minettatavernny.com
The Order: Black Label Burger, medium rare. With caramelized onions on a brioche bun, also comes with lettuce and tomato.
Side Order: Comes with fries and pickle.
$26
Drink Order: Fuller's Bengal Lancer IPA
Burger Menu Rating: 14/15
So I FINALLY went to Minetta Tavern to try their burger! I wasn't avoiding it really, and it's always been at the top of my list of places to try, but I somehow just never went. Well, with some prodding from Vanessa and Mike, we went for lunch, and let me tell you, Executive Chefs Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr have created a burger that does not disappoint in the least.
I was beyond excited. Vanessa was too I swear.
We had made our reservation for right at noon, which I highly recommend you do if you can. You feel as if you're getting special treatment without the attention feeling oppressive. When we arrived, the restaurant was empty except for the staff, so we were seated immediately, in the back near the kitchen. I love the decor in Minetta Tavern. It feels like an old mob restaurant, complete with black and white pictures of celebrities with the original owner when the restaurant opened in the 1930's.
It wasn't empty for long.
Our server was quick, knowledgeable and attentive. I wasn't skeptical about the quality of the burger, but when I specified that I wanted my burger medium rare, she went as far as to describe exactly how the chefs at Minetta cook their burger: medium rare towards rare, with a warm pink center. Perfect, and I haven't even taken a bite yet.
Medium rare towards rare, with a warm pink center.
And when that burger came out (quickly, I might add), it WAS perfect. It was cooked exactly the way the sever described it. The focus of this burger is definitely the meat, which is dry-aged custom beef blend from Pat La Frieda. It's a coarse grind, delivered every day, and minimally handled to ensure the burger retains all of it's flavors and juices. What you can't really see in the picture above is just how amazing the fat distribution in this burger is. With every bite, juices gush out of this patty, and onto your chin, your plate, and a lot of it gets mopped up by this bun, which is fantastic. It's light and airy, slightly sweet, and soft, perfect for pressing down around the patty and collecting every bit of those delicious juices.
Vanessa enjoys her second trip to Minetta Tavern.
The caramelized onions are a perfect foil for the burger. The burger is well seasoned, salty, though never too salty, and really works hand in hand with the onion's sweetness. After a while, the two tastes become one: a perfect union of two flavors that were meant to be together.
The fries here are delicious too, and apparently exactly the same as the fries at Balthazar, where Hanson and Nasr are also executive chefs. I'm not complaining. They're delicious, they don't need that much ketchup, and they're not shoe-string fries! They're a medium cut, gold in color, and impossible to stop eating.
I love the fact that this burger doesn't come with anything else. Sure there's a piece of lettuce and a tomato on the side, but does anybody put it on? Our server said no, and she'd know. According to her, approximately 85% of the orders during lunch hours are the Black Label Burger. Looking around us, she isn't wrong, though on the day we went, that number was closer to 100%. Burger after burger rolled out of the kitchen and into the waiting hands of dozens of other hungry denizens. I'll be interested in the many return trips to come. This burger has taken it's place as my favorite burger in NYC, but what will be interesting will be to see how it changes, or if it changes. Under the supervision of Hanson and Nasr, this burger has seen some updates since it was first created, and who's to say that it won't keep on changing. I will definitely be going back to try it again. And again. And again..
Cooked Correctly: 5/5
Design: 4/4
Plating: 2/3
Value: 3/3
Still super excited.
Vanessa and Mike's 2nd trip to Minetta Tavern.
The glorious Black Label Burger.
So delicious.
Burger juices. Everywhere.
