-Michelin Star Chef Ranks Top 5 Fast Food Chains • Top 5 Beatdown.

Hey, how's it going? I'm Ryan. I'm Shane. And welcome to Top 5 Beatdown, a show where we compare top fives for a topic that seems completely asinine, yet somehow garners strong opinions. And to add some credibility to the mix, we compare our top fives with that of an expert in the field. Today's topic is fast food chains, and today's expert is chef slash owner at Kato and the proud owner of one of LA's coveted Michelin stars. Please welcome to the living room, John Yao. John, welcome to the living room. Welcome to the living room. We all have our- Thank you for having me. Top fives at hand here. These are all American fast food chains. I will also say we qualify a fast food restaurant as a place that has a drive-through. Is there anything you guys want to say about your lists before we get into them? I have to say I feel slightly intimidated because you probably have a lot more culinary skills. Obviously you do. Culinary is the word. I have no Michelin stars. But you know what? Like food is a subjective experience and like what rings true to you, no one can tell you you're wrong. That being said, I will say in this list, there is something that may make some people upset. And not from a controversial standpoint, just more so that a lot of people think this place sucks. I think it's pretty good. I think mine are all bangers. Shane has always known for his trademark humility. All right, should we just get into this? Let's get into it. We're going to start with you, John. Let's list, baby. Please reveal your fifth choice. Jollibee. Okay, okay. All right, let's hear why you've chosen Jollibee and then we'll have some thoughts. Well, I personally like nostalgia factor is huge for me on this. I ate a lot of Jollibee growing up. But I mean like, are you going to get pasta at another fast food place? It's pasta. Yeah, Jollibee's fried chicken and pasta. So you're telling me you could pull up in your car to a drive-through. Yes. And get pasta. Yeah, pasta. They have one spaghetti thing, one noodle thing. Is this a hot take? No, I love it. I think it might be a hot take, John. Now, I've actually never been to Jollibee. You've never been to Jollibee? Just because I've been warned away. I've been told it's very bad. But it's Filipino, right? It is Filipino. So I'm an eighth Filipino. You can do your due diligence. Are you Filipino as well? No, I'm 100% Taiwanese. Does it come with the sausage inside the pasta? Because I know that's a Filipino comfort. That's the best part. It comes up with cut up hot dogs. Fake processed cheese, cut up hot. I'm not really selling it. You're not selling it? No. I'm still very curious. We'll go right after this. You know what? I will go with you. Yeah, you should try. Let's move on to number five. Number five. I don't even know what I put here. Oh, yes I do. Steak and shake. You can't grimace. Have you had it? I have, I have. They have a burger there that they put guacamole on. And it belongs in the pantheon of great fast food burgers. Not just guacamole. Watch your mouth. I'm just saying it's a weird thing to herald guacamole that comes from a place called Steak and Shake. It's incredible. It gives you the diner experience via drive-thru. I did have their shake pretty good. They have great shakes. Is this like a big staple in the Midwest? I'd say so. Have you been to Steak and Shake? I haven't. You know, I got some more national stuff on here. I wanted to put in a couple regional ones for, you know, just for my fans. No, I think it's because Shane wanted to show that he's really cultured and hip and has like all, you're a big fan of B-sides. Yeah, I'm very cultured and hip for liking fast food chains. He tells me about his band taste all the time and he's like, Neon Bendy straw, whatever the **** you listen to. It's not a band I listen to. I've never even heard of them. Name one of the bands you listen to that actually is a real band. Car Seat Headrest. There it is. Good band. Everyone, big fans of Car Seat Headrest out there? Hey, you know who one of the biggest fans is? Adam Driver. Now what, huh? He looks like he'd be into Car Seat Headrest, frankly. Me too! Hey, let's see your number five mainstream bullshit choice. Here comes number five. You ready? Mickey D's, baby. Unbelievable out here. I almost actually had that as my number five. The Golden Arches. Now here's the thing. Is it great food? Probably not, but we're talking fast food and I'm talking Staples. This is where