News

Carl's Jr., Hardee's roll out Steakhouse Burgers

September 19, 2011

Carl's Jr. and Hardee's have added Steakhouse Burgers to their menus. The respective Six Dollar Burger and Thickburger versions feature a charbroiled, 100-percent Black Angus beef patty topped with A.1. steak sauce, crumbled blue cheese, crispy onion strings, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and mayonnaise, and served on a seeded bun.

The burgers are now available at all Hardee's restaurants and will launch at Carl's Jr. starting Sept. 21.

"Carl's Jr. and Hardee's have been bringing sit-down-restaurant-quality burgers to fast food customers for years now but this one really ups the ante," said Brad Haley, chief marketing officer for Carl's Jr. and Hardee's. "We have tested a number of burgers with A.1. steak sauce, crumbled blue cheese or crispy onion strings in the past, but they never quite reached the level of a truly great burger that we require in order to introduce them nationwide. It wasn't until we ran across a burger in a steakhouse with all three toppings combined that we knew we had found it."

The new Steakhouse Burgers achieved the highest consumer research scores the chains have ever seen in a test market, Haley said.

"When we served them to our advertising agency, David&Goliath, for the first time, the creative team said they were so good they 'tasted like they were made by the god of hamburgers,' and that idea ended up being the basis for the advertising campaign," he added.

Accordingly, the advertising for Carl's Jr. and Hardee's new Steakhouse Burgers introduce Hamblor, the mythical god of hamburgers. The campaign features the story of how Hamblor created the Steakhouse Burgers.

The 30-second TV spot shows Hamblor in his kingdom firing onion strings from his hands and making a blue cheese bust of himself crumble by using nothing but his voice. The ad also features Hamblor's goddesses and his St. Bernard carrying a cask of A.1. sauce around his neck.

Digital sweepstakes coincides with burger launch

The integrated Steakhouse Burgers introductions at Carl's Jr. and Hardee's will include the Kingdom of Hamblor digital sweepstakes starting Sept. 26 to coincide with the ad campaign. Guests can visit www.Hamblor.com or the brands' Facebook pages (www.facebook.com/carlsjr and www.facebook.com/hardees ) to enter the contest daily for a chance to win free and discounted food prizes, Carl's Jr. and Hardee's gift cards, and movie merchandise from the upcoming 3D action-adventure film Immortals.

The final grand prize winner will receive a trip for two to the Hollywood premiere of Immortals in November. Fans can earn additional points for answering Hamblor, Steakhouse Burger and Immortals movie trivia questions, posting Hamblor-related information on their Facebook pages and recruiting additional friends to Hamblor's Kingdom. Immortals opens nationwide Nov. 11 and is distributed by Relativity Media.

For a limited time, 15-ounce retail bottles of A.1. Steak Sauce will feature the Steakhouse Burgers on the label with a link to a coupon for $1 off a Steakhouse Burger combo at Carl's Jr. and Hardee's.

View the new Hamblor-themed commercial.

Read more on food and beverage launches.