The Palais Hotel - Semaphore

I've been to the Palais a few times. It's in a nice location, it's quite nice inside and the food is decent. I went a few weeks ago again, and not surprisingly, I couldn't go past the burger option on the menu. It's a bit more 'fancy' than a lot of burgers out there, but it's not too over the top. The bar is also quite good, so it's a good sport for a burger and a beer (or three).

The "Beachfront Bistro" at the Palais Hotel, Semaphore

The burger as per the menu:

palais beef burger - prime beef pattie, bacon, cheddar cheese, slow cooked onion jam, tomato relish and salad greens on a toasted lepinja bun served w chunky chips and garlic aioli  16.50

It was a nice looking burger, and came with very thick-cut fries. The extras were not your typical burger extras, but a nice change from the usual. The garlic aioli was a nice addition to the fries, but a little bland.

Palais Burger with Fries and Garlic Aioli

Meat:
The meat was extremely disappointing. It was more like a Cevapcici than a burger pattie. That's fine if that's what you want, but I wanted a burger! It was over-seasoned, chewy and a bit dry. It did taste ok, but just didn't seem like a burger to me. Despite not tasting bad, I really can't rate it highly as a burger pattie.

Score: 2/5


Cheese:
The cheese was very nicely melted - a good characteristic of cheddar cheeses. It was salty, gooey and tasty. It wasn't as good as the processed cheese that fast food places use in terms of taste, but it was a good addition, and went some way to making up for the poor beef.

Score: 3.5/5


Bun:
The bun was a little different to most places. A lot of hotels etc. think putting some meat, cheese and salad in a fancy bun or roll makes a "gourmet" burger. They are wrong! It was nicely toasted, and tasted good, but didn't do anything to compensate for the meat. Good, but nothing amazing.

Score: 3/5


Extras: 
The extras in the Palais burger were a little different. Rather than the standard lettuce, tomato, onion and ketchup/mustard, the burger contained "slow-cooked onion jam, tomato relish and salad greens". They were good. The onion jam was sweet, but tangy. The relish was also tangy, but not over-powering. A better addition than tomato sauce/ketchup in my opinion. The salad greens were simply a couple of types of wilted lettuce - not in the same league as the other extras. They added a lot of welcome flavour to the burger. Such extras are great for unusual burgers, or those where the meat and cheese is lacking (as was the case with the Palais burger).

Score: 3.5/5


Fries:
The fries appeared to be hand-cut. They were very thick. They appeared white, an indication of them being under-done. This was definitely the case. They were even too under-cooked for me. They tasted average. The garlic aioli wasn't too bad, but was rather bland and could have been stronger. I'd eat these fries if they were given to me, but definitely wouldn't rush out to get them again.

Score: 2.5/5


Would I recommend it? Probably not. It isn't a bad-tasting mixture of meat, cheese, bread and extras. It's just not a burger to me. The meat is extremely important, and almost no combination of amazing additions such as cheese and extras is going to redeem a burger with such a poor pattie. It wouldn't take much for the Palais to improve this burger - but they need to start with the fundamentals.

Total score: 14.5/25

(Decent, worth a shot)

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Bacon Double Deluxe - Wendy's Brooklyn

(Wendys.com)

Here in Australia, Wendy's is a milkshake and ice-cream store. They also sell fairly good hot dogs. In North America, Wendy's is somewhat different. They sell burgers, and lot's of them. They have quite an extensive menu. I came across one in Brooklyn, New York. I had previously had Wendy's in Las Vegas on another trip (got the "Triple Baconator - just the bun, meat, cheese and bacon), but decided to go for something different this time.

I went for the Double Bacon Deluxe. This is from the site:

Bacon Deluxe Double

Two hot 'n juicy all beef patties piled with four strips of Applewood smoked bacon. Freshly made your way with American cheese, the works, ketchup and mayo. Now that beats your ordinary burger.

The advertisement was correct to a point. It had the ingredients listed. I wouldn't say the patties were juicy, or that it seemed fresh. Having said that, it was a tasty burger. As with most fast food burgers, it was soggy and fell apart quite easily.

Wendy's Bacon Deluxe Double (wendys.com)

Meat:
The patties were a good size; not too thick, and not too thin. They tasted great. They were not over-seasoned, and although they were somewhat dry, I enjoyed them. But, they were fast food patties.

Score: 3.5/5


Cheese:
The cheese was ok. It was the standard yellow American cheese, and melted ok. It was slightly more bland than others I had tried though. It didn't quite perform it's job - another slice may have been necessary.