it all started. I like McDonald's. I do too. Yeah, it's consistent. It's better in other countries. Everyone has had McDonald's and I think that's saying something. But what are your moves at McDonald's? Like, what are you getting? So I love their fries. I love their Oreo McFlurry. It's great. I love their chicken nuggets. And here's my favorite item at McDonald's and here's where I'm gonna get a little heat. Wait, can we say it at the same time to see if we're one, two, three. McGriddle. Filet-O-Fish. Oh, Filet-O-Fish is very good as well. No, they don't have that. Thank you, thank you, John. I think I heard it in the sound room. I didn't get any of that. Mine was McGriddle. What's the McGriddle? Is that where they put little pockets of syrup in it? Yeah, it's a pancake sandwich. I cannot. Do you like waffle sandwiches? I don't like waffle sandwiches, but I like the McGriddle. Mine was the Filet-O-Fish. I've never had their fish item. The Filet-O-Fish is very good. Because they steam the bun. It's the only item on the menu with a steamed bun. See, that's why he gets paid the big bucks right there. If we ever have to do a burger for an event, like we used to do a burger and a chicken sandwich, we would never griddle the bun. We would always steam the bun. Steam it. Because if your bun has enough integrity to it, it'll just collapse and become one with whatever the sandwich is. Oh, ----. If it's steamed. And if we're talking secret menu items, and I know the nomenclature here isn't exactly PC, but it is called, and here comes Matt shaking his head, it is called a McGangbang. And this is where you take a quarter pounder, a double quarter pounder, you split it down the seams of the two patties, and then you stick a McChicken in between that, and you stack it all up, and it's delicious. And I sense I've lost a lot of you out there. But have you had the same thing with the Filet-O-Fish? It's the McSurf and Turf. Oh. Wait, wait, wait, what? McSurf and Turf. Number four. Jon. What is it? Yoshinoya. Oh, ----. Oh, I completely forgot about Yoshinoya. I'm all in on the Asian. I've failed my people. Are you Japanese? I'm half Japanese. You're ******* up, man. It's fair. I deserve that, I deserve that. I survived on Yoshinoya in college. It was like the best bang for my bucks. Their beef bowl is very good. Have you had Yoshinoya, Shane? I'm sensing you haven't. I haven't. Very Caucasian taste buds over there. I stick with, you know, plain tastes. I don't like a lot of spice, because it upsets my little tummy. Yoshinoya's not spicy. No? Yeah, it's simmered beef. What now? Oh, I do like simmered beef. Yeah, it's delicious. What do they simmer it in? It's like soy and mirin. It's like sweet simmered beef. Sweet? I'm gonna start saying that as just an exclamatory statement. That's something Batman would say after he punches a villain in the face. Say that after he punches the penguin. Oh, sweet simmered beef. Yeah, the beef bowl's fantastic. Because when you have Yoshinoya in Japan, it's amazing. I heard that. It's really ******* good. Move on to number four. My number four, I really don't remember my order right here, but as I said, all bangers here. Number four, it's Culver's, another regional treat for me. I've never heard of Culver's before. Well, Culver's has a little something called the Butterburger, and baby, it's unhealthy. That's just another Midwesterner spraining a muscle and jerking himself off. It's ridiculous, dude. Hey, man, look, you know, you guys are loving your West Coast things here. Why can't I revel in my Culver's? Because ours are available around the entire states. There's no Yoshinoya in the Midwest. I bet you there is. You wanna look at it somewhere else? I don't think there's a job in there. Someone pulled out a phone. There's not, there's not. Is that true? Yeah, I've never had Yoshinoya until I moved out here. What do you think about that? I stand corrected. Thank you. I rescind my jerk-off comment. Anyway, Culver's is a wonderful place. Do you guys like cheese curds? Fried cheese curds? Sure, man. It's great. If you're ever in the Midwest and you need a burger, this is the place to go. All right, here comes number four. You know, I've been very respectful of your West Coast picks here. That's not a West Coast pick. No, I ******* love Wendy. What do you think about that pick, Shane? I love it. Fries there. Amazing. Good fries, good fries. They changed up the recipe like 10 years ago or so to the sea salt fries. Incredible. Skin on fries. Frosties. I