For a long time, the Jack in the Box Sourdough Jack was my fast-food holy grail. I was just seven years old on my first visit to a Jack in the Box in California.
I was there with my sister, visiting my grandmother (my dad’s mom). We hadn’t seen her in years, and honestly, I don’t remember much else from that trip. But I do remember the visit to Jack in the Box.
Over the next 16 years, until my grandmother passed, I probably ate at Jack in the Box another six or seven times. Toward the end, I went by myself, and it was then that I first tried the Sourdough Jack. That burger stuck with me.
Originally published on January 7, 2009.
Burger Beast Visit Policy
Every restaurant featured on Burger Beast has been personally visited. Unless otherwise noted, all photos were taken during those visits.
Jack in the Box is Back in Orlando
Back in July 1979, Ralston-Purina pulled the plug on all 279 Jack in the Box locations in the Southeast, wiping out a quarter of the chain’s units at the time. By the end of 1980, every Florida location in Bradenton, Orlando, St. Petersburg, Sanford, Tallahassee, and Tampa was gone.
Now, after more than four decades, Jack in the Box is finally making its return to Florida. The first new restaurants are scheduled for early 2026:
- NOW OPEN – 815 W State Rd 434, Longwood, FL
- NOW OPEN – 1610 Capital Cir NE, Tallahassee, FL
- July 2026 – 5324 S John Young Parkway, Orlando, FL
- Date and Address Unknown, Clermont, FL
This is big news for anyone who has been waiting since the 1980s for Jack in the Box to come back.
What is a Sourdough Jack?
It’s a quarter-pound beef patty layered with two slices of Swiss cheese, bacon, tomato, mayo, and ketchup on toasted sourdough bread. Sure, Jack in the Box has tacos, breakfast burritos, and curly fries, but the Sourdough Jack is the reason I keep going back.
Will my sourdough obsession ever end? Probably not. I don’t have a Jack in the Box near me, so when I see one on a road trip, I don’t even consider ordering anything else.
History of Jack in the Box Restaurants
Early Beginnings (Topsy’s and Oscar’s Drive Inn)
Jack in the Box’s story goes back to the 1940s, when Robert Oscar Peterson opened a small San Diego chain called Topsy’s Drive-In. Within a few years, he rebranded a handful of locations as Oscar’s Drive Inn, complete with circus-themed décor and clown imagery. By 1947, Peterson had also purchased the rights to a new intercom ordering system pioneered in Alaska — an innovation that would change fast food forever.
Birth of Jack in the Box (1950 Launch)
By August 1950, Peterson unveiled something entirely new: Jack in the Box. The San Diego restaurant featured a drive-thru window paired with an intercom, making it one of the first chains designed for the car culture boom. A clown head atop the speaker box greeted customers with the phrase, “Pull forward, Jack will speak to you.”
Expansion and Challenges (1960s–1970s)
The brand took off. During the 1960s, Peterson formed Foodmaker, Inc., Jack in the Box’s parent company, and expanded into Arizona and Texas. By the mid-1970s, there were more than 1,000 Jack in the Box locations, many advertised with cheerful TV commercials starring child actor Rodney Allen Rippy.
But rapid growth came at a cost. To stabilize, the company sold off hundreds of restaurants in markets like Florida, Chicago, Detroit, and Kansas City. By 1979, every Florida Jack in the Box was shuttered.
Reinvention in the 1980s
During the early 1980s, Jack in the Box overhauled both its menu and marketing. The company aimed for a more adult, upscale crowd, adding specialty sandwiches and redecorating its restaurants. One infamous TV campaign literally blew up the old clown mascot, with a little old lady shouting: “Waste him!”
The changes worked. In 1989, Jack introduced the Sourdough Burger, later renamed the Sourdough Jack, a sandwich that remains a cult favorite today. Franchising also began in 1982, and by 1984, sales nearly doubled from just four years earlier.
The Name Change Fiasco
In 1985, Jack in the Box briefly experimented with rebranding. About sixty restaurants were renamed Monterey Jack’s, complete with “No more clownin’ around” T-shirts for employees. But customers ignored the new name, and by May 1986, the experiment was over — every location went back to being Jack in the Box.
