In honor of 'National Biscuit Month' I decided to write a short post on the three best biscuits I've come across in my travels. I believe if you're going to sell biscuits to the masses, you need to make them from scratch everyday. It's my prerequisite for a good biscuit, and that's why you won't see biscuits from the likes of McDonald's or Burger King even mentioned here.
#3 Hardee's
The Hardee's biscuit has always been high up on my list of favorite biscuits, but I must admit that I remember them being much better before their merger with Carl's Jr. These are big, fluffy, buttery biscuits with just the right amount of pull and crispiness in all the right places.
The only reason they don't rank higher on this list is because Hardee's goes hard on the butter. I'm not complaining mind you, its just that some mornings I like a nice mild buttery flavor that fades a bit once you get to the center of the biscuit. The butter flavor on these biscuits simply never lets up.
A breakfast staple of mine for years was Hardee's Cinnamon Raisin Biscuit. For some strange reason, they removed them from their breakfast menu. I've heard rumors you can find them at different Hardee's, and the company even stated they heard the consumers and brought them back. For the life of me, I can't find them at any Hardee's I've visited in recent years. I always find the Hardee's that offer a sub par cinnamon roll instead of the cinnamon raisin biscuits. I probably haven't tasted one of these delicacies for at least ten years now, and its downright frustrating.
#2 Bob Evans
Bob Evans biscuits aren't quite as big as Hardee's biscuits, but they more than make up for it in balanced buttery taste and an incredibly fluffy center. Made fresh all morning, I have never had a bad biscuit at Bob Evans.
Bob Evans does hold a number one spot on another one of my lists, and that is.. 'Best Biscuits and Gravy'. Mind you, that's Best Biscuits and Gravy from a restaurant chain, because my dear Grandmother's biscuits and gravy were on a whole other level! (I think her secret ingredient was love).
Bob Evans sausage gravy does remind me of my Grandma's gravy however. She was an Oklahoma farm girl who made everything from scratch. I remember being mesmerized as a child while watching her in the kitchen making her sausage gravy. It was as if she was making something out of nothing, and that something tasted like heaven on earth. I think of her every time eat biscuits and gravy from Bob Evans, and that's usually 99% of the time when I dine there.
Bob Evans is very proud of their sausage gravy as they should be. I love the fact that they share their recipe for it on their website, which I've linked below..
Bob Evans Sausage Gravy Recipe
Bob Evans Sausage Gravy Recipe
#1 Bojangle's
Bojangle's Country Ham & Egg Biscuit
Enjoyed at sun up somewhere deep in Georgia
Bojangle's biscuits offer everything I want and need in a biscuit. First off, these are buttermilk biscuits, which set them apart from many of their competitors. They have a nice buttery flavor that doesn't punch you in the mouth, with a beautiful texture both inside and out. They don't have that fast food chain cookie cutter look to them. They stand on their own merit, not having to be doused with butter to be tasty. They just look and taste like a beautiful homemade biscuit, and remind me of my Grandma's more than any other biscuit out there.
Bojangle's biscuits are made from scratch all day long and pulled fresh from the oven every twenty minutes. In the past, I have arrived at Bojangle's that were currently out of biscuits. I also happened to arrive 5 minutes after the last batch was placed in the oven. There was never a question that I was going to wait that fifteen minutes for my biscuits! There have been times on road trips where my bride was a little more than irritated at me for waiting so long for our biscuits, but she didn't grow up eating biscuits, so I don't expect her to fully understand. Biscuits are life!
But wait.. there's more
Bojangle's also offers some incredible breakfast sandwiches on their menu. I've indulged in many over the years including their Pork Chop Biscuit, Cajun Filet Biscuit and Steak Biscuit.
Bojangle's Bo Berry Biscuit
As much as it pained me to see Hardee's Cinnamon Raisin Biscuit discontinued, Bojangle's more than filled the void with their Bo Berry Biscuits! A made from scratch buttermilk biscuit stuffed with blueberries and drizzled with sweet icing.
Football shaped Bo Berry Biscuits!
I eat a lot different these days, and I might eat biscuits once a month now. It's a far cry from my days of religiously grabbing two biscuits and a coffee for my daily commute. Honestly, part of the reason I was able to effectively achieve my fitness goals over the last year and a half, was due to a lack of tasty fast food options in my area.
However, Bojangles is opening fifteen new stores around the Orlando area soon. They once had quite the presence in Florida. However, they restructured and closed all of their central Florida stores several years back. I guess they figure that the world's number one tourist destination needs more Bojangle's in its life. I'm super happy that I will be able to visit Bojangle's more often now. However, I hope one of these fifteen new stores isn't too close to my home. My willpower falters around delicious breakfast sandwiches and biscuits.
I'm always up to sample biscuits from new and not so new spots. Let me know if you have a favorite biscuit you think I need to try in the comments section. Who knows, maybe they will knock one of my top three off of the list.