mean. We don't even, do we really even need to talk about how good a frosty is? You're a frosty man? Yeah, I do like frosties. Chocolate or vanilla? Vanilla. I'm a chocolate man. I'm a chocolate man myself as well. But I don't, I'm totally fine with vanilla. They're both very good. Come to think of it, I've never actually had a vanilla frosty. So I'm gonna treat myself to one of those at some point. You ever dip the fries in the frosty? Of course. Well, that's what I do at McDonald's. Oh, wait, to the soft serve? Soft serve cone, and then you dip the fries in. I like that. I haven't tried that. I've only done it at Wendy's for whatever reason. We could go on like McDonald's hacks for like a while. Yeah, there's a lot. I might have to chat offline with you about McDonald's hacks. All right, let's move on to number three. Let's list churches. Oh. Churches. You're coming with all the. Now these are deep cuts, but that makes sense. Well, I put churches because I was thinking one of you guys would put Popeyes. I thought about putting Popeyes, but I don't think Popeyes has a drive-thru. Popeyes does have drive-thrus. I like putting churches up against Popeyes lovers. It just triggers them so much. I mean, I am a little triggered right now. I think chicken and biscuit-wise, churches wins. I think the only way Popeyes edges churches out is banana cream pie and then the rice and beans. What's your go-to order at churches? I'll do thighs, legs, and then just biscuits. How are their biscuits? Their biscuits are pretty ******* good because they like brush honey on them. Ooh. Mine number three. It's Wendy's. We've covered it. Look, I think Wendy's is a wonderful restaurant. I like that their buns aren't too big. I like that the meat hangs over the bun a little bit. It's always been there for me. No dip in quality. I think it tastes better than something like McDonald's. For as big of a name that they are, I think they deliver such a quality product and I love them very much and I can't wait to be sponsored. I'll tell you what, I don't think you needed to look at me when you said they're better than McDonald's. I think it tastes better than something like McDonald's. As if I'm Mr. McDonald's. I don't think you're Mr. McDonald's. You gave me a look after you said it. I don't think you're Mr. McDonald's. Thank you, Shane. I'm on Wendy's train, so. Well, yeah, in the sense that you put it in your number four spot. Well, it's on the list, isn't it? Traitor. What's your number three? Well, it's a train that I ride a little. List it. It's a train that I ride a little bit more. Jack in the Box. I'm gonna sit this one down. That's right. Wait, what's wrong, man? This is ridiculous. How is this ridiculous? I can't believe it. How is this ridiculous? Okay, here's the one I thought that was gonna make people upset. And you know what? I'll say this. I get it. I get it, it's gross. It's perceived to be gross. It is perceived to be gross, but they have some items that are unlike any other fast food item I've ever had, and they're the only place you could get said item. And you know what I'm talking about. You could say the same thing about a dumpster. That's not true. You can only eat half rotten rat carcasses in a dumpster. Yeah, but those dumpsters- You cannot get that at a McDonald's. Yeah, but you couldn't get uniform quality of said rat carcass- That's true. Across multiple dumpsters. And this dumpster serves the same quality at every dumpster, and it's not even a dumpster. I'm using dumpster in the sense of a term of endearment. What do you get at Jack in the Box? Well, I'll tell you. I'll tell you, John. I'm glad you asked. First off, best chicken sandwich in the game. I think. That's a hot take. I know that. I can hear all of you typing away on your little keyboards like, Ryan, you're a big old fat idiot. I don't care. It's delicious. Jack's Spicy Chicken, for my money, best chicken sandwich on the game. I've exhausted Stephen Lim off camera. I think he's dead. Are you going to bring up your funny little tacos? That was number one. Now, Jack in the Box, also $1 for two tacos. And these tacos- Are made of cardboard. These tacos- They're disgusting. Are one of a kind. They're one of a kind. You can't get them anywhere else. It tastes like pencil shavings. You're eating pencil shavings? Okay, here's the issue, okay? I just don't want anyone putting anything taco-related on this list. You have amazing taco trucks down the street. You shouldn't be eating Jack in the Box tacos. Oh, I'm