BareBurger

Manhattan, NY
www.bareburger.com



The Order: Pesto Red Pepper Burger with Beef, medium rare. Creamy Havarti, roasted red peppers, baby spinach and BareBurger pesto mayo.
Side Order: Onion Rings + Fries Combo ($4.5), Curry Ketchup dipping sauce ($.40)
$9.95 + $4.5 + $.40 = $14.85
Drink Order: Founders IPA, Raspberry Vanilla Shake



Despite the friendly waitstaff, the pleasant company, and the laid-back atmosphere, this was an intimidating place in which to order. This may have been due to having been really hungry by the time I arrived at BareBurger. So after thinking that I had it all together to order, all of a sudden there are all these other options that I didn't realize were available. Type of bread, side, sauce, etc. When I finally ordered, the service was extremely fast.

The place wasn't packed but it was surprising just how fast the food came. The first few bites of the burger were average. But then I started tasting all the seasoning. HOLY CRAP is this burger good. Cooked perfectly, delicious, juicy, I can't say enough about this burger. It was gone in a second, before I realized I hadn't taken a picture. Left with a pile of onion rings and fries, I dug in. The fries were definitely better than the onion rings, and definitely better value (you get a lot more fries for your money). They don't need any sauce, but you should really order one or two sauces to try, as they are excellent.

The dipping sauces cost extra but are AMAZING. Curry Ketchup and the BareBurger Special Sauce (they gave this one to us for free). Both were entirely worth it, interesting, and really different from any other sauces I'd had before.

I ordered a milkshake for after because, well why not. A decent selection of flavors, though they were out of blackberry. Really quite good, and not too overwhelming with the raspberry flavor.

BareBurger has a decent beer selection too. Their draught craft beer selection is available in pints, 25oz and 60oz, and they carry a lot of seasonal beers, though our waiter didn't seem all that knowledgeable about the beers they had.

This place is well worth the visit. I'll definitely be going again.

The Dram Shop

Brooklyn, NY
dramshopbrooklyn.com



The Order: Hamburger with handcut fries. 2 100% ground grass-fed chuck squares, shredded lettuce, tomato, diced onion, pickle, mayo, and mustard, american cheese ($1), and yummy bacon ($1)
Side Order: Comes with handcut fries, garlic aioli dip ($1)
$11 + $1 + $1 = $13 + $1 (sauce) = $14
Drink Order: Kelso Nut Brown and Smuttynose IPA



Dear readers, I apologize for the lateness of this burger review. It is not for me to hold back from you the delicious delicacies that are out there. I have been stricken by the flu, and while I know this is not an excuse, my avid bovine consumers, I nonetheless needed to postpone. After working until very late, and not getting back to my house until 4:30, and then waking up at 2pm, I was groggy and sickly all day, finally getting back into bed at 10pm. Upon realizing today that while in the influenza infirmary I had completely bypassed yesterday's post, I rushed to the computer to deliver unto you the review of the week as follows.

The two patties of this burger are thin, making it impossible to order it any other way than well done. Adding the cheese and bacon didn't really do anything for the burger (the waitress' suggestion), and though the burger comes with mustard, you don't really taste it unless you actually look for it. We ordered two of the dipping sauces and after trying them I wished that they had just forgone the mayo and mustard on the burger and instead made the bold choice to put on any one of their delicious sauces.

The sauces really over powered the fries, which were nothing to speak of apart from the fact that they were remarkably uniform in thickness, all nice meaty fries but with basically no seasoning, or taste, to speak of.

A solid burger, but not worth $13.

All American Drive-In

Massapequa, NY
allamericanhamburger.us



The Order: Double Double
Side Order: Large Fries ($1 extra)
$2.40 + $1 = $3.40
Drink Order: Dr. Pepper and Black & White Milkshake



This is by no means a gourmet burger but nostalgia for old time drive-ins and the allure of the burger brought me and fellow burger enthusiast, Alexis, here. If you like White Castle, this burger is for you. The taste is almost exactly the same but in larger form. Two thin patties, pickles, ketchup and cheese somehow combine to make this burger sweet and salty and almost seem steamed. And for the price, it's worth it. Notice that the above picture in no way looks appetizing? This picture is actually fairly accurate in how it looks, shoved into a bag and a bit smooshed. They aren't going for presentation here.

The fries were good, just plain thicker machine cut fries. They were lightly salted but the 'large' is not as big as it could, or should, be. Again the price isn't bad, but compared to other establishments' large-size fries there were not as many as there could have been.

Their shakes were also fairly cheap and pretty good. I couldn't see if it was made with real ice cream or with soft serve (they took it behind some other array of machines) but it was a pretty thick shake and worth the couple dollars.

The Pony Bar

Manhattan, NY
www.theponybar.com



The Order: Sirloin Burger, medium rare. Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato, and an onion roll.
Side Order: Comes with Adirondack Bill's pickles and hand-cut chips
$9
Drink Order: Sixpoint Belgian IPA, Sixpoint Cask-condition Bengali Tiger IPA



First off, the beer selection is awesome at this place. The night I went it just so happened to be a brewery night. So! Instead of having 20 or so American microbrews on tap, all of the taps had a different beer from Sixpoint Brewery. And all the beers are always only $5. Amazing. But I digress, this is about the burger.

At first, the burger was a little disappointing, having been talked up a bit, but don't let that stop you from coming here. I found that if I ate around the edges first, saving the middle for last, this burger ended up being well worth it. The juicy center I discovered was fantastic, the amount of flavor you get there is well worth the price of the burger. The onion roll, the taste of the meat and the seasoning all came together in this, the juciest part of the burger.

