50 Burger Challenge

brownie/Old Mill Brewing/Littleton, CO/burger #23

Monster Burger - onion rings, mozzarella sticks, BBQ sauce, bacon, and jack cheese. And a pickle to get the veggies in.

pjtravels - Hut's Hamburgers - Austin, TX - burger #27

5/10. Alley oop Burger. I remember when I used to love my trips to Hut's. I don't know whether this is the downfall or a great or if my taste buds have been enlightened since then. The toasted bread was dry, the patty was uninspired, and even though I was starving post-ride, the pickle looked too gross to eat.

brownie/Platte River Half/Denver/burger #22

Post race cookout.

Biliruben - The Goodnight - ATX - #21

7 / 10

Name: Texas Wagyu Burger
Toppings: LTOC(c)E
Patty: 1/3 med
Taste: patty has a nice marinade flavor and the ingredients come together nicely. Points off for losing structural integrity and falling apart.

Beebs - citizens burger bar - Charlottesville VA - #14

7/10
Pimiento cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato.
Not bad, but a little too lean for my tastes.

nutsandboltons - Meat Market - London SH#20

Playing on the innuendo of a meat market as a singles' bar, the playful atmosphere at the Meat Market in Covent Garden won me over the first time I went there. It's in a loft overlooking the Jubilee (flea) Market, and the rafters are hung with irreverent fake personal ads and suggestive signage. It's a much more laid-back experience than its sister restaurant to the North and West, Meat Liquor (see my 2nd update for details). I usuallly get the Dead Hippie, but this last time I had a Black Palace burger, which trades the dead hippie sauce and minced onion for grilled onions. Excellent, excellent, excellent burger all around. It's a little bit messy, but worth the indulgence. Order the beige milkshake (bourbon + maple syrup) and take some friends to split the chilli cheese fries. They're a little unusual, but very tasty. Also, this is the first place I've found in London with decent jalapeno poppers.

10/10

nutsandboltons - Northfield Kitchen - London - SH#19

Borough market again. I can't stay away from that place - so many great food options. These guys had a lamb & mint burger that was awesome. I made a note at the time that it was a 7/10, but didn't elaborate, so this'll have to remain one of the great mysteries of the universe. At least until you try one for yourself.

More on Borough Market here (and elsewhere further back in the archive):
http://nutsandboltons.com/food/node/21

nutsandboltons - Crosse Keys - London - SH#18 - addendum

Might be worth attaching the photo.

nutsandboltons - Crosse Keys - London - SH#18

Surpisingly good for a pub burger, although they made the BBQ sauce with Jim Beam Honey, which I don't really enjoy. Onion rings were good and the burger had a solid feel and good flavor. The chips were chips, nothing special. They have almost 30 rotating taps featuring British microbrews, which is more variety than I've seen in one place since moving over here.

7/10

nutsandboltons - Chez Nutsandboltons - London - SH#17

Had some friends in town for work recently, and we decided we'd go through Borough Market and pick up some burger patties to bring home and grill up. I'd intended to treat them to something exotic at Gamston Wood Farm (see my update SH#12), but it was closed on the particular Thursday we went. Instead, we got rabbit burgers at one of the butcher stalls (haven't been able to figure out the name - it's next to the paella and curry stand, for those who've been there). ZOMG these worked out. Rabbit's a lean meat, so they have to cut it with something fattier. I didn't ask what, but I'm assuming beef. At any rate, these got the most amazing golden-brown char on them in the countertop griddle/sandwich press. It was sweet and salty to the point the burgers almost didn't need the bacon we put on them. The meat itself had a good chunky grind with a relatively loose pack, but still held together well. Served with lettuce, onion, tomato, white
cheddar, and bacon on a toasted bun, with a side of home-made thick-cut fried potatoes. I dressed mine with ketchup, mayo and HP brown sauce. Round out the meal with an Innis & Gun Rum Finish ale, and I give this one a 10/10.