That same year, a management-led buyout took the company private. Jack in the Box doubled down on burgers but also introduced side legends like seasoned curly fries, which became a permanent menu item.
The Rise of Jack Box
By the 1990s, the brand leaned into a new identity: Jack Box, the sharp-suited, oversized-headed mascot modeled after the original clown head. Launched in 1994, Jack Box was presented as the company’s fictional founder and CEO. His first ad campaign? Blowing up Jack in the Box’s board of directors, a clever callback to the mascot’s earlier demise.
Jack Box’s offbeat humor stuck, and he’s been the face of the chain ever since.
My First Visit to Jack in the Box in Florida
On our way home from Ocala, we made a beeline for the Jack in the Box in Longwood. After waiting more than four decades for the chain to return to Florida, I wasn’t about to drive past without stopping.
Naturally, my first order was the Sourdough Jack. It was every bit as good as I remembered: a seasoned beef patty with hickory-smoked bacon, tomato, Swiss-style cheese, mayonnaise, and ketchup on perfectly toasted sourdough bread. If you ask me what to order at Jack in the Box, this is still my answer.
We rounded out the meal with an order of Classic Tiny Tacos. The crispy little tacos paired well with the avocado lime dipping sauce, though next time I’ll add the jalapeños.
My only regret? I didn’t order the Smashed Jack Slider. One smashed patty, American cheese, pickles, and Boss Sauce on a brioche bun sounds like exactly the kind of simple burger I’d enjoy, so it’ll be at the top of my list on my next visit.
After waiting more than 40 years for Jack in the Box to return to Florida, it was worth the wait. The Sourdough Jack tasted just as good as I remembered, and now I no longer have to drive out of state whenever I get the craving.
Quirky Facts About Jack in the Box
- While the chain is known for burgers, its tacos outsell everything else and in 2017 alone, they sold 554 million tacos.
- The return of Jack Box sparked a craze for antenna balls in the late ’90s, with more than 28 million handed out.
- In 2004, Jack tried a fast-casual experiment called JBX Grill, featuring fireplaces and pricier food. It flopped and was gone by 2005.
- In 2015, Jack in the Box earned a Guinness World Record for the world’s largest coupon: a 2,000-square-foot BOGO voucher for the Buttery Jack. Employees literally had to carry it through the drive-thru.
What to Order at Jack in the Box
If you’re visiting one of the new Florida Jack in the Box locations for the first time, these are the menu items I’d recommend ordering.
Sourdough Jack ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
If I could only order one thing at Jack in the Box, it would be the Sourdough Jack. It’s the sandwich that made me a fan decades ago and the reason I still make a point to stop whenever I come across a Jack in the Box. The combination of a seasoned beef patty, hickory-smoked bacon, Swiss-style cheese, tomato, mayonnaise, and ketchup on toasted sourdough bread has stood the test of time.
Classic Tiny Tacos ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Classic Tiny Tacos are unlike anything else on a fast-food menu and are one of Jack in the Box’s signature items. Served with avocado lime dipping sauce, they’re crispy, fun to share, and unlike anything you’ll find at most other fast-food chains. Next time, I’m adding the jalapeños.
Bacon Double Smashed Jack ⭐⭐⭐½
Jack in the Box’s signature smash burger features two quarter-pound smashed beef patties topped with hickory-smoked bacon, American cheese, grilled onions, pickles, and Boss Sauce on a toasted brioche bun. It’s a solid burger and worth trying, although I’d still choose the Sourdough Jack if I had to pick just one.
Seasoned Curly Fries ⭐⭐⭐½
No Jack in the Box meal feels complete without an order of Seasoned Curly Fries. They’re an easy recommendation with any burger.
Smashed Jack Slider (Next on My List)
I didn’t order the Smashed Jack Slider during my visit to Longwood, and it’s my biggest regret. A single smashed beef patty with American cheese, pickles, and Boss Sauce on a brioche bun sounds like exactly the kind of simple burger I’d enjoy. It’ll be the first thing I order on my next visit.