Hard Rock Café Orlando has been a part of this Universal theme park property in Orlando since 1990 when Universal Studios Florida opened. The property, now known as Universal Orlando Resort, offers so much more compared to its humble beginnings. Hard Rock Café Orlando may have moved from its original location. Still, we know that the lease for Hard Rock Café in CityWalk runs until at least 2038. Guests can enjoy the experience at Hard Rock Café for many years.

Hard Rock Café presents music videos, memorabilia, and bar & grill-style food for guests. The burgers here are some of the most popular items on the menu. Hard Rock Café offers a wide variety of burgers. The menu currently offers three types of smashed and stacked burgers. For my December trip to Orlando, I ordered the “Swiss Mushroom Burger” from the smashed and stacked burgers list. The Swiss Mushroom Burger costs $15.99 and comes with fries as your side. This burger contains two smashed & stacked burgers prepared medium well, sauteed mushrooms, lettuce, tomatoes, Swiss cheese, and Dijon mayonnaise.

The burger patties come prepared medium well according to the menu. However, I would define the burger patties as tasting closer to well done. In fairness, I doubt that issue changed this burger’s quality based on the smashed and stacked preparation style. The burger patties brought above-average seasoning and quality for table service burgers.

Before discussing the one easily seen negative of this burger, some more positives to this entrée should be mentioned. The fries provided above-average table service flavor and texture during the visit. Yet, these fries suffered from the standard issue of fries lowering in quality as you reach the bottom of the container. Also, the lettuce within this burger brought noticeable freshness.

On the negative side, the bun-to-burger patty ratio looked disappointing. Even though I cut the burger poorly, this entrée serves an average-size table service burger bun with far too large burger patties as they are prepared. Yes, smashed and stacked burgers tend to have a higher bun-to-burger ratio, but this seemed excessive on the most recent visit to Hard Rock Café. In addition to the ratio issue, the bun does not hold up to supporting the cheese and burger patties.

Though this fails to be a true negative, the mushrooms and mayonnaise tasted average. They did not hinder this burger, however. The best part of this burger would be the smashed-style burger patties. The melted cheese with the seasoned burger patties provides the flavor you would expect from this variety of burgers. Sure, we would have enjoyed more noticeable flavors from the supporting cast of this burger, but the best part should always be the burger patties.

Hard Rock Cafe continues to offer some of the best variety of burgers at Universal Orlando CityWalk. Sure, better burgers can be found at Universal Orlando Resort. However, this burger and the variety of other menu options will empower larger groups to find something for everyone. For example, we previously reviewed the BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger at Hard Rock Café Orlando. Our site offers several other reviews of menu items at Hard Rock Café Orlando that you can find using the search feature on the website. If you enjoy burgers, you should be able to find one you like here. As always, eat like you mean it!