Lately, I’ve noticed an annoying trend in fast food. Brands have always given us limited-time menu options, it’s an easy way to bring customers back to the drive-thru, but lately these LTO options have been better than just about everything else on the menu.
Shake Shack’s Spicy Burgermeister burger exploded with spicy, rich, and savory flavors. We named it the best burger of 2023. It’s gone now. Chipotle’s Garlic Guajillo Steak was so tender it practically melted in your mouth and dunked on just about everything else on the menu. It, too, is gone (though to Chipotle’s credit, they did bring back the pollo asado, which is also very good). And Jack in the Box soft-launched its best burger ever a couple of months back, then it disappeared from menus before most people knew it was even on the menu.
But we’re happy to say the Smashed Jack is back! For good.
For the uninitiated, the Smashed Jack is a smash-inspired burger (it’s not actually a smash burger, but that doesn’t matter) that is topped with grilled onions, thick pickles, a new special sauce known as Boss Sauce, all served up on a buttery brioche bun. The beef patty is juicy, and savory, has a crispy Maillard crust edge, and pairs perfectly with the caramelized grilled onions and smokey-tangy sauce.
In celebration of the burger’s return, here are three reasons you should order the Smashed Jack. If you’re more interested in a deep dive review, we have that too.
Three Reasons You Should Eat The Smashed Jack
It’s Jack in the Box’s best burger by a mile.
It may not compare to a high-quality fast-casual burger like what you’ll find at Shake Shack or Five Guys, but the Smashed Jack is significantly tastier than other drive-thru fast food restaurants including McDonald’s Quarter Pounder, and Burger King Whopper, and the Carl’s Jr. Angus Burger. Its only real competitor is Wendy’s Dave’s Single.
It’ll send a message to Jack in the Box that what we want is good food, not gimmicks.
I like JiB’s weird menu items like the tacos and eggs rolls as much as the next person, but I’d like to see fewer new menu items like Red Bull-infused drinks and French Toast Sticks. These are side orders, not flagships like a great burger.
It might inspire other fast food restaurants to launch new recipes.
It sounds farfetched, but it has happened before. When Popeyes dropped its chicken sandwich in 2019 nearly every fast food chain with a chicken sandwich launched a brand new take on their respective recipes. Some of those sandwiches were great (BK’s Ch’King sandwich comes to mind, RIP) and some weren’t, but it single-handedly elevated the chicken sandwich to a new level of popularity that put it in competition with the mighty cheeseburger.
The Bottom Line:
The Smashed Jack puts Jack in the Box in competition with some of the best burgers in all of fast food.
Find your nearest Jack in the Box here.