Steak is amazing, don't get me wrong. But sometimes, you just want a good greasy hamburger. Processed food is so 1990's anyway, therefore the era of fast food burgers are most definitely passe. So the question is, what to do when you want a burger, in the middle of the city? Let's review our options.
Option #1
We have already ruled out franchises ( although I've heard in and out burger is FAB- too bad there isn't any in NYC)
Option #2
We can go to a steakhouse and order a burger. The positive side of that idea would be the expectation of the quality of food would be higher, so it is assumed that the prospective steakhouse would perform to meet and hopefully exceed that expectation. Sounds pretty good huh?
Negative side- With steakhouse quality comes steakhouse prices. With this recession, everything has inflated, especially the price of food, which is sad. Also, you must be appropriately dressed to enter a steakhouse. Business casual is a little much for a burger and fries , don't you think?
Slim Pickings....
Here's a thought-
Option # 3- How about a burger joint?
They specialize in burgers, therefore anything less than good could quite possibly be failure. (that's harsh, but true =] ). It's not processed, and the atmosphere usually has a great vibe with a relaxed staff, which usually makes diners relaxed and open to have a great experience.
Folks, I think we have a winner with option 3-
A burger joint!!!
Burger joints I've been to recently have been BLT Burger by Chef Laurent Tourondel and Williamsburger.
Both cleverly named, so I think we'll start with Williamsburger. As you may have guessed, it is located in Brooklyn, which provides this burger place with it's witty name. Upon my first entrance, it is realized that if there were a burger joint that would truly captivate the essence of Williamsburg, this would be it. It is trendy, but really chill. With it's ever changing menu, the freshness of the food and the great service of the staff remains constant. The staff is attentive, but not overeager, which allowed me to enjoy my meal in peace.
People raved about the Kobe burger with Hoisin sauce. If you didn't know this before, now you do- I love almost all things kobe. I was disappointed to see that they no longer made it, so I opted for the Asian Chicken burger. It came with sides that I am not too fond of such as coleslaw. So I decided not to eat it. The chicken was very flavorful. I found the spices to not overpower the chicken patty which was very nice. I'm not a fan of ginger, but I do understand it's place in food, especially in Asian cuisine. I must say without any bias, that the ginger on the burger was quite excessive and overpowering. The french fries on the side were very tasty. They were freshly cut, and made to order. They were greasy, which complimented the Asian Chicken burger because it was a bit lean, the exception of the mayo which seemed to consist of mayonnaise, capers, and scallions. It's a great place to eat with a sizable group of friends if the weather permits it, due to the fact it features outdoor seating. If you're ever in Williamsburg, and you're craving a burger, Williamsburger is a great choice.
BLT Burger
I had high expectations for this place because it is owned by the talented Laurent Tourondel who owns may other BLT restaurants in NYC. BLT Burger has personality. It is one of the quintessential New York burger places. It wasn't opulent at all which is not expected of a burger place, but it still had character. I was greeted by a welcoming staff. Once seated, my guest ( Rebe =] ) and I were quickly attended to. I felt our server was overwhelmingly persistent with asking us if we knew what we wanted to order. She asked us 3 to 4 times in the span of 10 minutes, which is a lot. We finally ordered, where I got the lamb merguez and Rebe ordered the classic burger. The lamb merguez was like a lamb gyro, but instead of Shaved leg of lamb, it was ground lamb in a form of a patty, and a bun replaced the traditional pita bread that is usually used.
When our food came, I was excited because the scent of the food ignited my taste buds. I was also pleased because the food came in a timely manner. The food was placed in front of us, and we couldn't wait to eat. 2 minutes later, our server asked us if we enjoyed our food. It was off putting that she asked how everything was so often. We need to taste the FOOD FIRST!!! We can't eat, if we're answering questions. We finally took our fist bite, and it was good. Rebe got the classic burger, which shouldn't come as a surprise is a classic burger. ( Classic Burger: freshly made beef patty, lettuce, and tomato, )
She seemed to enjoy it.
I couldn't wait to dig into dig into my lamb merguez burger, until I bit into it. It was rare, when I asked for it to be medium rare. That was disappointing. Nevertheless, the flavor of the burger was good. It was a spin on the gyro, which made it more refined. It could have used a touch of salt just to enhance the flavor. The mint was a nice herb to add to the cucumber yogurt sauce. The fries fries on the side were delicious without. They were perfectly seasoned with not too much salt, and were crispy without being oily. My guess is that they used the double fry method.
Double Fry Method ( as seen on Guy's Big Bite on Food Network)
Place fries in the fryer until they have a baked potato consistency on the inside. Then remove the fries from the oil. By doing that, that will allow the oil to return to it's original temperature. Return the fries to the oil, and cook for 2-3 minutes longer.
