THE CARL'S JR. GUACAMOLE BACON BURGERS EXPAND OFFERINGS - Also To Be Honored As Official Burgers of the California Avocado Festival

CARPINTERIA, Calif. September 24 It is not easy to make really good guacamole, which may explain why Carls Jr. is the only fast-food chain to have had so much success with guacamole-topped burgers and chicken sandwiches in the past that it made the Guacamole Bacon Six Dollar Burger a permanent menu offering in 2003. Carl's Jr. prepares its guacamole fresh daily, mixing real salsa also made fresh every day – with real avocado and starting today the chain's customers can order from a full line of Guacamole Bacon Burgers, including the single, double and Six Dollar Burger varieties. 'Carls Jr. has always had great success introducing menu items that deliver more authentic tastes and flavors than our competitors would ever attempt' said Brad Haley, executive vice president of marketing for Carls Jr. 'So, we naturally wanted to prepare guacamole like people do at home, with real avocados and fresh salsa, to make our Guacamole Bacon Burgers taste like something you'd be more likely to find only in sit-down restaurants. It's that kind of quality that helped get the Guacamole Bacon Burgers selected as the official burgers of the California Avocado Festival, and those people know good guacamole when they taste it!'. Already hailed as 'Best Burger 2007' by Best of Citysearch, the Guacamole Bacon Burgers will be feted as the official burgers during the 2008 California Avocado Festival. One of the largest street festivals in California, the Avocado Festival takes place in Carpinteria,CA, home to Carls Jr. corporate headquarters. 'We are proud to name the Carls Jr. Guacamole Bacon Burgers the official burgers of the California Avocado Festival. We are especially excited to celebrate it from right here in Carpinteria,' said Gary Dobbins, president of the California Avocado Festival. 'We are the third largest avocado producing region in North America and the festival is a great place to celebrate and sample the fruits of our labor.' The 22nd Annual California Avocado Festival kicks off October 3 and is a free three-day celebration of avocados in downtown Carpinteria. The event includes 30 food booths, 40 musical and entertainment acts on three stages and more than 70 arts and crafts vendors. The event even includes a guacamole competition. For more information, visit www.avofest.com. The Guacamole Bacon Six Dollar Burger features a charbroiled 100 percent Black Angus beef patty topped with guacamole, two strips of bacon, two slices of pepper-Jack cheese, Santa Fe sauce, red onions, tomato and lettuce on a seeded bun. Carls Jr. will also now offer a single Guacamole Bacon Burger as well as a double Guacamole Bacon Burger version. Price for the Guacamole Bacon Six Dollar Burger is $4.99 a la carte, $3.29 for a single, and $4.29 for the double. Prices may vary. About Carls Jr: Carls Jr. is celebrating more than 65 years in the quick-service industry. What began as a lone hot dog cart in Los Angeles , Calif. in 1941 is today an international organization that employs nearly 30,000 people worldwide. Carls Jr. is a wholly owned subsidiary of CKE Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE: CKR) of Carpinteria , Calif. As of the second fiscal quarter ended September 8, 2008, CKE Restaurants, Inc., through its subsidiaries, had a total of 3,100 franchised or company-operated restaurants in 42 states and in 14 countries, including 1,170 Carls Jr. restaurants and 1,917 Hardees restaurants. For more information, or to find a Carls Jr. near you, go to www.ckr.com or www.carlsjr.com. CLICK BELOW TO VISIT: 2008 California Avocado Festival