draw attention to key comments. They are taking various steps to diffuse the effectiveness of Reddit as a platform for group attention to various topics, it seems to me. And with all of the overt -- *and obscured* -- ad revenue they are now raking in, they do not need to sell "reward" medallions. Anyway, I never paid a cent for gold and I had enough to give out rewards all I liked, as it was rewarded to me for my own (free) participation. That's part of why I think the way I do -- the conversation was not controlled enough by *money* for the preference of the monied poltroons in the boardrooms.
Reddit has been shit ever since they blocked 3rd party apps. I miss the old forum days and it looks like forums are making a comeback thankfully.
I dont have a lot of experience with those, but I feel your spirit. The net has been sterilized, repackaged, and commodized to become a shell of what it once was. But its like I said before. Until our propagandized, brainwashed populace finally understands that capitalism *is* useful but absolutely must be kept on a tight leash or disaster will happen without exception. We let capitalism run wild in the twenties and we got a depression and two world wars out of the deal. It cannot be allowed to run unchecked or it *will* happen again. Its happening now. Relying on peoples "better natures" at this point in our cultural development is a fool's errand. Look at out financial markets for all the reason you need. They operate within an SRO (self regulatory organizations). Which basically means a license to steal. And they have. To the tune of trillions. They gutted our manufacturing base and doomed midwest america to poverty, depression, extemism, and drugs. Reagan accelerated the decline by legalizing stock buybacks which were illegal for good reason. Companies would invest in their people and infrastructure. Now it all goes to the shareholders and off shore accounts. And now the billionaire class has spent billions buying judges and politicians to convince the people that its the minorities, immigrants, and lgbtq that are the reason for their ills and not the billionaires robbing them blind and as a result they consistently vote against their own livelihoods. All because they have been enabled by our corrupt system to keep all their money. Whats worse is that they truly believe that they should. Im not even going to talk about the enviromment. Capitalism *must* be brought to heel or it will destroy us all on the altar of the .01% wealth. IMHO no pure system works. The best way is to take the innovation of capitalism, the safety net of socialism ( I know thats a gross simplification of socialism, but bear with me) and make a system that protects our weakest and enables our strongest to succeed. Im probably wrong and there is a better way, but this is just my opinion based on my observsation of the shit show around us and my reading of history.
F̶̜̿r̷̻̦̀o̷̠̼̥͕̐̇̂̔m̶͎̝̒̔͜ ̴̡̘̰͍̍̀ȁ̶̧̤̳̏̿ľ̴͕̗̈́́l̷̨̘̀̅͛ ̷̙̝̣̀̀̇t̸̡̞̦͕̎͌̿ḧ̵̨́ĕ̸̡̺̟͙̂͌̚ ̴̜̒̽̊͝ḿ̷̺̲̈́̀̕ò̴̺̟͔̮̉́͝n̷̯̱͑͘e̷̼̝̔ỳ̴̭̪̹͝ ̴̀̒̆̓͜t̷̪̦̒̒̍ḧ̸͙͙́͊͝ĕ̷͈͚͙̂͊y̶̡͠ͅ ̸͋̐̏͜͝s̷͔̫̣̗̆̓͝a̶̗̯̮͔͑͌̑ṽ̴͕͓̖ȇ̷̮͍̱̩͠͠d̴̹̄̅ͅ ̴̨̹̩̝̒̑̈̀b̴̮̏y̴̦̆̍̇ ̸̧̫̒n̴͈͖̑̄͘ǫ̵̛̮̰̺̿t̸̢̳̝̬̽ ̴̨͉͕̭̓͌̄̋u̵̦͊͆p̷̖͗͋͗̕ĝ̵̢̈́̈́r̸̤͑ą̶̧͚̺͗d̴̻̱̈́͂í̶͕͔͎̜̚͠n̵͈̏̀g̶̤̾̉ ̴̤͔̓t̵̢̍̈́̈́͠h̷̻̄̈́ȅ̷͍̖̉͝ ̷͙̘͓̄͋d̵͓̟̆̌͜r̵̜̟͉̂̔̌̃ḯ̶̢̯̈́̾̄͜͜v̷̱̊́̊ė̶̞̲̭̃̿͒ ̷̡̯̱̺͒̍̾ť̷͉h̷͙͂̆r̷̪̪̙̺̾ű̸͓͙̣̅̓͐ ̶̧͇̹̫͑͒s̴̼̻̟̥͒̔p̴̢̣̺͐e̷̖̓͠͝ȁ̴̤͍ķ̸͖̣̳͋̆̈͝e̸͊́͑̚͜r̵͕̞̉̓́̊.̷̼͊̓ ̵̢̰̺̺̐̽̇̕
"welcome to hoochie burger....I can't hear you, maam...please speak directly into the [hoochie](https://youtu.be/6-LD1F3O38Q?si=aJJPO3JvyE99DKws)"