I may be biased, though.

nutsandboltons - Philomena's - London - SH#16

Philomena's is a pub near where I used to work, just east of Covent Garden. They have the most amazing sunday pork roast w/yorkshire pudding, gravy, carrots, and parsnips. But this isn't the 50 pork roasts challenge. This challenge is for burgers, son! So I tried their mexican burger. Burger itself was good. Solid flavor, proper grind and pack. Fries were good, but nothing special. The salsa they served on the side was weak sauce, though. Too sweet & not enough chunk or kick. They have a monday burger special that's a pretty good value. Beer selection is pretty good and the wait staff are friendlier than I've come to expect at British pubs.

6/10

Seriously, though. Go there for the roast pork.

Slow Ride - Meli Greek Cafe - Oxford - kebab #16

9/10...I scored it down for not being shoarma or doner, and more for not even being lamb; instead it was succulent chunks of beef with an addictive tsasiki sauce. Review here. [Yeah, that's a porn shop across the street...you don't tend to get decent, or any, kebabs in good locations.]

Peter Pepper, Austin Java Co., Austin, Burger #18

This patty had 90 degree edges. It was named "Gouda Meetcha" which is a dumb name and this burger was almost as dumb. 6/10

OMG CAKE - EZ's on Lamar - Austin - #13

EZ's 4/10

Class bacon & Cheddar Burger

+: it was grilled.. which is nice

-: no flavor. bacon didn't even have flavor... a bit dry..

Maybe I needed a milk shake to eat this?

megabootay - 24 Diner - Austin, TX - #14

While eating: 9/10; After eating: 1/10
Bacon Gorgonzola
Premium Gold Angus on a pain au lait bun with bacon, Gorgonzola, carmelized onions, aioli
This burger tasted amazing. The meat was delicious and cooked to perfection. The flavors of the Gorgonzola and carmelized onions were fantastic. The bread was mouth watering.
But let us fast forward to one hour after ingesting this meal...I got sick. Like my head hanging over the toilet kind of sick. Although delicious, this burger was just too much for my stomach (too rich? too full?). So yea, Gorgonzola on the way up is no where near as good. In fact, it might be the last thing I'd choose to vomit.

megabootay - Hut's Hamburgers - Austin, TX - #13

7/10
#8 - Arnold's Best
Longhorn grass-fed beef with guac, lettuce, bacon, and jack cheese on a whole wheat bun.
I love Hut's...normally. In hindsight, I should've ordered differently. Guacamole is not Hut's specialty. It made everything soggy and messy and took away from it's goodness. Seriously, I make better guac. But I do love their fries and onion rings. So, that made up for my ordering fail.

megabootay - Wholly Cow - Austin, TX - #12

7/10
Pure Single w/ Cheddar Cheese
Dressed w/ Fresh Lettuce, Tomato, Onions, Mustard, & Ketchup on King's Hawaiian Sweet Roll
This was, by far, the freshest burger I've had during the challenge. The meat, the dressings, the roll. Everything was fresh. But, I found the meat lacking a little somethin-somethin by way of flavoring and the tomato and lettuce were so cold it almost made the burger cold. Now, the sweet potato fries were heavenly. Best I think I've ever had.

Peter Pepper, Peso and Bucks, Austin, Burger #17

Been waiting for this joint to open forever so I can watch it fail. We ate here on their soft opening yet they made running a restaurant look so hard. This burger wasn't anything special, though redeeming in that it wasn't overcooked. 5 of 10.

Wiley - Pesos and Bucks - Austin, Tx - #13

Took a month off, only to return by eating the shitty burger at a terrible new restaurant in town. Read yelp reviews before you dare venture over.
And lighting on the patio is so bad, this is what the burger looks like.
4/10

Rayzor - Marakesh Cafe & Grill - austin, tx - burger #14

Moroccan Burger lunch special. Essentially kafta in patty form on focaccia bun, fully dressed. Every ingredient was ok, but they just didn't work together as a good burger. Fries straight out of a sysco bag. 4/10.

JP - Denver Chophouse DIA - Denver - #16

Burger: Stout BBQ Bacon. Bad expensive airport burger!

Beer: Denver Chophouse Pale Ale. Even worse!

The only redeeming fact is Boulder Beer now has a tap house at DIA and I got to have a decent IPA before I ate.

Beebs-carnival cruise lines-somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean - #13

8/10
Regular good ol' american cheeseburger.

