"Sliders" at the Sheraton Brooklyn (New York)

After 2 flights (about 6 hours flight time) from Vancouver, and a cab ride to downtown Brooklyn, we were rather tired, so decided to have a drink and something to eat at the hotel bar. The hotel was built mid-year 2010, so was rather new. The bar was amazing, and the bar tender very friendly (thanks Aaron!).

"Grubstake Bar" at the Sheraton Brooklyn, New York

After a few drinks at the bar, I spotted 'mini sliders' on the menu. Most burger puritans will tell you that sliders are not just mini burgers, but are burgers cooked in a certain way (often the pattie is cooked on top of a bed of onions). Regardless, I couldn't say no.

The sliders came with one meat pattie each, a slice of cheese, bacon and a slice of pickle. Basic, but great. They were quite tasty, and somewhat of a novelty for me, as I am yet to find sliders in Australia. There were 3 sliders in the pack, which came with fries. I can't recall the price, and there doesn't seem to be a menu online.

Slider - Sheraton Brooklyn, New York (screenshot from video)

Meat:
The patties were obviously small, but they were cooked well and were basic (a good thing). Due to the small size, they were cooked evenly throughout (with the crust being the exception). It's hard to praise something that takes 2-3 bites to eat, but they were good.

Score: 3/5


Cheese:
The cheese was ok. It was the standard yellow american cheese, but it seemed a bit more 'plasticy' than most. It melted ok, but seemed to stick to everything unusually. It tasted ok, but didn't differ too much from the Kraft Singles we get here.

Score: 2.5/5


Bun:
The tiny buns were ok. They seemed to be "Brioche" buns, due to the shiny top and rich flavour. They were a bit dry, and tasted average. Nothing to write home about, but they did their job.

Score: 2.5/5


Extras:
There weren't too many extras to comment on, as is normal with sliders, or mini-burgers. There was bacon, and a pickle slice. The pickles were good, tangy and crisp. The bacon was a bit soft, but had a good flavour. It would be hard to fit much more in these things, and I think they picked the right things to cram in.

Score: 3/5


Fries:
By the time I got to the fries, they were soggy. I like this though, so I didn't complain. They were well seasoned, and were quite tasty. In addition, the serving size was huge (but hey, it's America!). I've had better, but there isn't much to complain about regarding these fries - solid.

Score: 3.5/5

Two sliders (I think)...

To be honest, the best thing about these sliders was the novelty. Having said that, they were decent, and I did enjoy them. The cheese could be improved, and the overall freshness, but all in all they weren't too bad. I would likely try something else on the menu next time, but wouldn't be disappointed if I had them again. Maybe someone should introduce sliders to the Australian market!

Total score: 14.5/25

(Decent, worth a shot.)

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St. Regis Hotel Bar and Grill - Vancouver, Canada

I spotted a nice little bar on the way to Fatburger, and went back the next night to check it out. I was happy to find out they served burgers! The Bar and Grill was part of the St. Regis Hotel on Dunsmuir St. The menu had a lot of interesting items on it, but I couldn't go past another burger.

Burger on the menu at the St. Regis Bar and Grill

St. Regis Burger with fries

I added a slice of aged cheddar and peppered bacon. Not bad for $CAD13 (about the same in $AUD at the time). The burger was great. The balance of ingredients was spot on, something that many places just can't seem to do.

Meat:
The pattie was a good thickness - thicker than most fast food type burgers, but not as thick as your standard bar burgers. I don't like overly thick patties, it often means that a lot of additions (breadcrumbs, egg etc.) are needed just to keep it together, affecting the flavour. This pattie did not have this problem. It was lightly seasoned, so I could taste the beefy goodness. It was cooked medium to well-done. Good pattie, but not the best I've had.

Score: 4/5


Cheese:
I added one slice of aged cheddar. It was the yellow "American" type cheese, and it melted very well. Gooey, melty cheese is one of my favourite parts of a burger. The cheese had a great flavour, and one slice was perfect.

Score: 3.5/5


Bun:
The bun was slightly too thick on top, and thin on the bottom - but this was obviously just the way it was cut. It was a little dry, but did the job of keeping the goodness inside. Surprisingly, the bottom part did not fall apart. The bun did it's job, but it was nothing to rave about.

Score: 3/5


Extras:
As per the menu, the burger came with one beef pattie, lettuce, tomato, red onion and a pickle spear (not inside the burger). I added the peppered bacon for $1 extra. I'm glad I did. The bacon was great, smokey, crispy and full of flavour. Great addition to the already solid burger. The lettuce and tomato were reasonably fresh, but not as much as those in the burger I had the previous night at Fatburger. The onions were fresh, and were not too strong. I decided against sauce or caramelised onions. Overall, the extras were good, but nothing amazing. Having said that, they worked well with the meat and cheese. Without the bacon however, the score would not be as high!

Score: 3.5/5


Fries:
The house fries looked as if they were hand cut, always a bonus. There was a little skin left on, which I think can be good. They were a little soggy, but I love my fries like that. They were tasty, and not over-salted. They weren't chili cheese fries, but they were a good addition to the burger.