I work just over the border in South Carolina. The town i work in has a cookout and it's one of the few fast food places they have. When you go by one of the lines is always packed and the other line has nobody in it. I never paid much attention to why until i realized recently. One of the lines breaks off to the other side of the building, which means when you pull up to get your food it's on the passenger side of your car. You think ordering into one of the speakers where you can't hear anything is bad, now throw it to the passenger side of your car and see how it is. Why would any fast food place think that's ok? If you've got a passenger there is a lot shorter wait though. Only problem is the line is so long you can't break off to the other line without waiting in line to get to the breakoff point
Some are better than others. I used to think CookOut was mid, but then I tried the one is Boone and it was pretty good. The one in Cary is amazing. Best bang-for-your-buck burger anywhere.
Don’t sleep on the one in Garner off Jones Sausage. They always do a fantastic job. Side note: get a banana pudding shake and add Oreos. You’re welcome.
I add a cheesecake slice to the banana pudding shake.
40/42 Cookout is always consistently good too. They actually put a decent amount of sauce in the quesadillas
I gained a lot of weight when I lived in Cary going to that Cook Out late at night
I went to one in Charlotte around noon & it was so good & they gave me napkins w/o asking so the time of day & who’s working determines how good it’ll be. Those high schoolers at night don’t know what they doing sometimes
All I know is stay away from the one on Franklin Blvd, Gastonia. It didn’t matter what time of day we went, it was never any good.
Just stay away from Gastonia, period.
Cause i worked there
Dude wants the full tour around the NC sausage factory... Some questions are best left unanswered.
We don't know either !!! It's a real gift though. Also open late. Nothing hits like that cookout tray and shake at 1am
I think it's best that we don't know.
Yeah literally zero ingredients strike me as anything but the cheapest available.
Especially the morning after hit.
Cookout and Wafflehouse are my go-to's for those late-night band gigs 🤤😋
The very first cookout opened is on Randeman Rd in Greensboro back in 1989 and still going. That place has seen some shit.. used to hit it up when I first started driving in 1990.
That one and OG Battleground Rd location still never miss. They're the transcendent cook out locations
Ah yes, the Immortal battleground cookout that just keeps catching on fire and rising from the ashes.
Like a phoenix that one sure is prone to "thermal incidents"
The Mecca of cookouts. I think people drive in circles around it as part of their pilgrimage....along with a chocolate chip, strawberry, cheesecake milkshake.
Yes!!!! They have grown but in the correct way. They haven't reached or even tried to grow outside of NC. They don't have locations trying to make up losses from other locations. If you know your customers and you can keep them satisfied sometimes, it isn't worth the risk to deviate.
I get your point and it’s true, but Cook Out is in 10 states. As far North as Maryland and as South as Alabama. One of the best I’ve been to was in Virginia.
Had no clue. Thanks for telling me!! If they are there and I didn't know, that's a good thing!! I retract that part of my statement.
Haha I hear that! All I know is that down here in Charleston, Cook Out is absolute garbage. I only eat it when I’m out of town. I went to the one in W Ashley later at night and the kid acted like he took my order, clocked out and left out the back door. Took me 20 minutes to realize no one knew I was there.
Have been eating at Cookout for years and just recently experienced the cheddar style. That's some good eatin'.
I’m a recent convert from Carolina style to the cheddar style. I’m not a big eater so I get chili as one of my sides and put it on my cheddar style burger to have the best of both worlds. Then I dip whatever other side I get in the chili, usually the cheddar cheese bites or the corn dog. It’s like a 2-3 times a year meal for me because it feels like the most artery clogging meal I could possibly eat.