Score: 3/5

Bun:
The bun was a corn-dusted, soft burger bun. It was decent. It got soggy quickly however, and didn't have much taste. It barely kept the contents inside the burger. It could have been a lot better.

Score: 3/5


Extras:
"The works" comprised of white onion, tomato, lettuce and pickles. They were all reasonably fresh, decent for a fast food joint. The sauce and mayo combination worked really well. The bacon was quite good. There was a lot of it, and it was nice and crispy, albeit very salty (even by bacon standards).

Score: 3.5/5

Wendy's "Natural Cut" fries (wendys.com

Fries:
Wendy's had been advertising "Natural cut" fries while I was in North America. The advertisements didn't influence my decision to have Wendy's - it was simply the closest burger joint to our hotel. These fries had the skin on them, and were seasoned with sea salt. I didn't notice much of a difference between these and normal fries. They were actually a bit dry. They tasted ok, but there are much better fries out there.

Score: 3/5


The burger was good. Good meat, decent cheese and passable extras. The bacon definitely added to the burger - a good option in my opinion. If you need a burger fix, you won't be too upset if you have a Wendy's Bacon Double Deluxe. To make up for the average fries, get a cup of chili!

Total score: 16/25

(Very good, go for it)

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Philly cheese steak sliders? Yes!

Again, this may not be your standard burger, and it definitely doesn't fit into the rules, but it definitely needs to be mentioned. As with the other burgers (etc) in Canada and America that I had, it will not be included on the scoreboard.

Firstly, let me preface this by saying this is not a burger. It has meat, cheese and bread however, so it ticks many of the boxes a good burger does. The Philly cheese steak is somewhat of an institution. Despite being developed in Philadelphia, the cheese steak has expanded across North America, and has taken on many regional forms. Most cheese steaks comprise of a soft kaiser roll, very thinly sliced and seared beef, cheese (provolone or cheez-whiz type cheese) and sometimes onions.

As mentioned in an earlier post, sliders are mini-burgers, although not by the strictest definition. How ever you classify either, the "Philly Cheese Steak Sliders" I had at Max Brenners in the Caesar's Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas were awesome.

Max Brenner's in the Caesar's Palace Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas Nevada

Meat:
The beef was thinly sliced, and cooked quickly. It was soft, tender and extremely tasty. It was seasoned with salt and pepper from what I could tell. Tasty tasty tasty.

Score: 4.5/5

Cheese:
There were two cheeses in the cheese steaks. There was provolone (a sharp, mild sheep's milk cheese, originating in Italy), and Cheez-Whiz. Cheez-Whiz is essentially a processed cheese spread. It's not quite like the cream cheese we have in Australia though. They worked well together. Sharpness, combined with melty, gooey greasiness. Perfect.

Score: 4/5

Cheez-Whiz

Bun:
The buns were soft and doughy, exactly what I like. They were obviously different to a burger bun. The buns really added to the experience, something that is quite rare!

Score: 4.5/5

Extras:
The only extra was a "Marinara" sauce. In the USA, a Napolitana, or tomato based sauce (similar to tomato pasta sauce) is called Marina. In Australia, Marinara is a seafood sauce (which makes sense, as "Mare" means "Sea" in Italian). It was subtle, but added to the experience. I'm not sure it would have been a whole lot different without it though.

Score: 3.5/5

Three mini Philly Cheese Steaks and Waffle Fries at Max Brenners, Las Vegas

Fries:

The fries were a little different. They were "criss-cross" fries, or "waffle" fries. They were amazing. Crispy, but soft in the middle. And very tasty. I'd like some now, to be honest. 

Score: 5/5

I would really like these right now. The meat was tender, the cheese melted and very tasty, and it was all encased in an awesome bun. The fries just made the experience even better. I won't compare these to burgers, but if you ever have the chance to try them - do it. Absolutely amazing. 

Total score: 21.5/25

(Brilliant, go now!)

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The infamous "McRib" - Las Vegas, Nevada

"Think smaller... more legs."

I had to do it. I couldn't help it. I realise that this is not a beef burger, but it warrants a mention. I had heard so much about the McRib, both good and bad. The McRib is only sold periodically in North America, the latest offering ending on the 5th of December (I got in just in time!) According to the American McDonalds site, the McRib consists of: a McRib Pork pattie, McRib bun, McRib sauce, pickle slices and slivered onions. Apart from the last two items, the description is rather vague. The pork pattie is ground pork, essentially the same as a normal beef pattie. The bun is a 6 inch, corn-dusted bun, and the sauce is a tangy BBQ type sauce.

