The fast foods top chefs secretly love

While fast food gets a bad rap – often fairly – sometimes it just hits the spot. And for top chefs, it’s no different. Despite spending hours a day in professional kitchens working with the finest ingredients, many of them reach for the occasional burger and fries or a cardboard box of greasy fried chicken when their shift is over.

We asked some of Britain’s best chefs for their favourite fast food joints – and their go-to order. Here’s what they revealed.

McDonald’s

For many food lovers, McDonald’s is a guilty pleasure. Perhaps it’s the memories of childhood Happy Meals, the allure of a late-night Big Mac or the thrill of discovering the chain’s international variations.

“It’s a cliché, but it’s just so consistent,” says Tom Cenci, the executive chef at Nessa and Yasmin Soho, both in London. For Cenci, it’s an increasingly rare hangover treat. “Nothing cures it like McDonald’s, especially the Big Mac.” Cenci also loves the Egg McMuffin, which he has recreated at Nessa. “It pretty much has everything you need from a breakfast item.”

Josh Barnes of Chef’s Table by Josh Barnes at the Swinton Estate in North Yorkshire agrees: “I probably go more than I’d like to let on.” He loves the “Golden Meal” at French branches, essentially a burger with an added chicken nugget or cheeseburger. “Sometimes I have a Big Mac and then a cheeseburger, as a chaser, purely for the nostalgic reliving of my time in France,” Barnes admits.

Shake Shack

The Golden Arches isn’t the only American chain luring top chefs. Shake Shack arrived in London in 2013 and now has 16 British locations. Jack Stein, the chef director of Rick Stein Restaurants (and son of the famed TV restauranter), is a fan. “I love how you can see everything being made and the service is great.” Stein visits whenever possible. “I always go for a regular ShackBurger, crinkle fries with cheese and a ShackMeister Lager. Lager and a burger is just the perfect combination.”

Five Guys

Five Guys arrived in the UK the same year as Shake Shack and now boasts more than 170 branches. For Adam Smith, the executive chef at Woven by Adam Smith in Ascot, Berkshire, it’s “a real treat. I enjoy that you can build your own and add all your favourite toppings. The chips are great, as they’re cooked to order, and I love their milkshakes.”

Smith’s go-to is a bacon cheeseburger with all the trimmings and a peanut butter milkshake. “Fast food is best left to those that do it best,” says Smith. “In the summer months when it’s warm enough to have a barbecue, we make some great burgers, but they’re just not the same.”

Millie Simpson, the kitchen manager at Sauce by The Langham in London, agrees, visiting Five Guys when she’s in need of a treat. The Singapore-born chef always opts for a milkshake, usually Oreo or vanilla: “I find it’s quite hard to find a good one in the UK.”

Patty & Bun

While American burger chains dominate the high street, several homegrown options impress. Oded Oren, the chef-founder of Oren in east London, likes Patty & Bun, which has branches in London and Brighton. He isn’t keen on smash burgers, and says Patty & Bun burgers are made “just the way I like it. They are juicy, pink and just the right size. I usually order mine medium rare with some of their hot sauce on the side.” Oren recommends mixing the hot sauce with mayo and dipping fries in it.

Meat Liquor

An early trendsetter in the modern burger movement, Meat Liquor remains a favourite. Luke French of Jöro in Sheffield visits whenever he’s in London. He goes for the Dead Hippie, a mustard-fried double patty with the restaurant’s secret sauce, or a Chili Dog, which he describes as “unbelievable, just pure undeniable flavour and spice. I love a hotdog and this is the very best for me.”

Wingstop

While burgers, for many, are the pre-eminent fast food, fried chicken also gets a look-in. Texan wing purveyor Wingstop is growing in the UK and Abby Lee of Mambow in east London, named the capital’s best restaurant last year by Time Out, is a dedicated customer. “I love that there are so many different flavour options and that I can pick depending on what I’m in the mood for,” says Lee. “Their fried chicken doesn’t have that typical thick crumb you get with many places, so I can get through more wings.”

Bonehead

Aktar Islam, the chef patron of Michelin-starred Opheem in Birmingham, reckons Bonehead is the city’s “best fried chicken spot. Their Bonehead and Hothead seasonings are corkers. I usually get the burgers or the strips with a side of Nashville fries or garlic Parmesan [tater] tots. If I’m feeling brave, I’ll get a pickleback too.”

Nando’s

“Every now and then I love a cheeky Nando’s,” says Tom Kerridge, the chef patron of two Michelin-starred The Hand & Flowers. “I’ve always been a fan, who doesn’t love a bit of spicy chicken?” His favourite order is a “whole chicken, extra hot, side of macho peas. I love the spice of it, how delicious it is. I usually go with my wife, Beth, on a rare date night. It doesn’t feel as bad for you and is a great treat before the cinema.”

Domino’s

Despite launching one of London’s most lauded new restaurants, AngloThai, John Chantarasak loves the American pizza chain, which, at times in the past, he has frequented “a few times a month”. He loves the Pepperoni Passion with a side of Chicken Strippers and a garlic and herb dip. “It’s everything you crave when you need rescuing from a deadly hangover. Calorific cheese and pepperoni indulgence that remarkably tastes better eaten from a cardboard takeaway pizza box than from proper crockery.” He recommends collecting from a local branch over delivery, “so it’s super fresh out the oven”.

Tasty Jerk

While chains are popular, many chefs turn to independent joints for their fix. When Elliot Hashtroudi, the head chef of Camille in London, lived near this much-loved Caribbean spot in Crystal Palace, he was a regular. “The smell of smoke bellows out the small building all the way down the road, it’s enough to pull you in every time you pass,” says Hashtroudi. He loves the jerk goat with rice and peas. “The aromatic smoky flavour is like no other. It’s got this incredible spice that just keeps you wanting more.”