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Who’s got the meat to beat?
Cows, beware. Fast-food CEOs from McDonald’s, Burger King, and now Wendy’s are beefing over which restaurant boasts the best burger — and they’re all hungry for the No. 1 spot.
Pete Suerken, Wendy’s US president, is the latest head honcho to sink his teeth into the grub hubbub of 2026, devouring an Applewood-smoked Double Baconator on camera Wednesday, while throwing a load of thinly-veiled shade at his rivals from the Golden Arches and the Home of the Whopper.
“Our square burger cooked on a flat grill. Amazing. Absolutely wonderful,” raved Suerken as he savored the sandwich, taking a slight jab at Burger King for flame broiling its patties. “This is exactly the way a great hamburger should be.”
The Wendy’s bigwig complemented his stacked snack with a side of fries and a creamy vanilla Frosty.
While dispensing the frozen dessert into a cup, Suerken snakily remarked, “Is this set up today? Oh wait, our machines are always working,” giving a black eye to McDonald’s over viral customer complaints that its ice cream machines are almost always out of order.
It’s a food fight of epic proportions.
From combating coffee companies to feuding fried chicken sandwich shacks, there’s been no shortage of major eateries duking it out against one another for top honors over the past few years.
The current burger beef erupted in February, when McDonald’s CEO, Chris Kempczinski, virally debuted the chain’s new Big Arch Burger online, taking a tiny bite out of the hulking two-hander, which he eerily referred to as “the product.”
Social media savages — including verified Instagram accounts for Burger King UK, Wendy’s, WingStop Canada and Subway Singapore — pounced on Kempczinski’s seemingly inauthentic taste-test, leaving snarky comments like “We couldn’t finish it either,” and “We have something fresher you can bite into.”
Beyond leaving a barbed remark, Burger King took its critique a step further by posting a TikTok vid of US president Tom Curtis chowing down on a Whopper with the caption, “Thought we’d replay this,” Monday.
Virtual fans of the flame-grilled grub went wild for the not-so-subtle attack on Kempczinski’s flopped Big Arch boost, showering Curtis with praise such as, “Yeah that’s a big bite. McDonald’s CEO could never,” and “Burger King’s marketing team saw an opportunity and ate.”
Not to be outdone, however, Suerken also received high marks for weighing in on the burger war with his Wendy’s promo.
Baconator buffs applauded the boss for nearly eating the entire entree — rather than taking an itty bitty bite — and appearing to actually enjoy the meaty treat.
“This is awesome!!! You definitely win ‘CEO-eat-their-own-a-thon!!!!!!,’” cheered an online supporter. “By far the most relatable and the only one that made me hungry for lunch after watching! Well done.”
“Out of all the CEO burger videos, this is the only one that made me want one,” wrote another.
“McBrilliance,” added a jokester. “Well played Wendy’s (and BK too).”
“Well played.”
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