a- And, here's your order. Here comes the side- What's your order of this to be? I am half Mexican. I will acknowledge that I am half Mexican, but- They're so bad. This isn't a taco. This is a Jack in the Box taco. You're going to use it on that? That's right. Everyone gets one chef's kiss per episode. We didn't tell John that up front. That's because he didn't seem like the chef's kiss type. I didn't know this was the place to do it. He's a real chef. Do you do the chef's kiss in your- That's also a good question. All the time when it doesn't have to do with food. You've never made a great plate, like the plating looked beautiful. The smell goes in your nostrils, you're like, wow, I made that. You don't go- No. Send it out to table three. No. But if you had to use one at one point on your top five for any specific item from any of these places, would you have used it on one of those top three there? No. Are you going to save it for your top two? No. You're not going to do one? No. Jack in the Box taco, can't get it anywhere else. It's an acquired taste, and you know what? As much as people, it's inspiring a lot of ire in the crowd here, but I will say that there's a lot of people that I talk to that love Jack in the Box tacos, especially when you have the devil's juice in you. And devil's juice, I mean alcohol. All right, let's go to number two for John. My two's McDonald's. Wow, Mickey D's at number two. Yeah. So this is a respect thing? It's just so readily available. It's classic. Like, it's just a taste of childhood. I don't eat McDonald's now, but good memories associated with McDonald's. That's pretty high for the quality that they're putting out. Like, see, I feel like Wendy's has good quality, where some of the meat at McDonald's is suspect. I really don't think it is. I think the meat tastes the way it always tastes. It's shitty for the last 50 years. It wasn't shitty for like the last 10. Yeah. Yeah, you're going there to crush like a nasty burger. Shall we go to number two? Sure. My number two, Wyatt's Taco Bell. Happy to see you here, John. Oh my goodness. I'll say Taco Bell has been there my entire life. It's been there for me, and it's the one fast food chain, and I think out of all these, out of even McDonald's, that I still go back to, and it's like the one thing that I've never gotten tired of. You're talking about Taco Bell like it's a supportive uncle. It kinda is. It's always been there for me my entire life. It kinda is. When I was in my really dark place. When I'm really sad, it's there. When I'm really happy, you bet it's there. I'm not excited to see the number ones now. That's fine. You're gonna see it anyway. Ryan, you're number two. Number two, In-N-Out. I think this is a gentleman's choice. Really, when it comes to burgers in the fast food game, and actually just in general, to me, my favorite burger in the world is In-N-Out, and I know there probably are better, more gourmet burgers out there that aren't fast food, but that's how strongly I feel about In-N-Out that I'm comparing it to just burgers at large as opposed to the umbrella of fast food. It's delicious. It's very good. And another guy who also pretty famous for food expertise. You may have heard of him. Anthony Bourdain, RIP, agrees with me, so. Well, you know, opinions, I mean. What's your number one? My number one is also In-N-Out. In-N-Out's like the epitome of fast food, right? You get in, you get out, it's consistent. You don't have to think. Yeah, just really good. Like, simple menu. If you're going to a fast food place, you're ordering from the core menu anyways, and In-N-Out's pretty streamlined. Shakes are good. Ooh, that Neapolitan shake? Yeah. I don't know why I didn't include it on the list. I think because I only moved out here five years ago. In-N-Out, to me, is still very new in my life. I really enjoy it. I like going there. The people are always very friendly. I think five years time, you're going to see it showing up on here. I love, I truly do love In-N-Out. And it's going to be just be tearing up the list in due time. I actually think the fries are underrated. I think people- I like their fries. People ---- on the fries all the time. Don't like their fries. It's like a real potato. They chop that potato right in front of your eyes. You know what you're getting. Okay, my number one. You guys ready for this? Haven't said it all episode, but ready to list it. Wow. Yeah, that's right. You got anything to say about that, John? No, I respect it. You respect it? Yeah, I