Culver’s New Burger Is Topped With A Giant Fried Cheese Curd

Culver’s is taking the word “cheeseburger” very seriously.

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The chain is bringing back its CurderBurger for Curdtoberfest, but this time there’s a new version. The Smoked Cheddar CurderBurger takes one of Culver’s fresh, never-frozen beef patties and puts an enormous fried smoked cheddar cheese curd on top.

And when I say enormous, I mean it. This isn’t a few cheese curds scattered on top of a burger. It’s one big, round, breaded piece of cheese that covers pretty much the entire patty.

At what point does a cheese curd become a cheese patty? I’m not sure. But I think Culver’s is getting dangerously close.

The CurderBurger Started As An April Fools’ Joke

The best part is that none of this was originally supposed to exist.

Culver’s introduced the CurderBurger as an April Fools’ joke in 2021. It was basically the same ridiculous idea: a ButterBurger topped with a giant fried cheese curd.

People wanted it.

So, later that year, Culver’s made the fake burger real for National Cheese Curd Day. It sold out, came back in 2022, and has since become a recurring part of Culver’s annual cheese curd celebrations.

Five years later, we’re not only still eating the April Fools’ burger, we’re getting new varieties of it.

The Smoked Cheddar CurderBurger is the first flavored version of the burger, replacing the usual cheddar cheese crown with smoked cheddar. The cheese is breaded, fried until golden, and placed directly on top of the beef patty.

There’s still a regular slice of Wisconsin cheddar underneath, too.

It is still a cheeseburger, after all.

The Smoked Cheddar CurderBurger will be available from September 28th through October 11th, or while supplies last.

More Cheese Curds Are Coming In October

The burger kicks off Culver’s second annual Curdtoberfest, which is basically several weeks of finding different reasons to eat fried cheese.

Once the Smoked Cheddar CurderBurger finishes its run, Jalapeño Cheese Curds return on October 12th. These mix cheddar cheese with pieces of jalapeño pepper before breading and frying the whole thing. They’ll be available through November 29th, while supplies last.

Culver’s is also doing a National Cheese Curd Day deal on October 15th. Delicious Rewards members can grab an order of cheese curds for $3 from 4 to 8 p.m. local time at participating restaurants.

And because a month devoted to cheese curds wasn’t enough, there’s a Curdtoberfest sweepstakes running from September 28th through October 31th. The grand prize is a trip for four to Germany.

Which does make sense. After eating a burger topped with a piece of fried cheese roughly the size of my hand, a trip to Oktoberfest feels like the logical next step.

Mostly, though, I love that Culver’s made a fake burger for April Fools’ Day, discovered everyone wanted it, and is now five years deep into CurderBurger development.

Never joke about fried cheese unless you’re prepared to follow through.