Mount Rushmore V2: Fast Food
January 3, 2022
Here is the scene: A calm Saturday night, around seven o’clock and your stomach is rumbling. Your parents are out of town and gave you the credit card so you can order dinner. Where are you going?
In this edition of Mount Rushmore, Jesse Williams (’22) and I will rank our top four fast food places in and round Norwalk and compare our list with each other.
Jesse Williams
1) Chick-fil-A
2) Panera Bread
3) Garden Catering
4) Shake Shack
Choosing this list was a very strenuous decision that involved a lot of rethinking and changing. But finally, I have my complete list. This list was made taking in consideration price, location, menu variety, etc.
To start it off at number 4 I have Shake Shack. With amazing burgers, fries, and shakes it’s hard to find something not delicious on this menu. But taking into consideration the distance from me, and the decently high prices, are the main reasons why Shake Shack finds itself at 4.
Next we have Garden Catering at number 3. With awesome specials and amazing sauces Garden Catering sits at number 3. I personally love the chicken nuggets as do a lot of people, and the fries add a good touch to the famous, “The Special”, plus a drink on the side is almost unbeatable. The Garden Catering Westport Ave is also about 5 minutes away, making it a short and easy ride. Reasons why GC is at 3rd is due to the reason that the majority of food there is fried. Sometimes I like to add a little healthy mix into my meal, and there isn’t too much of a variety there.
Moving on, we have Panera. A mix of fast food and healthy food makes Panera an amazing place to eat. With locations on Main Ave and Westport, it is definitely worth the drive. Amazing soup ranging from Chicken Noodle to my favorite, the broccoli cheddar soup. With a side of mac and cheese with bacon on top, you cannot go wrong. A wide variety of food, decent prices, and plenty of parking and space inside the restaurant, Panera gets a well deserved silver medal.
Lastly we have Chick Fil-A. This place you just can’t go wrong with. Amazing shakes, delicious chicken, decent fries, wraps, soups, salads, you name it. My only complaint is that there is only one in Norwalk with other locations being somewhat far. But other than that, the price is good and the food is amazing which makes Chick Fil-A the winner. Like I said earlier this was a hard list to make and there are other amazing fast food places all around, but this is my top 4.
AJ Monteiro
1) Qdoba
2) Wendy’s
3) Jake’s Wayback
4) Five Guys
Hate me, I do not care. I know all of you generic fast food eaters are going to be mad at me. Before you guys pop a blood vessel let me explain my list a little.
Five Guys secures the number four spot and I think is ranked perfectly where it should be. I took a lot of factors into consideration and the only reason this is not higher up on my list is because of the price. I can easily spend twenty dollars on a burger and fries when I can get that same thing for much cheaper at another place. That being said, the food here is almost unmatched, they are very generous with the amount of French fries they give out and their burgers are easily top three.
Speaking about burgers, Jake’s Wayback takes the number three spot on my list. Most of you reading this right now have probably never even heard of this place but you will have to take my word for this; Jake’s Wayback has the best burgers in Norwalk. I fought over this pick for a very long time and had to break it down into several different categories. I was looking for a reason to take this off my list, but the truth is Jake’s Wayback checks all the boxes: location, price, availability, taste, menu options, etc. As much it might anger some of you, I’m leaving Jake’s Wayback at three.
For my second place option I decided to go a little more basic and pick one that is much more well known, Wendy’s. I can already see it now, all of you McDonald lovers are fuming, and honestly, I could not care less. Wendy’s is better than McDonalds. The reason I place this so high on my list is because it is just reliable. They are practically always open, huge parking lot, not a long drive, never a long wait, and a really great selection of food for a cheap amount. The thing about Wendy’s food is I don’t think they have the “best” of anything, but nothing they have is the worst. You can order anything on the menu and not be disappointed.
I have put this off for too long, so here it is. My number one fast food place in Norwalk, Qdoba. Anyone who says Qdoba is a wanna be Chipotle is wrong, Qdoba is flat out better, at fraction of the price. I genuinely feel sorry for anyone who has never had Qdoba before. When I tell you that everything about this place is prefect, I mean it. I was heartbroken when I saw Qdoba only received two votes. If you disagree, grow up.