This way ensures crispy fires without that greasy taste. Maybe I expected a little too much because this is after all by Laurent Tourondel. It was good though- really good. It's good enough for me to suggest it, therefore it is definitely yummy.
Burgers are such an American classic. Sometimes you want something traditional, sometimes you want something with a little twist, but when it comes to a burger, rarely can you go wrong. The day you have a really bad burger, would be the day a piece of American cuisine would die.
smile, laugh, share,
peace and love
- Trish
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Saturday, March 7, 2009
It's me again
Hello All,
I'm soooo sorry that I haven't written in such a long time. You know the turkey coma from thanksgiving, the sugar-rush from Christmas, and the Chocolate from Valentine's Day really wore me out.
This is really late, but congratulations to our President. Regardless of political views, I feel as a congratulations is in order. It's monumental event in the history of our country, and we as Americans- we as people should be very proud of the progress that we have made.
So YAY US!!!!
In other news, which is not related to food at all... let's talk about Chris Brown and Rihanna.
Everyone is talking about this fiasco, which it is. It is absolutely ridiculous. By no means should a person be hit, let alone to a point where there is blood and physical bruising. That is not okay. It was shocking to me that people were defending the actions of the attacker by saying he was given some sort of disease. Does that merit physical abuse? Because if it does, how do you determine violence against your partner just, or as actual abuse? Are there levels? If you give someone mono, it's okay, but anything else deserves beaten up to the point where they have contusions? It's ridiculous. I just want to say no one deserves to be treated like this. Everyone deserves respect. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IS NEVER OKAY! VIOLENCE IS NEVER OKAY!! ABUSE DOES NOT EQUAL LOVE.
NOW TO FOOD!!
I haven't been eating out much. This recession has affected so many of us. But I have been to a couple of places and I'll share my experiences with you. These places are mainly in Midtown South/Chelsea.
In January, I went to Cafeteria and had a cufab time. Cufab- Culinary Fabulous.
It was a hip and trendy place. It was too loud for it's own good, and too crowded. The Front of the house was more than welcoming, which says a lot. People fail to realize the responsibilities of front of the house. They are the sales people of the restaurant. There's a lot of pressure that falls upon them. It is there job to provide the best hospitality that they possibly can. It their job to invite you in to their culinary hub and their duty to make the diner feel welcome enough to stay anticipate the food that they will be consuming. The greater the hospitality, the greater the disposition to eat there is, and I feel as Cafeteria was so on point with their front of the house staff so BRAVO!! We got their and my friend ordered a mixed berry mojito, which she said was her favorite. As soon as I saw Goat Cheese, I had to have it on my burger.
I was so hyped. Goat Cheese is one of those things that you either love of you hate. There is no in between. So my burger my arrived, and I bit into it. It wasn't bad. It wasn't bad at all. But it wasn't that good. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't terrible, but I expected more because of all of the rave reviews that Cafeteria constantly receives. To me what killed it was the Goat Cheese- SHOCKER! The Goat Cheese was definitely put on with a heavy hand, like cream cheese on a deli-bagel. I also thought that a smoother goat cheese would have benefited the burger allowing the flavors to not be so distinct, and blend better.
Foodometer Scale: B-
I gave it a B- because the food is good. I expected it to be much better, though.
Cafeteria
119 7th Ave, New York 10011
(At 17th St)
Phone: (212) 414-1717
I saw my friends KTB and Carolyn today. It was great. Katie goes to school here in the city while Carolyn goes to school in Connecticut. I met KTB's friends today,and they are HI-Larious. We met at Ginger House. It's such a cool spot. It's hard to believe that this place is in Chealsea/Midtown South area. This place can totally fit in Lower East Side. It's really good. It's a Great Cheap Eats place. I had vegetarian dumplings, and vegetable egg rolls. They were delicious. I do wish the egg rolls were larger though. The food comes out fairly quickly, and everyone on the staff is willing to give you what you ask for.
Foodometer Scale: A
Ginger House deserves an A. It's a great place for Asian food. You can dine in or take-out. It really doesn't matter, because the food is that good. And in this economy, places like this are key. Good Food + Reasonable Prices= Happy Trish
Ginger House
330 7th Ave,
New York 10001
Phone: (212) 760-2661
Seven
Seven is a great American Bistro time of place.
It's a really great relatively inexpensive place in Midtown. Grilled Roasted Chicken with potatoes is what I ordered. It was so good. The natural jus was just perfect. Sometimes you get it, and it's really salty, but not here. Everyone was super attentive and I had a great dining experience. The ambiance was perfect for almost any occasion. It was versatile, which was good.