Score: 3.5/5

St. Regis Burger with fries

Overall, this was a solid burger. The ingredients were all of a high quality, although the tomato and lettuce could have been a little fresher. I enjoyed it, and would definitely have it again (if I happen to be in Vancouver!). You can't really go wrong with this one. 

Total score: 17.5/25

(Very good, go for it.)

ABB.

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Fatburger - Vancouver, Canada

I had heard about Fatburger a while back, and read that they were similar to In n' Out burger. I found one in downtown Vancouver, and had to eat there.

I ordered the King XXL with bacon and cheese. The burger contained 2 meat patties, 3 pieces of american cheese (melty!), applewood smoked bacon, tomato, lettuce and "special sauce".

King XXL with bacon and cheese

The burger was amazing - one of the best I've had. The beef was cooked medium, the cheese melted perfectly, and the lettuce/tomato were fresh. The bun was great also.

Meat:
The patties were perfectly cooked - still pink on the inside. They were moist and tasted great. There was very little added to the patties, most likely just salt and pepper.

Score: 4.5/5


Cheese:
Cheese is an optional extra on burgers at Fatburger. A burger isn't a burger without cheese though! I had 3 slices of yellow, salty, melty American cheese. The closest I've found here in Australia is processed cheese (ie: Kraft Singles), but it's not quite the same. The cheese melted perfectly, and had a mild but great taste.

Score: 4/5


Bun:
The bun was soft (fresh) and a good size. It wasn't too big that you couldn't taste anything else, and also wasn't so small that after a few bites, your hands are covered in meat and cheese grease. There's not much that can usually be said about a bun - but this one was pretty good.

Score: 4.5/5


Extras:
As mentioned at the start of this post, the burger came with tomato and lettuce, and I added smoked bacon. The bacon was perfectly cooked, and was very crispy. The smoked flavour wasn't over-powering, it was great. The tomato and lettuce were surprisingly fresh (I hate soft, mealy tomato), and added a good crunch to the burger.

Score: 4/5

Chili Cheese Fries

Fries: 
I decided to try something a little different at Fatburger. Throughout North America, chili cheese fries are common. They generally consist of fries, american cheese, and chili (minced meat, tomato, chili, beans, spices). I had tried chili cheese fries before, part of the reason I decided to have some more! The fries here were great. Cooked well, and tasty. The chili and cheese went perfectly with the fries. All it really needed was bacon! Really can't fault these, a nice change from the standard fries.

Score: 5/5




There is no question that I would go to Fatburger again. The prices are very reasonable (especially compared to burgers in Australia), however the cost of the airfare changes that. It's hard to say how the burgers here compare to In n' Out burger. Regardless, they are fantastic.

Total score: 22/25

(Brilliant, go now!)

ABB.

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Burgers from the USA and Canada

Hi again all. The next few reviews will be about burgers I recently tried in the USA and Canada. They will all get a score, but won't be included in the scoreboard!

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Hog's Breath Cafe (Holden Hill)

I went to Hog's Breath Cafe in Holden Hill tonight. It's one of my favourite places (I also love a good steak). They were running low on steaks (strange!), so I thought it would be a good excuse to try one of Hog's Breath's Burgers. The place was extremely busy, so I wasn't really too surprised. I went with the Boss Hog double burger. The following is straight off the website menu.

Boss Hog Double Burger$14.95

Double beef, double cheese, lettuce, tomato, red onion rings, beetroot and BBQ sauce. Seared with our own Hog’s Breath blackened seasoning. The boss builds big burgers!  Add crispy bacon rashers for only $3.50.

As per the rules, the burger came with fries, and also came with a small salad. The fries were the standard Hog's Breath curly fries. I love curly fries, and Hog's Breath make great curly fries. The burger was decent. As mentioned already, the burger had two beef patties, two slices of cheese, and a fairly standard lettuce/tomato/onion/beetroot mix. I got the burger without bacon (Bacon being an optional extra).

Meat:

The patties were reasonably thick. They weren't too dry, but were over-spiced (a common problem in my opinion). There was too much onion/breadcrumbs and soy sauce. Basically, it didn't taste a whole lot like beef, which for some people may be a good thing (not for me though!).

Score: 3/5

Cheese
There were two slices of cheddar cheese. They were not melted, and had little taste. Cheese is very important to me, and melted cheese has a much better flavour (for burgers).Score: 2/5

Bun

The bun was not toasted - which is not a problem for me. It was fresh, and soft. The bottom half was a little thin, but it managed to keep everything in. Score: 3/5

             

Extras

There weren't too many extras on this burger. While they can add to a burger, I like my burgers fairly simple. The tomato and lettuce were fairly fresh, and added a nice crunch. The beetroot didn't taste of much, and was mainly there to make the bottom half of the bun soft. The onions were mild, which is a good thing to me.Score: 3/5

Fries
I love the Hog's Breath Curly fries. They are usually crunchy, tasty and seasoned properly. On this occasion, they were slightly dry. Nonetheless, they were great. Hard to get a lot better.

Score: 4/5

Would I get it again? Probably not. Not because it was a terrible burger, but because I love their steaks, and they are the winner at Hog's Breath. Having said that, I wouldn't be too upset if I got this elsewhere.

Total score: 15/25
(Decent, worth a shot!)

ABB.

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