Black Duck Cafe

Westport, CT
yelp.com

The Order:  Marty's Wisconsin (Stuffed) Cheddar Burger, medium rare.  Sharp cheddar cheese with sauteed onions, lettuce and tomato (all toppings are free)
Side Order:  Comes with fries or onion rings, and slaw.  I got onion rings.
$10
Drink Order:  Beaver Brewnette
Burger Menu Rating:  6.5/15




Tucked away along the water in Westport, Black Duck Cafe is an establishment that's been around for quite some time.  In a boat.  Down by the river.  I know, I'm sure everyone has said that before.  The boat was built some time in the 1840s and was used as an Ice Barge up and down the east coast.  The boat and its crew would travel up to Maine or New Hampshire and load up with ice, then make its way down the coast selling it all off.  Later on, it was stored in various places, and finally, after a stint in New Jersey, in 1961, a Westport/Saugatuck family bought the ship, used their tow trucks (the family business) to haul the barge on shore and convert it into a restaurant.  Black Duck Cafe has been open since April of 1978 and is coming up on their 35th anniversary (between 1961 and 1978 the barge was used for a handful of other bar/restaurants), but Black Duck, while being a restaurant, is more of a pub.  It features a 40-foot long bar over which you can look out onto the river.

Being a pub, they have the usual pub fare.  Chicken wings, fries, burgers, etc. all abound on this menu.  But what stands out are the "The Duck's now famous Stuffed Burgers" of which there are four.  What does this mean?  It means the cheese on each of these burgers is stuffed into the meat when they make form the patties.  Setting off any alarms?  Usually this overworks the meat right?  Well, Black Duck manages to avoid this somehow.


The stuffed burger's cheese oozing out!

The burger comes with a decent medium grind, and nice thick oozy bits of cheese.  It, unfortunately, was cooked a bit over medium rare, but it had a good char and a good meat taste.  While this could be an excellent burger, the overall theme for this meal was blandness.  The tomatoes were Beefsteak which weren't all that sweet, or tomatoey, or anything really.  The same goes for the bun, which was a bit dry, absorbent, but lacking in flavor.  I was able to try the fries and they were a great thick cut, but again, bland.  The onion rings were pretty tasty actually.  They were soft, and easy to bite through, but on the whole they were way too oily.  They were so oily it felt immediately as if I was sweating out oil.  So, you know, very oily.


Oily onions lurking in the background.

Perhaps it was the specific burger I ordered, or just that day, but it just didn't do it for me, especially for $10, which is the "Big" size.  It also comes in "Bigger" for $12, which I don't think would really be worth it.  There is a decent amount of food on your plate, and the ability to customize your burger for free is definitely a plus, but I don't think I'd order this burger again.  I've got a soft spot when it comes to stuffed burgers because my aunt has been making excellent stuffed burgers for years, so I might be inclined to try this place again.  Perhaps the Jodi's Pepperjack Burger, or the Doctor Proctor's Bleu Cheese Burger.




 Cooked Correctly:  3.5/5
Design:  Build Your Own+Beefstake Tomatoes 1/4
Plating:  1/3
Value:  1/3

Darien Social

Darien, CT
www.dariensocialct.com



The Order: Social Burger, medium rare. With slow cooked onion, black pepper truffle mayo. (Add bacon or cheese for $1.50 - local blue cheese, shelburne aged cheddar, cloud nine camembert, fresh mozzarella, or gruyere)
Side Order: Comes with fries
$12
Drink Order: Water
Burger Menu Rating: 10/15




Located in the heart of downtown Darien, CT, Darien Social is an American gastropub which serves upscale comfort food.  They do their best to source all of their ingredients locally, and have built a restaurant that exudes a nostalgia for the early part of the 20th century.  While their attention to the detail of the decor is admirable, their burger was merely an average artisan burger, despite the way the burger and toppings were put together.

A Social Burger.

One thing that was nice about this burger is that I got what they said was going to be on the burger.  Notice that in the pictures there aren't other toppings.  No lettuce, no tomato.  When you order this, you know that you are going to get a bun, a burger patty, onions and mayo.  That's what I mean about this burger being an average artisan burger.  They was definitely thought about the ingredients, and what should go onto and into this burger.


Slightly over medium rare.

Cutting into the burger, it had a nice pink center, but as you can see above, it isn't quite medium rare.  Check out this graphic which details how STEAKS look when cooked to various temperatures.  It's a good reference for when you're cooking burgers.  Granted, burgers, depending on where you go, should be cooked more thoroughly, at trusted establishments, a true medium rare is perfectly safe.  Or, you live on the edge like me, and will settle for nothing less.

There was a nice crunch to the bun of this burger.  The inside was grilled, but not charred, and the rest was soft: perfect for absorbing the juices of the burger.  The bun, however, was really oily for whatever reason, which definitely detracted from the overall taste of the burger.

The fries were a great texture, and perfectly seasoned.

The fries were fantastic.  They weren't over-cooked, some were thin and crunchy, and others were thicker and soft.  And I didn't need the ketchup they provided at all.  At the end of the meal, you get a free small Granita which is perfect for cleansing your palate after a meal.  Delicious.

Baby cousin Aiden loves burgers too.  Good man.

I'd definitely come here again.  It's a fairly good burger for the price, and the beer list is a plus, though on the expensive side.  I'd actually really like to do a side by side comparison between The Social Burger and the Goose Burger, both of which are in downtown Darien, CT.




Cooked Correctly: 4/5
Plating: 2/3
Design/Ingredients: 2/4
Value: 2/3

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.