From rare to well-done, steak temperatures can vary widely for different tastes and preferences. But what about burgers? Opinions are strong on what temperature is best for a burger, but Carnival Cruise Line stands firm on how its award-winning Guy’s burgers can be served.
This has frustrated one guest who demands a different temperature and makes comparisons to other restaurants with sweeping claims about availability and preferences. But what is true?
“On the Valor now and I was told it was against Carnival rules to have my burger served medium rare. They would only give me one that was medium or medium well,” the guest explained. “Each time I gave it back. Donโt tell me the reason that they will not do burgers this way is that it is a health reason.”
This has riled up other Carnival cruise guests, who first noted that ground meat should be cooked to higher temperatures for food safety.
The US Food and Drug Administration recommends burgers be cooked to 160 degrees Fahrenheit, and explicitly notes that a “pink” burger is not fully cooked.
“If a thermometer is not available, make sure hamburgers are brown all the way through, not pink,” the administration recommends.
John Heald, Carnival Cruise Line’s Brand Ambassador, clarified the safety issue as well.
“Yes, indeed it is a health issue and we actually have a USPH (United States Public Health) warning written on the menu and in the Fun Times and on the Hub App,” Heald said.
Furthermore, the idea that this individual “gave it back” each time has caused frustration. The lines at Guy’s Burger Joint are well known for being lengthy, despite how hard the crew works and how efficient the fast-service restaurant can be.
On embarkation day on Carnival Celebration, for example, I waited nearly 30 minutes for my Plain Jane with S.M.C. The entire time, the Guy’s Burger Joint team was hustling to fill orders and there was never a pause as they served up dozens of burgers. And the well-done burger was well worth the wait!
Sending back burgers that aren’t cooked to one’s preferences also generates more food waste, a problem that all cruise lines struggle with.
Do Burger Temperatures Affect Popularity?
The irate guest goes on to make broad claims about other restaurants and general preferences.
“All American land-based restaurants will give you a rare or medium rare burger,” they said. “These [Guy’s] burgers would be more popular if we could all get rare or medium rare burgers.”
It is true that many restaurants on land will cook burgers to order for preferred temperatures. It should be noted, however, that those restaurants are not fast-service, casual joints serving up hundreds of burgers over just a few hours to long lines of hungry guests.
“Guys is not a cooked-to-order burger joint, on the ship. They cook some plain and some with cheese. Stop expecting a service that isn’t offered,” another guest commented, just one of many such sentiments in the more than 900 responses the Facebook post has generated.
Restaurants that do serve with the same speed as Guy’s Burger Joint, such as fast food or fast casual chains like Burger King, McDonald’s, Steak ‘n Shake, Five Guys, and Culver’s, do not offer rare or medium-rare options. All burgers are thoroughly cooked to a well-done temperature for food safety.
Read Also: Guy’s Burger Joint on Carnival Cruise Line – Menu, Which Ships, Details
The guest’s statement about the burgers being “more popular” if they were offered at lower temperatures is an impossible claim, one that Carnival Cruise Line will not be testing out anytime soon.
Many Carnival guests obviously love the burgers as they are, and while many would indeed enjoy the burgers at any temperature, other guests would avoid the restaurant if rare burgers were the norm.