Articles tagged ‘Cheddar’

Scarlet Oak Tavern

July 19th, 2011 by Richard Chudy

I’ve explored the depths of non-city burgers once or twice, most recently here. I’m a city boy, more or less, but I have no qualms about traveling all over this state, region, or country for great eats, never mind a great burger. Hingham isn’t exactly the farthest destination, but far enough for the SBK and I to enjoy a little car ride while I swear at traffic all the while. Scarlet Oak Tavern was the destination, and I’m happy to report it was worth the trip. I opted for the Gus Burger (cheddar cheese, smoked bacon and a fried egg) for a mere $12. Arriving hot, juicy, and with a dominating char aroma, it was satisfying and worthy of the price tag. Not without flaws, but if you’ve read anything on this website before, that shouldn’t surprise you. continue reading »

Grafton Street

June 11th, 2011 by Richard Chudy

Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. It can be easy to forgive a few things; a slightly over-cooked burger, a less than perfect bun or a mediocre pickle, as long as the complete package works in the end. The reality is that it’s all about the flavor; bonus points for complete execution and a few carefully crafted “cheffy” tricks here and there. But to be solid, all you really need to is season up some beef, melt some cheese and call it a day. But the Grafton Street burger can’t do it, it’s simple, but to a fault. As Harold from Best Damn Buger and I soon discovered, the beef has little flavor and is way beyond the specified medium-rare. But it’s one of those burgers that probably would have been underwhelming either way, there just isn’t much character or personality in this burger. And as we all, know personality goes a long way. continue reading »

Clink

May 1st, 2011 by Richard Chudy

I often find that burgers never match their given price. Where does the price even come from? You put lipstick on a pig it’s still a pig, right? I guess if you put wannabe fancy ingredients on a burger it’s still a burger. While I can in no way justify the $17 price tag on the Clink burger, topped with a fried egg and Cheddar, it is quite delicious, the perfect examples of balance and restraint. Nothing is over-done and everything is in tune from one ingredient to the next. It’s also a rare example of grass-fed beef that tastes pretty good. Not superb and not overly beefy or fatty (although I guess that’s the point) it does hit on a few different taste buds. The meat is cooked medium-rare as requested, is juicy but not overly-so, forgive me if I penned those words before. If you’re searching for an impeccably juicy burger that is greasy, satisfying and to the point, Clink is not that burger. But if a straight-forward, grilled and well seasoned burger is all your after, this is a place worth taking a closer look. continue reading »

Charley’s

December 13th, 2010 by Richard Chudy

You have to do better than that, folks. Charley’s is fine, but anyone who has suggested this as the “best burger in Boston” has to be kidding themselves. Look. there’s nothing fundamentally wrong with this Newbury Street operation, it’s a saloon, with an old-school, plain-Jane menu that happens to have a couple of burger options on the menu. But barely, you can order a hamburger, cheeseburger, bacon cheeseburger, or an au poivre burger. (which oddly does not mention pepper in the description) All served up on a Pletzel roll, (no not a typo, could have fooled me too) with cheddar cheese, and pathetic lettuce and tomato pushed to the side. The bun is actually decent, dressed with poppy seeds, it is not too thick and not too thin, with a good chew but lacking any crispy crust. continue reading »

Atwoods Tavern

November 29th, 2010 by Richard Chudy

I don’t know how to figure the burger at Atwoods Tavern, it’s the ultimate two-face burger, a few good biters here and there, and a few rather offensive bites in between. It bursts with juice immediately, almost violently and slightly painful on my wrist and onto the plate, which is fine for some, but me, I like my juice in the burger and not on the plate. Yes, leave it to me to complain about a juicy burger, but a little resting of the burger before it’s sent out and those juices will naturally redistribute back into the meat and not onto my wrist and plate. But the meat is flavorful, grass-fed and local, it can be sweet and luscious, which it was partly, and then inexplicably tasted of liver, and not the good way liver can taste when medium-rare, but that nasty, chalky taste of over-cooked liver. Is this a grass-fed quality or the cuts of beef used? Either way, it’s incredibly unpleasant and unflattering, all due to inconsistent cooking. The parts that are cooked to a medium-rare are lovely, otherwise it’s a roller-coaster of tastebuds and it’s not a good experience.  continue reading »

Post 390

November 6th, 2010 by Richard Chudy

The burger at Post 390 stumped me, ordinary and almost ugly on the surface, it was one of if not the juiciest burger I’ve had to date, the hot fat bursting out upon my first bite. Similar to a Jucy Lucy, it was an unexpected but welcome river of flavor (in this case juiciness vs. melted cheese) that I had never seen before. A great start that unfortunately had a brief moment of greatness that didn’t last. They achieved the impossible with this burger, so moist in the first few bites, yet so dry and over-cooked the rest of the way. And the seasoning was inconsistent, my burger could have used some salt, while my burger companion’s sandwich, the delightful Katie from a Small Boston Kitchen, was nicely flavored with the requisite salt and pepper. continue reading »