The Burger Chain Some Customers Say Isn't Hitting Like It Used To

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One might argue that the longest running and most popular fast food burger chains (think McDonald's, Burger King, and White Castle) have stood the test of time by maintaining consistency in the quality of their food. Regrettably, due to a variety of factors including the rising cost of ingredients, some beloved fast food chains are losing their edge in 2025. Case in point: according to a number of Whataburger customers, the popular southern burger chain's food quality has significantly dwindled. 

While smaller than some fast food mega-chains, Whataburger is another long-running quick-service chain that first opened in 1950 in Corpus Christi, Texas. Today, the burger chain has a total of over 1,000 locations, close to 800 of which are located in Texas. Whataburger has a variety of popular menu items but is mostly known for its burgers that are made-to-order with never frozen beef patties. 

However, according to several customers on Reddit in the r/Whataburger thread, the quality of Whataburger has gone down in recent years, mainly since the start of the pandemic. The original poster, a self-described lifelong Whataburger diner, claims to have noticed a difference in taste, to which numerous fellow Redditors agree.

It should be noted that despite customer complaints, Whataburger saw a sales growth of 9.4% in 2024, amounting to the highest revenue in its history, according to data from Franchise Times. Meanwhile, McDonald's, the largest quick service restaurant in the world, experienced a small 0.9% sales growth in 2024.

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Some Redditors are not happy with the state of their Whataburger burgers and fries in particular. One customer stated, "I'm in Texas and the locations near me have really turned bad. They were once really good and fresh, now the 20-25 minute wait is for old tasting and low quality burgers and fries and breakfast." Many complaints have to do with the fries, which are reportedly no longer hot and crispy like they used to be, as well as the decrease in burger toppings and overall quality. 

Some also have complaints about the poor service they've received. One person vented, "Quality of food has dropped since they sold out and customer service diminished as well. I gave up on them 2 years ago. Even though the free meal offers kept getting sent out for me to return, I declined them." There is speculation online that the quality of Whataburger's food has declined since the majority stake in the company was sold in 2019 to Chicago-based investment bank BDT Capital Partners.

As with many business transitions from family-owned to corporate-owned, there is a perception of reduced attention to quality to accommodate for expansion. However, it's difficult to quantify whether the food has gone downhill across the board or, as with many fast food restaurants, people have received a bad batch here and there. You'll have to decide the truth of Whataburger for yourself.