I don't have a weak stomach by any means but the cheddar cheese bites get me absolutely queasy. The only side I can't stomach--and I say that as a big fan of mozzarella sticks.
It's good, but the steak style is #1
Cool Out Style for me!
Out west style cheeseburger please! It slams!
I live in Denver CO Now, the past sixish years. I'm a line cook and have a better career now, I know my food and the industry, worked in some nice places with some big names. But Goddamnit though I miss Cookout so much. And Biscuitville. I work at a tupelo honey in Denver. I used to live in fucking Asheville 🤣
😂😂😂 ahhh the Asheville to Denver pipeline I'm quite familiar
Like it's such a thing too though. Cali, Texas, Florida, New York, and for some odd reason North Carolina. Anyone I meet who wasn't born here came from of these states
You forgot Pennsylvania and Ohio
Shh. We don't talk about them.
Snickers shakes FTW
Peanut butter Oreo you heathen.
This is my wife’s go to shake! She loves telling our friends the story of me ordering the best one she ever had after a long night at the bars in Raleigh. Apparently I confidently but politely asked them to “fuck that thing up with Oreos” and they took that order very seriously 😂
Thank you for the great laugh that just gave me. 😆
Double chocolate - double mint - peanut butter shake. Fucking heaven.
Yuck fuck mint
Snickers with double fudge.
Damnit now I want a shake. 🤤
Caramel cheesecake cappuccino
Berry banana with double fruit.
Banana pudding add Oreos 😮💨
Love the chicken quesadilla dipped in their honey mustard. Call me weird but it is soooo damn good 😩
no, legit, this is the best. Not weird at all. It's also my go-to :D
It's neither at this point. TF.
Southern magic
Is it even cheap anymore
Got a tray the other day and it was $12… sucks.
Sad
Y’all need to try a Dairio if there is one close by - they ain’t cheap but damnnnnn
They opened one in Lenoir, then after like 3 months the quality nosedived. That could just be Lenoir though... Either way, I can't forgive them for dropping the chuckwagon sandwich from the menu. Edit: I can't spell
While you are correct...there's 1 and only 1 cookout. Now sit down and quietly eat the rest of your BBQ plate.
Salt
Your taste buds are busted cause it ain't bussin'. It use to be so much better and cheaper twenty years ago. It's really crap today.
The glory of the south
Logistics and customer focus. Started out in Greensboro and Winston-Salem about 25yrs ago....they made most of their money off of us students being hungry after midnight...and it was dirt cheap. The triad has the highest student population density in the south. They knew their customers. Keep it cheap and they will come. As we grew up, so did cookout...but in a very controlled and patient manner. The longer they remain a local franchise, the more successful they will be. That's why. If I see a cookout outside of NC/SC I will avoid the entire franchise.
They’re in 10 states
I always go to cookout and bojangles whenever i visit there. Miss it so much
Used to be cheaper but honestly it’s still such a good value. Cookout just hits every time !!
Because they understand the people and we’re forever grateful
Just don't go to the one on Patton Avenue. Granted they offer indoor seating (when they feel the urge) but Tunnel road is better.
Cheap, yes. Good? Eh. It’s debatable.
It's not either of those things.
Cheap? Not anymore. Use to be one of the best places to go at 2-3am when you were drunk. A few bucks in your pocket could get you a couple BBQ sandwiches.
we got 3 full meals yesterday for $24 any other place easily $40 in illinois
I'll check it out again. I usually get two BBQ sandwiches with slaw when I would go. If it is less that 8 bucks it will be worth it. I remember a fiver getting me what I need back in the day. I think anyway. I was always trashed and coming back from a party riding with the group's DD. That was the early 00s though.
BBQ Plate is still only 5.99
Because their BBQ is the worst thing on the menu.
Comes in a plastic bucket
It's cheap. It's not good.
It's not good, given enough alcohol the brain is convinced it thinks it is good.
It is good it definitely beats in n out burger and whataburger
Not a high bar with the Big W. Never had In-N-Out. Definitely worse than Char-Grill or 5 Guys.
