National burger joint, Wahlburgers, has recently opened its second location in Rochester at HyVee South, on Crossroads Drive. Wahlburgers has been incorporated into HyVee’s Mealtime program. This great restaurant is accompanied by Nori Sushi, #HyChi, Market Grille, Hickory House Comfort Foods, Mi Pizza, and The Hibachi in HyVee’s growing curbside pickup and delivery program. Opening last fall, Wahlburgers is one of Rochester’s newer burger joints, and it is a must-try.
Items on the menu include four burgers, three chicken sandwiches, a super melt, and the option to customize your sandwich, literally however you want. The burgers vary from a single patty all the way up to a Triple Decker. They also have the BBQ Bacon Burger, which is a single patty with “bacon, fresh jalapenos, BBQ sauce, and avocado spread.” The three chicken sandwiches include the Chicken Ranch Sandwich, Jenn’s Chicken Sandwich, and the Chipotle Chicken Sandwich. Jenn’s Chicken has “caramelized onions, crispy onions, lettuce, and honey-garlic mayo,” and was actually created by a fan in 2012, who obviously really likes Wahlburgers.
The menu also includes two salads and offers a good selection of sides. To top it off, they have three different shakes: The Vanilla Bean shake, the Double Chocolate shake, and the Cookies’N’Cream shake. You can get the sandwich on its own, or you can upgrade and get a “basket,” which comes with a drink and fries for four dollars, and an upgrade of six dollars will yield you a bigger basket.
My first time ordering from Wahlburgers, I got the chicken chipotle sandwich, and friends who were with me ordered the double-decker burger. We ordered in the store instead of using HyVee Mealtime. The total was about $45. The food took ten minutes to be brought out to us, which is definitely longer than I expected. Mayo student Josh Couch brought our food out to us and said, “The chicken was giving us a hard time.” I got home and inspected the food. The chicken on the sandwich came with a big piece of chicken; the burgers with their double patties were huge; and fries spilled over my plate. The amount of food surprised all of us. I finished my food feeling fuller than ever, while the others couldn’t even finish their burgers.
Compelled to go again, comparatively, I ordered through HyVee Mealtime. I got my food in twenty minutes after ordering. All you need to do is park in one of HyVee’s mealtime pickup spots and call the number on the sign. They will ask you for your name, then bring your order right out to your car. It is a really slick process that requires very little from the person ordering. This time, I tried the BBQ Bacon Burger, without jalapenos, and the single patty burger. On Mealtime, you don’t have the option to have just the sandwich, so they automatically give you the basket with the fries and drink. The total was twenty-two dollars for two meals. Ordering online was definitely cheaper than ordering in store, and I’m not too sure why. The food was once again very good, and serving sizes were plenty.
Both times I went, I was greatly surprised by the high quality of food, excellent service, price, and serving size. I would have to recommend using Mealtime to get your food because it will arrive in a similar amount of time and you will get your food more affordably. While being priced near other establishments, Wahlburgers stack up nicely. At McDonald’s, it’s hard to get a meal for under ten dollars, so why not pay a little more to get more food and a better burger?
Wahlburgers is an easy 9 out of 10. Food and price taken into consideration, you cannot get much better elsewhere. The only reason why it’s not a 10/10 is because they will take a little longer with your food compared to other places in Rochester, but while it’s not fast food, Wahlburgers can be quick. Without a doubt, Wahlburgers is a must-try for anyone in Rochester.