The McRib, as advertised on mcdonalds.com

It was good. Very good. There was a perfect balance of ingredients, and the pork pattie was amazing. The sauce was great, and the onions and pickles complimented the entire 'burger' perfectly. Despite not looking like the promotional image (when do they?), it was amazing. If anyone would like to buy me an airfare to the USA the next time they are being sold, please let me know!

Meat:
Pork. Tasty pork. It was extremely tender, and tasted amazing. Regardless of what people say, I don't care what type of meat it is.

Score: 4.5/5

An opened McRib, full of BBQ goodness (not my picture)

Cheese:
What cheese? It really didn't need it. In lieu of the cheese score, I'll rate the sauce. It was tangy, sweet and very very tasty. A little too much of it though. This reduced the porky goodness in parts, and required 5 minutes of hand washing after consumption. It was great though.

Score: 4/5

Bun:
The 6 inch corn dusted bun was quite good. It was very fresh, and quite flavourful. It performed well above it's required task of keeping your hands clean (although it didn't manage to do this - that was the fault of the sauce though!). Soft, tasty and doughy. Very good.

Score: 4/5

Extras:
The pickles and onion really complimented the 'burger'. They weren't overpowering, but offered a good tang and slight bitterness to cut back the sweet BBQ sauce. They were nice and fresh (yes, this IS McDonalds), and added a welcomed crunch to the otherwise very soft burger. The points come mainly from the well thought out combination, rather than qualities of each extra.

Score: 4/5

McRib, tasty (not my picture)

Fries:

I actually didn't have fries with the McRib. I had fries at McDonalds in Las Vegas beforehand though, and they were good. Fairly similar to what we get here in Australia (consistency is part of their success though).  Most places I had fries at in the USA (McDonalds), the fries were well cooked, well-salted and tasty. 

Score: 4/5

Would I have another one? Hell yes! The McRib was surprisingly amazing. Extremely tasty, and very satisfying. The only thing I'm disappointed about - I only got one. This one almost IS worth the airfare to America! It falls within the "Very good, go for it" category, but it's brilliant. If you have the chance, do it.

Total score: 20.5/25

(Very good, go for it.)

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Lindy's (I think!), New York City

I'm not too sure how we ended up here, but I think it was after walking down from the American Natural History Museum (which was awesome by the way!). I wasn't too hungry, but obviously can never refuse a burger. Unfortunately, there is no menu available online, but the image is fairly clear. The burger was served open. I like this, it allows you to easily configure the burger the way you want. I opted for bacon (I usually do), and this was placed on the melted, yellow American cheese, which was on top of the pattie and one half of the bun. On the other half of the bun was fresh lettuce, average tomato, and white onion. There was also a pickle spear separate, but I ate that first. I can't remember what the sauce was, but I remember it being decent.

Although I can't recall the exact price, I do remember that it wasn't cheap ($18-20US). We were in Times Square though, so one can't complain too much.

Burger full of bacony goodness at Lindy's NYC

Meat:

The meat had a really good outer layer, crisp but not too burnt. It was a little over-done and dry for my liking inside, but still tasted fairly good. It was a little too lean also, but I'm guessing they cooked it on the same griddle/surface as the bacon etc., giving it a good flavour. Good, not great. 

Score: 3/5

Cheese:

The cheese was very yellow, and melty. I love this. The flavour was somewhat dull however - disappointing. It was still ok though. The bacon on top caused it to melt more once it arrived at the table. Good, but I'd prefer more of a cheesey experience.

Score: 3/5

Bun:

The bun was ok. It was rather soft, and tasted good. Soft buns allow the grease to soak into it, but if they are too soft, this causes them to fall apart. I got most of the way through the burger before this started to be an issue. As usual, the bun did it's job, but was nothing spectacular. 

Score: 3/5

Extras:

The extras (lettuce, tomato, white onion) were fairly fresh. The tomato was almost perfect, but slightly soft for me. The lettuce was nice and crisp (adding crunch to the burger) and the onion was not overwhelming. There was too much for me however. The extras were the standard burger fair, but done well.

Score: 3.5/5

Fries:

The fries were cooked for too long. They were too greasy also (yes, there is such a thing!). They did taste good though, but were over-salted. The decent flavour helped to redeem the otherwise average fries. Still, they were nothing brilliant.

Score: 3/5

Considering the dining options available in Times Square, I probably wouldn't rush back here (if I could find it). It was a solid burger, but didn't had that "wow" factor. It's not terrible though, so it's worth checking out!

Total score: 14.5/25

(Decent, worth a shot.)

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