The pickles are amazingly spiced with horseradish. The next time I went to this bar, I wasn't that hungry and just ordered a basket of pickles to snack on. They are best when they get to the bottom of the barrel, and you can tell because of how much spicier they are, than usual. The chips are plain and simple: lightly salted and don't overwhelm you, making the focus of your meal the burger. As it should be.

It wasn't too long of a wait for my food and apparently the place clears out at around 9:30 or so on the week days but is generally still open until about 4am. The owner is here almost every night and the barstaff are really friendly. And a really diverse crowd hangs out here (I met a brewer from Sixpoint the 2nd night I went here).

Don't forget to ask for a card to begin logging and rating what beers you've had. When you get to 100, you get a shirt. When you get to 420, you get a sweatshirt.

Hourglass Tavern

Manhattan, NY
www.hourglasstavern.com



The Order: Angus Sliders, comes with 3 cheese blend, sweet pickles and ketchup on the side
Side Order: None
$13.75
Drink Order: Speakeasy Big Daddy IPA


If you're looking for a good slider, this is the place to come. The flavor of the meat wasn't cooked away at all, which is really easy to do with such a small portion of meat, and the three cheese blend was a satisfying compliment: slightly salty but sweet and melty.

The first slider, however, was excellent compared to the other three. A few bites of the slider had hints of pepper which were completely unexpected and amazing. If only the other three had the same splashes of taste.

The bread looked like it was going to be heavy, but instead I found the buns to be light and airy, and warmed just enough as to not be toasted.

3 Sheets Saloon

Manhattan, NY
www.nycbestbar.com/3SheetsSaloon



The Order: McDowell's Burger, medium rare. American cheese, sauteed onions and smashed tots.
Side Order: Comes with fries
$11.95
Drink Order: Lion Brewery Lionshead



Sorry this post is a few days late! With Thanksgiving festivities well under way by Wednesday, I'd totally forgotten to post in a timely manner. Suffice it to say it will never happen again. Also, sorry this is a bad picture. They will get better I swear.

This burger was surprisingly sweet. The tots added a lot of texture, making each bite really worth it, and the taste of the meat came through, combining well with the tots and the cheese. There is no need for adding sauce to this burger. The beef was a nice 1/2" think patty, the taste of which really shone, but it seemed a little more than medium rare. Pay la Frieda ground beef? Sure, it was delicious. The potato roll the burger was served on added to the overall sweetness provided by the onions and cheese.

The fries were nothing to speak of really, except that they were cut into the shape of pickle slices. +1 for creativity. -1 for interesting taste.

The Goose

Darien, CT
www.thegoosedarien.com



The Order: The Goose Burger, medium rare. Thick cut smoked bacon, blue cheese, horseradish cream & crispy onions.
Side Order: Sweet potato fries ($1 extra) w/ gorgonzola sauce.
$13 + $1 = $14
Drink Order: Delirium Tremens


This burger was EXCELLENT! Hands down the best burger I've had in the three months I've been living in NY and it wasn't even in NY, its up in Darien, CT. I ordered the burger medium rare and it came out perfectly cooked. Make sure that all the onions and bacon are on the burger before you close it up. Also, RESIST the urge to add any sauce to this burger. You won't need it. The taste of the soft blue cheese, bacon and crispy onions will be heaven.

The fries were delicious: an even spread of extra crispy and softer fries. But be sure to order the gorgonzola sauce (no charge) on the side. What really makes these fries shine is the sauce. Its a perfect flavor combination that you have to try in order to believe.

The staff here are polite, friendly and knowledgeable about their beers, though the draught selection leaves a little to be desired, especially as they were out of one of the only craft-brew selections on the menu.

I highly recommend making the trip up to Darien for this burger. You won't be disappointed.

The Ginger Man

South Norwalk, CT
www.gingermannorwalk.com

The Order: Three Way Sliders w/ caramelized onion and cheddar; chili and cheese; bacon and blue cheese
Side Order: Sweet Potato Fries ($4 extra)
$11 + $4 = $15
Drink Order: Great Divide Titan IPA


The sliders were good, but really small and they all had a persistent smoky taste. Unfortunately, the sliders are best dipped in ketchup, which pairs wonderfully with the smoke you'll be tasting with every bite.

The thick cut sweet potato fries were slightly burned but that did not distract from how tasty they were. What was strange, though, was the fact that the same smoky taste permeated each bite of the fries as well. The difference was that it was a better taste for the fries than for the sliders.

The menu here is enough to bring you back. They have an excellent, if slightly intimidating beer selection and the rest of the menu sounds delicious (Stout Burger?!). The staff are knowledgeable about their beers as well as the food on their menu, and they are very friendly, easily sliding into casual conversation about their beers, and eager to help with a sampling of their draught beers.

Some readers have made it clear that they would appreciate photos of the delicious burgers that I have eaten to accompany each post. Unfortunately, the first few posts will not have a picture with them because they have already been consumed. However, in a few weeks, you will all start seeing pictures of savory and mouth-watering burgers. Get excited.

Flatbush Farm

Brooklyn, NY
www.flatbushfarm.com

The Order: Farm Burger (brunch only), medium rare. Add cheddar. Add bacon.
Side Order: Comes with regular fries.
Price: $16
Drink Order: Sixpoint "Brownstone"


The price of this burger gives you more hope than its worth. While a decent burger, it was nothing special, and definitely not worth paying $16 for. A dollar for each addition is fine, but this burger lacked any real taste, even after adding cheddar and bacon. It just needed something more. Some kind of sauce, or aioli. Adding ketchup made the burger just another regular burger.

The fries were great; sprinkled with sea salt, and thick cut. Plain and simple fries are always a good choice.