Foodometer: A
I gave it an A because it gets hard to find good restaurants in Midtown. Some of them are super gimmicky, so they don't have to pay attention to the food, while others are places that tourist go because it is the place to go. It gets difficult to find a great dining experience that encompasses great company with the surrounding diners and great food in Midtown.
I'm soooo sorry that I haven't written in such a long time. You know the turkey coma from thanksgiving, the sugar-rush from Christmas, and the Chocolate from Valentine's Day really wore me out.
This is really late, but congratulations to our President. Regardless of political views, I feel as a congratulations is in order. It's monumental event in the history of our country, and we as Americans- we as people should be very proud of the progress that we have made.
So YAY US!!!!
In other news, which is not related to food at all... let's talk about Chris Brown and Rihanna.
Everyone is talking about this fiasco, which it is. It is absolutely ridiculous. By no means should a person be hit, let alone to a point where there is blood and physical bruising. That is not okay. It was shocking to me that people were defending the actions of the attacker by saying he was given some sort of disease. Does that merit physical abuse? Because if it does, how do you determine violence against your partner just, or as actual abuse? Are there levels? If you give someone mono, it's okay, but anything else deserves beaten up to the point where they have contusions? It's ridiculous. I just want to say no one deserves to be treated like this. Everyone deserves respect. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IS NEVER OKAY! VIOLENCE IS NEVER OKAY!! ABUSE DOES NOT EQUAL LOVE.
NOW TO FOOD!!
I haven't been eating out much. This recession has affected so many of us. But I have been to a couple of places and I'll share my experiences with you. These places are mainly in Midtown South/Chelsea.
In January, I went to Cafeteria and had a cufab time. Cufab- Culinary Fabulous.
It was a hip and trendy place. It was too loud for it's own good, and too crowded. The Front of the house was more than welcoming, which says a lot. People fail to realize the responsibilities of front of the house. They are the sales people of the restaurant. There's a lot of pressure that falls upon them. It is there job to provide the best hospitality that they possibly can. It their job to invite you in to their culinary hub and their duty to make the diner feel welcome enough to stay anticipate the food that they will be consuming. The greater the hospitality, the greater the disposition to eat there is, and I feel as Cafeteria was so on point with their front of the house staff so BRAVO!! We got their and my friend ordered a mixed berry mojito, which she said was her favorite. As soon as I saw Goat Cheese, I had to have it on my burger.
I was so hyped. Goat Cheese is one of those things that you either love of you hate. There is no in between. So my burger my arrived, and I bit into it. It wasn't bad. It wasn't bad at all. But it wasn't that good. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't terrible, but I expected more because of all of the rave reviews that Cafeteria constantly receives. To me what killed it was the Goat Cheese- SHOCKER! The Goat Cheese was definitely put on with a heavy hand, like cream cheese on a deli-bagel. I also thought that a smoother goat cheese would have benefited the burger allowing the flavors to not be so distinct, and blend better.
Foodometer Scale: B-
I gave it a B- because the food is good. I expected it to be much better, though.
Cafeteria
119 7th Ave, New York 10011
(At 17th St)
Phone: (212) 414-1717
I saw my friends KTB and Carolyn today. It was great. Katie goes to school here in the city while Carolyn goes to school in Connecticut. I met KTB's friends today,and they are HI-Larious. We met at Ginger House. It's such a cool spot. It's hard to believe that this place is in Chealsea/Midtown South area. This place can totally fit in Lower East Side. It's really good. It's a Great Cheap Eats place. I had vegetarian dumplings, and vegetable egg rolls. They were delicious. I do wish the egg rolls were larger though. The food comes out fairly quickly, and everyone on the staff is willing to give you what you ask for.
Foodometer Scale: A
Ginger House deserves an A. It's a great place for Asian food. You can dine in or take-out. It really doesn't matter, because the food is that good. And in this economy, places like this are key. Good Food + Reasonable Prices= Happy Trish
Ginger House
330 7th Ave,
New York 10001
Phone: (212) 760-2661
Seven
Seven is a great American Bistro time of place.
It's a really great relatively inexpensive place in Midtown. Grilled Roasted Chicken with potatoes is what I ordered. It was so good. The natural jus was just perfect. Sometimes you get it, and it's really salty, but not here. Everyone was super attentive and I had a great dining experience. The ambiance was perfect for almost any occasion. It was versatile, which was good.
Foodometer: A
I gave it an A because it gets hard to find good restaurants in Midtown. Some of them are super gimmicky, so they don't have to pay attention to the food, while others are places that tourist go because it is the place to go. It gets difficult to find a great dining experience that encompasses great company with the surrounding diners and great food in Midtown.
Seven
350 7th Ave,
New York 10001
Phone: (212) 967-1919
Hopefully, I will be writing more soon.
I will be putting up some recipes in the near future, that I think you will love.
Peace, Love and always Good Food,
Trish
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