Wendy's does a makeover on original burger

When Wendy's decided to remake its 42-year-old hamburger, the chain agonized the details. A pickle chemist was consulted. Customers were quizzed on lettuce knowledge. And executives went on a cross-country burger-eating tour.

The result? Dave's Hot 'N Juicy, named after late Wendy's founder Dave Thomas. The burger -- with extra cheese, a thicker beef patty, a buttered bun, and no mustard, among other changes -- began being served in restaurants Monday.

"Our food was already good," said Denny Lynch, a Wendy's spokesman. "We wanted it to be better. Isn't that what long-term brands do? They reinvent themselves."

For Wendy's Co., based in Dublin, Ohio, reinvention is critical. That's why executives at the 6,600-restaurant chain spent the past 2½ years going over burger minutiae during Project Gold Hamburger. That included deciding whether to switch from white onions on its burgers to red (they did), to change the fat/lean ratio of the meat (they didn't), or to go with plain or crinkled pickles (they picked crinkled).

Wendy's is trying to boost lackluster sales and fight growing competition from rival McDonald's on one end and expanding fast-casual chains like Five Guys on the other. Part of the problem is that Americans in the economic downturn are being pickier about how they spend their dollars. But the biggest issue is that Wendy's, which hadn't changed its burger since the chain began in 1969, let its food offerings stagnate while competitors updated menus.

Wendy's stumbled a few years ago when it debuted breakfast foods like omelets and pancakes, which aren't conducive to eating on the go. "We have a lot of catching up to do in some areas," said Gerard Lewis, Wendy's head of new product development. "But after we launch this hamburger there will be folks who need to catch up to us."

Project Gold Hamburger started in 2009, shortly after hedge fund magnate Nelson Peltz bought Wendy's and combined it with Arby's. The marriage failed, with Peltz selling Arby's to a private-equity firm this summer. Wendy's faces strong competition from McDonald's, which has taken customers by remaking itself into a hip, healthy place to eat.