Hardee’s Revisited

I said to myself, gotta go mow the yard. So I pulled on my jeans and sneakers and went outside and pondered the grass. Is it tall enough to cut? Hmm. It doesn’t look bad. Why should every blade of grass in my yard have to be exactly 1/2 inch tall? It’s societal pressure. Conform or be ostracized. Then I remembered that my neighbors already ostracize me, so screw ‘em. I went back into the house.

Next I decided to drive to Hardee’s for supper. I had a sheet of coupons that came in the mailbox. I used one a few days ago when I ordered a thickburger combo. At that time, I asked the order taker (a young white girl) if I really had to bring in a coupon to get the special price and she said, “No. Just ask for number 5.” Tonight I decided to get a double cheeseburger combo, and I almost left the coupon behind because the girl said I didn’t need it. At the last moment I decided to bring it with me, just in case.

I arrived at Hardee’s at 6:50 PM. I was their only customer. I ordered the double cheeseburger combo which includes what Hardee’s calls “natural-cut” french fries and a drink. (Though I have to ask, what is natural about cutting a potato into long, skinny pieces?) The order taker (a youngish black man this time) punched my order into his machine and asked me if I had a coupon. I pulled the crumpled coupon out of my pocket and handed it to him. I asked him if the coupon was really necessary to get the discount and he replied, “Yes, you have to have the coupon.”

“The last time I was here I asked the girl if the coupon was necessary and she said it wasn’t.”

“You have to have the coupon,” he said. “It’s the only way I can give you the discount.”

Despite the conflicting information, I believe the black guy is probably correct. But who knows? Not me, and obviously not all Hardee’s employees, either.

I selected a table and sat. The meal was brought to me promptly. The burger was warm and tasty and much more suited to the size of my stomach than the 1/3 pound thickburger I had purchased last time. Double cheeseburger, fries, and drink: three dollars. Not a bad deal. The burger was tasty. The diet cola tasted like diet cola. The fries: a different story. I don’t care much for Hardee’s fries. You get plenty of them, but they’re never hot (my experience) and they never seem to have much flavor. I should probably ask for fresh-cooked fries. They’d be hot, and they might even taste better. Also, the fries are too skinny for my liking. Thicker fries seem more flavorful.

I finished my meal, topped off my drink and left. I was still the only customer in the store. Nor had I seen anyone go through the drive-thru. I don’t know why they keep the doors open after 6 PM, but it’s a good time of day to go there if like your fast food fast.