"I believe that the great American hamburger is a thing of beauty, its simple charms noble, pristine. The basic recipe--ground beef, salt, and pepper, formed into a patty, grilled or seared on a griddle, then nestled between two halves of a bun, usually but not necessarily accompanied by lettuce, a tomato slice, and some ketchup--is, to my mind, unimprovable by man or God. A good burger can be made more complicated, even more interesting by the addition of other ingredients--like good cheese or bacon.....relish perhaps, but it will never be made better." - Anthony Bourdain, from the chapter entitled 'Meat', in his book Medium Raw.

January 27, 2011

Winger's (Ogden, UT)

Winger's is right across the street from work, so the location can't be beat.

S. had the All American Burger ($6.99), hold the mayo (pictured below). V. had the BBQ Bacon Burger ($7.99) but he dove into so quickly S. didn't get a chance to snap a photo.

Both S. and V. agreed that the ratio of condiments to burger was a little off. We only tasted the condiments, not the burger.


Outback (at the Orlando Airport)

Not bad for airport food.


January 15, 2011

Emeril's at Universal City Walk (Orlando, FL)

C. got the bacon and swiss burger ($12) at Emeril's.


















And surprise, surprise, S. got her favorite: the bleu cheese burger ($12). S. got a particular kick out of the fact that the burger at a gourmet restaurant like Emeril's was three dollars cheaper than the burger she'd had the night before at a sports bar in her hotel lobby. Go figure. S. will take the gourmet burger any day.























So, we know this is a burger blog and what you see below is NOT burger soup; but we couldn't resist sharing photos of our appetizers. If only you could have tasted this delicious cream of chicken soup. Watch out Emeril, S. is in love with you.



















The caprese salad, made with locally grown tomatoes and house-made mozzarella. So good. So, so good.


January 9, 2011

Renaissance Sea World (Orlando, FL)

The thing about this $15 burger at the sports bar in the lobby of the Renaissance Orlando Sea World Resort that sets it apart from other, more reasonably priced, burgers was the pickles. We don't know what they were made of, but they were ridiculously spicy. C. loved them; S. nearly choked to death from the spice; and V. though they were OK.


January 8, 2011

Delta Flight # 9 from Salt Lake City to Orlando

S. scored an upgrade to first class on a recent flight to Orlando and was served a burger for lunch. How perfect for the burger blog, she thought! Thank goodness she had a camera nearby.



















Too bad S. didn't have a way to text this photo to V., who was back in coach. She had to just wait until they landed to brag about her burger experience.

Although it was just a microwaved burger, and one side of the bun was hard, it was still so much better than what we get on planes these days that it rates like a five-star experience.



















The view from the dining room.