Krusty Burger
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Krusty Burger is a fictional chain of fast-food restaurants as seen on The Simpsons. The promotional face of Krusty Burger is Krusty the Clown, parodying the relationship between McDonald's and its own fast-food clown mascot Ronald McDonald. It seems to be the only fast food chain in Springfield. There is no McDonald's in Springfield, although it is mentioned that there is one in Shelbyville. In the later seasons, it is revealed that Krusty paid off the mafia to keep out all other fast food competitors such as Wendy's, Burger King and McDonald's, though an In & Out Burger was seen in Springfield on one episode, as well as other fictional franchises such as Gulp 'N Blow, The Taco Hut and Kentucky Fried Panda.
Krusty also appears to have some input into running the company, personally losing $44 million when a promotional tie-in, in which Krusty Burger was chosen the Official Meat-Flavored Sandwich of the 1984 Summer Olympic Games, backfired due to a Soviet boycott, and Krusty Burger was forced to give away much more food than expected; Krusty expressed his displeasure by stating on live television that "I, personally am gonna spit into every fiftieth burger!" The series has frequently established that Krusty is not particularly fond of the food served, shown when recording a commercial (immediately before learning of his $44 million dollar loss), he said, "Ewww! I almost swallowed some of the juice!" In "I'm Spelling as Fast as I Can", Krusty bit a Ribwich and said, "Mmm, I don't mind the taste!"
Krusty Burger operates in thousands of locations across the United States including an unprofitable franchise on an unmanned off-shore oil platform.
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[edit] Menu
It has been said by some that part of the menu could be made in, or belong in a chemistry lab. Menu items at the restaurant have included the limited-time-only Ribwich, the staple Krusty Burger, the Krusty Burger with Cheese and Krusty Partially Gelatinated Non-Dairy Gum-Based Beverages, which according to Officer Lou, are similar to Quarter Pounders with Cheese and milkshakes at McDonald's, respectively. In The Simpsons Uncensored Family Album, Krusty Burger does not seem to have fries, but instead has Fried-for-hours Potato Eyes. Other items are the Salad-on-a-stik and Weenie-on-a-cloud (hot dog and cotton candy respectively). To have a Krusty Burger with a bun and napkin you must pay extra.
In addition to serving burgers that are extremely high in fat content the company is guilty of terrible food safety breaches. The burgers are made from insects and pieces of partially eaten burgers held together with staples. Krusty even once tried to defend his practices by stating, "I want to clear up a misconception about the Whatchamacarcass sandwich; I used NON-diseased meat from diseased animals!" In one episode, Krusty is even briefly shown leading zoo animals into a Krusty Burger for processing. As result of their actions, several animals are now extinct and therefore items such as the Ribwich (made from small multi-legged animal) have to be withdrawn. However, the company pays bribes to Mayor Quimby in exchange for protection from food safety officials. It is worth noting that Krusty Burger is referred to as a "meat-flavored sandwich", most likely to avoid charges of false advertising. The "Simpsons Guide to Springfield" states that scientific tests on the burgers' composition have proven inconclusive, and warns non-Springfielders to avoid eating the burgers, as the local population has seemingly "developed a resistance to the burgers' inherent bacteria and spirochetes."
Upon visiting Krusty Burger, former American President George H.W. Bush discovered that they do not serve healthy stew.
[edit] Quotes
At the IRS Burger:
Homer: Let's see, I'll have four tax burgers, one IRS-wich, withhold the lettuce, four dependent-sized sodas, and a FICA-ccino.
Squeaky Voiced Teen: Fill out schedule B. You should receive your burgers in six to eight weeks.
In I'm Spelling as Fast as I Can, Krusty Burger used the advertising slogan "We take authentic letter graded meat... then process the hell out of it, 'till it's good enough for Krusty!".
[edit] Trivia
- Krusty Burger's Olympics marketing gaffe was inspired by the real-life "When America Wins, You Win" game at McDonald's restaurants, in which the odds of winning free food, based on the chances of the U.S. winning medals, were calculated before the Soviet Union and other communist nations withdrew from the Games, leading the United States to dominate the medals chart, and McDonald's to lose a large amount of money on the promotion.
- In The Simpsons Hit & Run, Cletus Spuckler often works for Krusty Burger, collecting roadkill for the burgers (according to Bart Simpson, it "explains the tire tracks".) Cletus also has to contend with Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, who claims that "no one can sell rotten meat in this town but me."
- In the 18th season premiere episode, "The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and His Homer", it was revealed that Krusty paid protection money to Fat Tony in exchange for the mafia preventing McDonald's and Burger King from opening restaurants in Springfield.
