Walker's Bar

Manhattan, NY
www.walkersnyc.com



The Order:  8oz sirloin burger, medium rare on a sesame seed roll.  Add swiss ($1.25), add mushroom ($1.25), add bacon ($1.25), add sauteed onions ($1.25)
Side Order:  comes with fries
$10.75 + $1.25 + $1.25 + $1.25 + $1.25 = $15.75
Drink Order:  Lagunitas IPA
Burger Menu Rating:  7.5/15




First, I must apologize!  I totally dropped the ball on posting this on time.  Now it's almost a week later, but I'm determined to get this post in before Wednesday's next post.  And I especially failed, because this was my first invited review, although hilariously there was some miscommunication, and they didn't actually know I was coming (oh well).  But still, you have to hand it to a restaurant that invites a review.  That takes balls.  I like balls.

Walker's has been around for about 26 years, in a space that has been a restaurant or pub since the 1880s.  It's a spot all the locals know about, and is praised for being an unpretentious mainstay of Tribeca.  Upon entering, you walk into a spacious bar and seating area with high ceilings, and brick walls, and this looks like all the place has to offer, but it turns out there are two dining rooms nestled in the back behind the bar.  The staff greets you as you enter, and they're generally friendly and helpful amidst the bustle of the lunch hour.

 
The build your own burger menu.

I checked out the menu, and there was only one burger on the menu.  What I hadn't known, before I went in to write the review, was that this is basically a design-your-own-burger.  I immediately asked my server what her recommendation was, and she came out swinging.  Swiss, mushrooms, bacon and sauteed onions.  Okay server lady.

After a short wait (the place wasn't quite busy yet), the burger arrived, piled high with toppings and fries.  Word must have spread around all the waitstaff because when the burger was brought out, there was a lot of cooing over the burger, telling it how nice it looked, while simultaneously looking, and winking, at me.  Seeing other patron's burger brought out, however, made it clear that the cooing was done for me, but the burger was prepared the same as all the others:  a hand-formed patty, piled high with toppings of your choice, and a healthy portion of fries.

 
An uneven patty formation leads to uneven cooking.

This burger had a good medium rare, in the parts where it was medium rare.  The patty itself was a bit lopsided, which explains the uneven cooking, and it was dryer than a lot of the burgers I've had recently, which is probably because of their use of sirloin, as opposed to chuck, or other less lean cuts of beef.  Still, they managed a good sear on the burger.  The problem was that the meat wasn't very well seasoned, and there wasn't very much actual meat taste on this burger.  With the uneven cooking skewing from well done to medium rare, and the grind on the finer side, this burger began with quite a few problems.

 
Close up of the bacon.  Soft, and without very much taste.

The massive amount of toppings on the burger was the standout here.  There was no way to keep it all piled on the burger.  No matter how much I tried, it all just kept gooping out all over the place.  The onions were perfectly cooked, the Swiss was amazingly melty and the mushrooms were cooked JUST enough so they were soft with a good mouthfeel, and added a fine earthy flavor to the burger.  The bacon, however, was a bit of a let down.  I don't mind soft bacon on my burger, but these bacons only had a little bit of flavor to add to the burger.  When the bacon can only add a little in terms of texture and taste, it's time to skip the bacon.

In a time when Brioche dominates the burger bun scene, a classic sesame seed roll is nice to see.  It brings the eater back to backyard BBQs, reminding us that we too can make burgers delicious, and that the everyday Joe need only have the makings of a burger (a bun and a patty) to make a burger.  The bun was well suited to this particular burger, and held up well, absorbing the small amount of juice coming out of the patty.  It was nicely toasted on the inside, but not charred to a crisp.

As I mentioned before, there was a healthy portion of fries as a side to this burger.  I couldn't come close to finishing them.  They were a good medium cut, skin-on, and nicely cooked, but they could've used an extra shake or two, or a roll in a paper towel.  They were EXTREMELY oily, and weren't effectively seasoned.  Some fries had a decent amount of salt, but others had almost none, or had none.

When it comes down to it, and keeping in mind the detriments I pointed out about, this is still a good burger.  It falls into the category of a Pub Burger, the kind that you go out to get for your lunch break from work.  There's a ton of the toppings, there's a lot of fries, and with a beer, it's not all that bad.  Skip the bacon, save yourself $1.25, and suddenly, $14.50 isn't too bad.  Oh, and ask for extra salt on the fries.  Would I go here again?  If I'm in the area, sure.  Walker's has been around for 26 years, it's doing something right.




Cooked Correctly:  3/5
Design:  1.5/4
Plating:  2/3
Value:  1/3

Arcangelo Burger

Barcelona, Spain
www.arcangeloburger.com



The Order:  The Paradisiaco, medium rare.  Black pepper ham, four cheese sauce, lettuce, tomato, sauteed onion, cucumber and mayonnaise, on a toasted, locally-sourced, artisanal bun.
Side Order:  Does not come with a side (you can add fries for €2.50)
€8.50 (approx $11.45)
Drink Order:  Water
Burger Menu Rating:  10/15




This particular 24 hours had been quite good.  I was in Barcelona for my second day.  I'd woken up relatively late after a long night out, and had eaten a rich and delicious lunch of mussels, potatoes and tuna tartare.  I wandered through Las Ramblas and found street musicians, little free museums and houses designed by Gaudi.  I sat in the Palau de Musica Catalana and listened to Beethoven's 9th Symphony and Carmina Burana.  How could this day get better?  I was walking home, committed to have a free dinner back at the hostel, when I walk right up to a fancy burger restaurant.  What?!  A fancy burger restaurant that just happens to be along my walk back to where I'm staying?!  No I did not plan this.  I wasn't all that hungry, but hey, when in Rome... or Barcelona!