Digger/Lefty's/Qualicum Beach B.C./Burger #10

There is a burger here,hidden behind the home fries. And a really good burger as well.Deduct 1 point for serving me a salad, another for nothaving a deep fryer. Can you believe it? No deepfryer.

JohnF - Five Guys - Austin, Tx - #13

6/10

brownie/Cactus Jack's/Evergreen, CO/burger #21

All their burgers are named after Widespread Panic songs! This gives them an eleven point bonus on a scale that only goes to ten.

Timko - Cactus Jack's - Evergreen, CO - Burger #32

10/10

Burger with grilled cheese as a bun. I thought it wouldn't be handheld edible but it was. Great meat and done perfect. Best of all it was Free because Brownie is a wanker and owed me because Pitt sucks.

pjtravels - Freddie's Steakburgers - Austin, TX - burger #26

6/10. Surprisingly fresh toppings, really liked the pickles. Recommend a double. Don't forget the Oreo custard sandwich.

HaVoCLaD - Pluckers - Cedar Park, TX - #22

3/10

The Bypass Burger - bacon, cheddar, grilled onions, jalapenos, tomato and a full head of lettuce, shredded.

Asked for the burger medium and in a surprise it came mid-rare.

This burger was tiny, I'd be surprised if out was more than a quarter pound, the bun was oversized. Luckily I started reading it on the correct side, the burger ran out and I had over half the bun left.

Stick with the wings here, or the salads. They are surprisingly good.

HaVoCLaD - Texican Cafe - Cedar Park, TX - #21

5/10

Found myself in this Mexican place and not particularly feeling like Mexican so I might as well sample a burger, right?

The Mexican cheeseburger sounded interesting. The combo of jalapenos, fritos & green chili sauce tasted great but the burger was small and overcome by the toppings.

Rayzor - Dan's Hamburgers Manchaca - austin, tx - burger #13

Jalapeno cheeseburger. Nice thin griddle burger, good toasted bun, good fries. 6/10.

Timko - LePeep - Boulder, CO - Burger #31

5.5/10 - the bacon was good.

pjtravels - Dan's - Austin, TX - burger #25

6/10. Decent burger, nicely toasted bun, amazing chocolate malt.

Pev - Rockyard Brewing- Castle Rock, CO Burger#21

Beer here. 5/10

Pev - Smashburger- CSCO Burger#20

Running low on burger places near work so I'm posting Smashed burger. Fried green chilies are pretty good. Weird egg bun drops this to a 5/10

Pev - Laughing Ladies Cafe- Salida, CO Burger#19

I was forced to eat any a place called the laughing ladies. Typical brunch place women seem to like. I always hate brunch because you can't get real food. Case in point this burger came with potatoes. Bacon was good keeping it at a 5/10

Pev - The Fritz - Salida, CO Burger#18

Horrible service... Mooseburger was pretty good though. 6/10

Animoul / Oggi's / Encinitas, CA / #10

Matador: 10 / 10

Wimpy - Oggi's - Encinitas, CA - #7

Guacamole burger: 7 / 10

JimD Texas T-Bone COS CO #15

7/10 a bit greasy with grilled onions- fried green beans are very good

JimD McCabes Tavern COS CO #14

8/10. With curry sauce

Animoul / 19th Hole / NAS North Isld, CA / #9

Cheeseburger: 10 / 10

Timko - Buffs Restaurant - Boulder, CO - Burger #30

Breakfast burger. 8/10

Slow Ride - Caner's Kebab - Swindon - kebab #15

8/10

Although the doner slices are stored in a steam table, they fry it up on a hot griddle and carbonize a significant portion...delicious. Location here, and full review here.

Anthony - Opal Divine's - Austin, TX - #15

7/10 Divine burger w/ cheese.

Cheesehead - Naus - ATX - #12

Biliruben - Big'z - SATX - #20

8 / 10

Name: Daily Special
Toppings: LOTPQuesoEMu
Patty: 1/2 medium
Taste: sloppy and tasty. I would have preferred the patty being seasoned more.

JP - Merchant's - Nashville - #15

Burger: The end all, be all of burgers! So good! House made pimento cheese, bacon, egg. Awesome sweet potato fries with house made maple ketchup! You get what you pay for with this $14 burger!

Beer: Caldera IPA