Each week we look at two shops competing in the same sector, and review what they are offering customers: from how helpful the staff are, to the best bargains currently on offer.
Our review will be based on a visit to stores on the same high street, or online, so it will be just a snapshot of how the retailer is performing.
In order to get a better idea of which retailers are delivering and which are falling short, we would like you to tell us about your experiences of the same shops.
Some weeks, both stores we visit may do a good job, other weeks there will be one that stands out as being much better or worse. Your reviews will help us discover if this is a trend.
This week, it's the battle of the big shot burger flippers McDonald's and Burger King. Please continue to tell us which stores you would like us to go to.
Our review will be based on a visit to stores on the same high street, or online, so it will be just a snapshot of how the retailer is performing.
In order to get a better idea of which retailers are delivering and which are falling short, we would like you to tell us about your experiences of the same shops.
Some weeks, both stores we visit may do a good job, other weeks there will be one that stands out as being much better or worse. Your reviews will help us discover if this is a trend.
This week, it's the battle of the big shot burger flippers McDonald's and Burger King. Please continue to tell us which stores you would like us to go to.
McDonald's
Background The world's biggest burger chain started in 1940 in the US as a barbecue restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald. They switched to burgers in 1948 and the chain now serves 68 million customers a day in 119 countries.
The visit 8pm, 14 May, Balham High Road, south London.
What it sells Burgers, chicken sandwiches, french fries, salads, milkshakes, flurries and a variety of hot and cold drinks.
First impressions The Balham branch of McDonald's sits on the busiest retail part of Balham high road near a large branch of Sainsbury's, Boots and the underground station. It has a wide glass frontage with a bus stop outside, and inside is decorated in bold colours with a long slope from the front door to the counter for those in wheelchairs or with mobility issues. Several of the tables are dirty and littered with the detritus of previous meals. There is plenty of space as there were only about 11 people in there. The music is unidentifiable dross but the branch offers free Wi-Fi.
What were the staff like? Just one person serving, with a tattoo on his arm which says "Bad". In fact Bad man was efficient, quickly pulling our order together and stopping us when we started walking away without our apple pies. But there were no smiles or small talk, he assumed we wanted to take away without asking, and didn't offer us any dips or sauces.
Best bargain Big Mac Meal.
What does it charge? Happy meals £2.39; Big Breakfast bap £2.39, or £3.49 if you upgrade to include fries and drink; double cheeseburger £1.49; mayo chicken sandwich 99p. Fries come in 89p, 99p, and £1.39 portions, dips are 10p, milkshakes are £1.59 or £1.79. Prices vary depending on the store.
Where can I pay? A counter runs across most of the back of the shop. There was no contest for the server's attention – we walked straight up and ordered immediately.
Is loyalty rewarded? If there is a loyalty scheme, it's well hidden.
Lasting impressions It was all a bit depressing, even though the other customers were chatting quite happily. The staff seem dejected and so does the food. We ordered a Big Mac, a quarter-pounder with cheese, fries, a chocolate milkshake, a diet coke and two apple pies.
The Big Mac tasted nice, with lots of iceberg lettuce and gherkins (restaurants should use more gherkins), but it kept slithering apart, perhaps because of the unidentifiable orangey coloured gloop slathered in the middle. The cheeseburger was tasteless and bland, and the chocolate milkshake slightly grainy and not at all chocolatey. My daughter told me I should have ordered strawberry, which is apparently much nicer.
However, the hot apple pies were a revelation: crunchy on the outside, giving way to a steamy, luscious and fragrant apple and cinnamon interior. I think the Guardian canteen would make a fortune if it offered these.
Overall rating 5/10 (9 for the apple pies).
Burger King
Background The company began in 1953 as the less snappy Insta-Burger King, but ran into financial difficulties two years later and was taken over by two franchisees – the first in a line of new owners over the years. It was last bought in 2010 by 3G Capital of Brazil in a deal worth $3.26bn. Last year it had more that 12,400 outlets in 73 countries, of which 66% are US-based.
The visit 7pm, 17 May, Balham High Road, south London.
What it sells Burgers, chicken sandwiches, fries, milkshakes, a variety of hot and cold drinks.
First impressions The branch is attached to a petrol station and offers a drive through service and a small seating area inside, in an area mostly surrounded by houses and flats. The restaurant has glass on three sides and is bright and pristine inside – no rubbish or dirt to be seen, but no customers either. The piped music is still unidentifiable, but quite pleasant.
What were the staff like? Sweet. There was one man serving drive-through customers and one serving people at the counter. He was friendly and double checked what we wanted, especially when I asked for apple fries (I was thinking "Hot apple pie", he was clearly thinking "This woman doesn't know these are sticks of fresh apple"). He asked whether we wanted to eat in or out, and gave us three sachets of ketchup each without asking.
Best bargain Burger King offers a different special meal deal every day, comprising a bun, fries and drink for £3.99.
What does it charge? Breakfast in bread £2.99; fries £1.49; cheeseburger £1.99; milkshake £1.69; mini pancakes 99p; kid's meal £2.99. Prices vary depending on the store.
Where can I pay? At the single counter, but as we were the only customers there was no contest for the attention of the staff.
Is loyalty rewarded? Not that I could see.
Lasting impressions I was pleasantly surprised, even though the branch had run out of chocolate and strawberry milkshake, as well as a special it was promoting – cross cross fries. Even though the place was completely empty, the staff were welcoming and the food was … well, there is no other word but delicious.
The fries were crispy, piping hot and not too salty, the Whopper was thick and tasty with crunchy onion and lettuce (though not quite enough gherkin), and the vanilla milkshake was creamy and full of flavour. I'd like to tell you what my daughter's chicken sandwich was like but she wolfed it before I got a look in. We also tried the pancakes with maple syrup – a bag of cute, puffed up pancakes with very thick syrup: nice. But the whole meal was more expensive by about £4 than McDonald's and I missed the hot apple pies.
Overall rating 8/10.
Last week
It was a case of none of the above last week, with 76% of the 251 votes giving our headline stores, Ernest Jones and H Samuel, a miss.
ssjgr01 summed it up neatly:
"Not someone else, anyone else. Small, independent jewellers are the place to go."
And there were a number of shoutouts for independent jewellers. As Loumo put it:
"If you go to an independent you get more interesting unusual stuff, better treatment (they understand that a price limit is a price limit and not a starting point for negotiations), and often people are prepared to be a bit more flexible about price."
SixFive, meanwhile, gave us an insight into the stores' prices compared to a visit to Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter:
"Quotes for replating a white gold ring (last week):
H. Samuel: £25Ernest Jones £35Birmingham Jewellery Quarter: £5 and a cup of tea thrown in."
Let us know which of today's stores you favour, or if you aren't a fan of either or think another store offers better choice or prices.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media 2012
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