When I walked in, the place was empty - usually not a good sign, but not alarming where I've been in Europe.  Europeans don't seem to have the same fascination with burgers that we do in the US, so I shrugged off my hesitation and asked for a table for one.  There were quite a few interesting burgers on this menu, but the Paradisiaco stood out to me that night because of the four cheese sauce and the black pepper ham.


Such a pretty burger.

This burger was pretty.  When it came out it was open faced, showing off the plating, and letting the color of the ham really pop.  The patty was a bit thin, and the grind a little too coarse, but they made a really good stab at medium rare.  There was a ton of flavor with every bite, but the ham made the burger, on the whole, a bit saltier than it needed to be.  Perhaps the other reason the burger stood out to me was the use of cucumber instead of tomato.  I always love adding a cucumber to the burgers I make at home because it adds a refreshing taste and crunch to the burger that tomatoes don't always capture, and this burger was no different.  As for the rest of the toppings, the mayonnaise added a nice buttery sweetness to the overall flavor, but with the four cheese sauce, it was a bit superfluous, and the bun was nicely crunchy, not burned and not too hard.


A decent stab at medium rare.

I could have done without the lettuce, however.  It didn't add anything to the burger, and to balance out the saltiness of the ham, a green with more heft would have been more appropriate.  This burger was good, and for the price, worth it, but I wish it had come with a side.  I wasn't hungry at the time, but if I'd come for a full meal, I would have left either light in the stomach, or light in the wallet.  The fries are €2.50, and the other sides cost more.




Cooked Correctly:  4/5
Design:  2.5/4
Plating:   2/3
Value:  1.5/3

BGR - The Burger Joint

Washington, D.C.
www.bgrtheburgerjoint.com



The Order:  The Wellington, medium rare.  With "roasted mushrooms, caramelized onions, truffle oil, garlic with a touch of mustard seed and blue cheese" on a toasted brioche bun with mojo sauce.
Side Order:  The Gold Standard Fries ($2.89)
$9.29 + $2.89 = $12.18
Drink Order:  Raspberry Coke
Burger Menu Rating:  12.5/15




Recently this blog has seen a lot of burgers from around the country and the world.  Why not continue the trend with BGR - The Burger Joint in Washington D.C.  Keep in mind that many of these reviews are actually from the middle of last year.  My sojourn in Germany made posting reviews extremely difficult, so I have a large stock of reviews to keep posting.  But don't you worry.  I took copious notes for each of these reviews, so they won't be lacking in detail or accuracy.

Founded by Mark Bucher, BGR is a growing burger chain with a strong following.  A number of friends in D.C. mentioned that BGR is in their short list of burger establishments for quality burgers. They have a "large and supremely tasty patty on a delicious brioche bun," says Patrick.  "I want one every day," says my cousin Sammy who also resides in the DC area and works only a few blocks from the Dupont Circle BGR.  Their burgers have a "good beefy flavor and the burger is really big.  Also huge portions of fries," adds Kate.  I'd heard about BGR on a few trips down to D.C. and had opted for one reason or another to try other places.  The last time I went, however, my cousin Sammy was adamant that I go try their burger (she goes often).  Let me tell you, I was not let down.


The Wellington.  Decadence in burger form.

BGR, like many other burger restaurants (Oinkster, Bobby's Burger Palace, etc.) has burgers of the month on rotation.  The Wellington was apparently popular enough to garner a permanent spot on their menu, and I'm glad it did.  When the burger came out it was extremely juicy, cooked to a perfect medium rare.  The patty was coarse ground, formed with a mold, and was well salted to bring out the flavors of the meat.  This is a hefty portion of burger, and well worth it for the price.

 
A perfect medium rare, glistening with fats, and topped with caramelized
onions, mushrooms, and truffle oil.

With roasted mushrooms and caramelized onions, drizzled with truffle oil, piled high and spilling off the burger, this is a decadent burger.  The truffle oil was present in absolutely every bite, which was a fantastic surprise.  I've often found that when eating a burger made with truffle oil, the added flavor doesn't make its way through to my taste buds enough to be a bold statement.  Here, however, the truffle oil mixed with the onions and mushrooms are delicious, and a perfect foil for the understated blue cheese.

Maybe because the other flavors are so strong, the brioche bun was a bit dull.  It performed well with the burger, sopping up the juices, and it was light and airy, but it's own flavor was definitely overwhelmed by the other ingredients.

While BGR offers a decent portion of their Gold Standard fries when added to the size of the burger, they're unfortunately not up to par with their burgers.  A medium-sized cut, the fries were a bit on the well-done side and definitely under-seasoned.  They managed to not taste too oily, but compared to the rich taste of this burger, the fries needed to pack a lot more punch to hold their own.


BGR's The Burger.

On a return trip to BGR, I'd pass on the fries and opt for a shake, or another menu item.  BGR offers an array of other things including an Ahi Tuna Burger and the 9 Pounder, which is actually a 15.4 pound burger that could feed up to 15 people (maybe actually more).




Cooked Correctly:  5/5
Design:  3/4 (I had to take one off because the fries just weren't all that good)
Plating:  1.5/3
Value:  3/3