Fast food’s cutest redhead is wooing the burger business’s West Coast bad boy, as a new report says the parent company of Wendy’s is cooking up a last-minute bid to buy Carl’s Jr. owners CKE.

Last month, CKE, who own Hardee’s in addition to Carl’s Jr., already reached a $928 million sale agreement with a private equity firm, but according to a story in the New York Post, Trian Fund Management, which already owns the Wendy’s/Arby’s Group, is thinking about making an offer twice that size. They have until April 6 to show their cards.

The story says some insiders are worried that the more family friendly Wendy’s customers might not be happy with the acquisition of a brand like Carl’s Jr., well known for its saucy and occasionally sexy ads featuring semi-celebrities like Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian.

“It might be offensive to some of Wendy’s customers to combine the brands,” the story quotes a source as saying.

As for the reasoning behind a potential acquisition, the source explains that the allure of a company like Carl’s Jr. is its lower operating costs and higher profit margins.

Do you think a merger between these greasepit gods would be made in heaven? Or would it just be hamburger hell?

Where’s the Beef? [NY Post]

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