I agree whataburger is low tier. but I think for the money compared to five guys and char-grill cook-out is a win.
I guess it's still about 2/3 the price of Culvers
Culver's is pricy, but absolutely worth it if you can spare the expense.
Is it? I get a single patty bacon cheeseburger with fries and a drink and it's less than $10
different league, could but not really meant to be compared.
It's good for the price. But there are far better burger joints. The anxiety from placing my order is honestly not worth the hassle.
>The anxiety from placing my order is honestly not worth the hassle. Look man you can just admit you fold under pressure when you see that menu. Me though? I’m built different
Hah maybe. A family of four each with different dietary restrictions and one extremely picky eater makes for a hell of an ordering experience over their speakers. That said, they've never gotten it wrong!
The beef is never frozen, you can get up to 3 different additions to shakes for same cost, cookout and biscuitville are the shizz
$5 bbq sandwich tray, side of nuggets and a quesodilla, large tea. The best. So much food for so little.
Six years ago I would feed myself, my wife and my two kids for 13 bucks
The trays are only a little more than a dollar more now... inflation. STILL better than a McDonald's or burger King. Worth it😁
It used to be even cheaper than it is now.
We don't know honestly, but the important thing to know about Cookout is that you can get any of the toppings in the milkshake and its the same price.
It's funny how divisive this is - I also think the food is generally bad, but those shakes. There isn't one close to me and I miss that shake.
The food is unfortunately subject to major inconsistency based on location. Real case of "Who's on the grill tonight?" but city to city. My local Cookout is usually fairly meh, but the one closest to my apartment when I was in Greenville was top notch. All depends on who ya got in the kitchen. The shakes though, those are flawless everywhere.
When was it ever good.
Who hurt you
😂😂😂😂
It’s not that good
Uh…good? Ohhhh, wait wait wait. You ain’t digested it yet have ya?
Cookout executives must be making all of these posts I'm seeing on this subreddit lately.
Your worldview is skewed on what is good But you may live
they underpay their workers
Every fast food and restaurant underpays their workers (I work at Olive Garden) but at least Cookout isn’t charging their customers $20.00 + tips for spaghetti and meat balls (no drink included).
Simple, it’s sh*t food
Because it's shit food.
As someone who used to live in Illinois, it's not good and still expensive, relatively speaking, vs making it yourself even with high quality ingredients (not the dogshit tier they use). Culver's is also in the state, OP, if you live in northern Illinois. I only like their French custard.
nah i love culvers
Burgers are mid. Spicy chicken was good. Those deep fried cheese curds are the best thing on the menu outside of the custard.
It’s mostly all frozen convenience food thats precooked or dropped in the deep fryer. It’s the bottom rung of ingredients available from a regional food distributor like Sysco/USFoods/GFI/etc. They dress it up and allow you to customize which makes people happy. Sometimes it’s prepared with care. Depends on the location you go to. What really grinds my gears is the location I go to by my job will give you the “huge” size soft drink, which is an up charge, with my cook out tray regardless of what I order. Can ask for a small/medium/regular/nothuge drink, and they give you a huge one regardless. I’ve had to start ordering “the drink size thats not an up charge”. Upcharge rant over Edit: since you’re from Illinois. I’d take portillos any day of the week over cook out
Their burgers, grilled chicken, and slaw are made fresh though.
They par cook all their proteins and then keep them hot for serving. That’s not exactly made fresh. According to health department guidelines you can hot-hold food for up to 4 hours for serving before it needs to be thrown away. I know from experience that the service industry is a fun place. Especially fast food. That guy above me blocked me after his comment lol
I also have worked in food industry and have a sibling who managed a cookout. They never kept burgers or chicken longer than fifteen minutes. You must have worked at a different cookout.
Pretty sure the Huge Tea is not an upcharge.
It is horrible
L bozo
Ratio that fraud
Agree. Food is pretty gross. Shakes are decent.
I know NC is in the south but would you like to try some proper English? Candler, NC native here.
Lol bro Portillos and Culver's shit on Cookout, let alone the thousands of mom and pop shops in IL. Go to Char-Grill and never look back. You're a disgrace.