respect it. I thought you were doing Popeye's dirty earlier and I wasn't sure. No, Church's and Popeye's are just close to me, but I just, I like Church's a little more. I would say Popeye's is higher than Jollibee for me, but you can't get spaghetti at Popeye's. You cannot get spaghetti at Popeye's. And nor would you want to. You get a lot of other things at Popeye's. The red beans and rice. The red beans and rice are amazing. Incredible. The biscuits are incredible. Cause the biscuits have like a layer at the top that is just like buttery and salty. And it's like a little, just a fat little hockey puck that you can eat. Now, one thing that a lot of even Popeye's lovers don't seem to know, cause this is one of my favorite things about it. And even when I meet a fellow Popeye head in the wild, I always say the Cajun sparkle, right? It's a little pink packet full of seasoning and you have to ask for it at the counter. You say, can I have some Cajun sparkle? And they'll, usually they'll go and then they'll pull a few packets up and give it to you. And you know what? I'm a little crazy. Sometimes I put a little Cajun sparkle on the biscuit itself. Oh, I do too. Very good. Oh, that's every time I do. Mix it with the butter. Yes. Now you're having a good time. It's great. I also put it on the, I put it on everything. I put it on the fries. I put it on the biscuit. I put it on the chicken. I'd put it in my water if I could. I feel like that would not, that'd maybe not be that good. Very salty. Oh, it's food, right? It's a little powder packet. It's a condiment. You guys are talking about it like it's a, like something else. I think all three of us agreed Popeye's was pretty good. Popeye's brought us all back together. Unfortunately, John, I think the tables are going to turn a little bit here. List it. List it, baby. Taco Bell, coming in at the number one spot. Ryan, can I say seeing this at number one? All that comes to mind is. Don't do it. I love it. Normally I hate when he does his chef's kiss because he makes it super long and gross, but that one, I enjoyed it. I did it for you. My problem is you live in Los Angeles. That's right. Why would you eat Taco Bell? Because I love flavor. I love, I love taking it to flavor town. Okay, what, like what's your order at Taco Bell? What is it? I'm so glad you asked. How much time you got? How much, how much longer do we got John for? I'm not even wearing a watch. My number one item there. And in fact, I think it's the number one fast food item out there. Let's say it together. Cheesy gordita crunch. It's so good. He's just looking into his lap. Have you had a cheesy gordita crunch? I have. So here's what you need to know about a cheesy gordita crunch if you don't know it out there. A, it's perfect. B, the crunch to chewy combo. It doesn't get much better than that. You have the fluffy gordita and then you have this delicious, crispy, most of the time flavored by Doritos shell and you bite into it. And after that beautiful, beautiful crunch combo, you just get this symphony of flavor. Here comes the meat. Dances across your taste buds. It's a concerto of flavor, a masterpiece. Are you guys getting paid for this? No, we're not. Also, their sauce game. I'm gonna do, I'm gonna break the rules. Sauce game. Yeah. I don't wanna be here anymore. It's so good. On the sweeter side, little cinnamon twists. Okay, cinnamon twists are arguably like top 10 fast food items. Well, I think that does it for our top five list. Any closing thoughts? I think we had more than enough closing thoughts there. It's all subjective in the end. You can have your opinions and I'm sure you'll stick to them and you should. Feel good in your food choices. And defend them at all costs. And John, actually, before we leave here, is there anything that you would like to plug? Just come by the restaurant. It's not fast food, it's not Taco Bell. It's a lot different. Thank you all for watching. If you stuck through that, God bless you. Mention what you think in the comments, whether you agree with us, maybe who had the best list, and maybe some places that we missed or that you think we missed. Thank you everybody for watching, and that's the list. That was good. That was fantastic. Thank you, John. A lot better than Taco Bell. John? Sir, I'll take the pineapple, please. We also have the pineapple float, if you want. That's just additional of 70 cents. Oh, I don't know if I need to go that far, but I'll take the pineapple float. Can I do a pineapple float? Sure.