Tag Archives: cheeseburger

Burgers, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews, Union Square/Flatiron

Pete’s Tavern

November 9, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

Pete’s is the oldest continuously operating establishment in NYC. It opened in 1864 and has not closed or switched locations since.

What’s cool here is that the old cashier’s cage is still right there at the end of the bar. It used to be that the cashier would sit in the cage with the money/register to be protected from being robbed.

They even have this funny old sign for how to live on $15 a week:

The bartender Phil was awesome too; really friendly guy, easy to talk with, outgoing and generally just made the place a great spot to hang out. I hadn’t ever been in here before (shame on me), but he suggested coming back around Christmas time when the lights are up at the bar. Definitely. Thanks Phil!

Anyway we saw this burger on the menu and figured it had to be tried for our second burger of the night:

It turned out to be a bit of a let down. The meat was excellent, as to be expected, but there was not enough cheese. Also the tomato was sliced too thick – almost as thick as the burger patty. The waffle fries were done perfectly though.

A friend of mine met up with me and my buddy here while we were eating before he met with some broad for a date. He was hungry too, so he ordered the regular burger and we all shared:

This was much better eating: definitely better than the huntsman burger. Although my buddy was a little cranked about a pricing discrepancy (bar menu on the wall that he ordered from did not match the printed menu that he was charged from), and the burger was cooked a little under how he wanted it (I would have been fine with that temp – look at it – it looks perfect!), it was indeed a good burger. I think I would take the Old Town burger over this one though, but it was close.

In sum, this was an amazing bar to hang out in. It’s an absolutely amazing piece of NYC history, and it will definitely stay that way with staff like Phil at the bar, who make the place even better.

If burgers ain’t your thing, then try one of their extremely fair-priced brunch deals that range from $12-$15 for three courses, or maybe their delicious corned beef sandwich:

PETE’S TAVERN
129 E. 18th St.
New York, NY 10003

Burgers, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews, Union Square/Flatiron

Old Town

November 9, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

Old Town is one of NYC’s oldest and most awesome bars. It opened in 1892 and has remained relatively unchanged since.

Even the urinals are old, and big (for big cocks): the kind that used to be at the Village Idiot, Ear Inn, Gallagher’s and Pastis.

Anyway the burger here is supposed to be pretty good, as is the burger over at Pete’s down the block, so my buddy had the brilliant idea that we set out to try a few burgers in the area in one night. We ended up hitting three places, because we have massive balls swinging between our legs. Here is the Old Town burger:

This was easily the best burger of the night. Juicy, nicely cooked, a good amount of cheese. Nice and simple. The only down side was that the fries were a bit under-seasoned, and the bun was a little hard or crumbly after toasting. Stick with the potato bun!

OLD TOWN
45 E. 18th St.
New York, NY 10003

Burgers, Union Square/Flatiron

Clarke’s Standard

November 9, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

UPDATE: THIS LOCATION IS NOW CLOSED!

For the third and final stop on our burger crawl, we hit Clarke’s Standard, which is owned by the PJ Clarke’s folks. I assumed we were splitting another burger like at the last two joints of our crawl (Old Town and Pete’s), but my buddy strapped on a pair of elephant balls and said “fuck that shit I’m getting my own burger.” I have to say I was impressed with his resolve. Not one chicken sandwich all night long, and essentially two beers per location for a total of six… with lots of water in between to stay hydrated and to beat back the raw onions. HAHA! It was a good night, out at 4:30pm, home by 10pm.

This place has a solid little burger, and the fries were hands down the best of the night.

It’s like fast food in terms of atmosphere, but the quality is much better. Check out this mid-squirt money shot:

They even have some cool decor of old meat scales.

The guy who greeted us was Malik – an amazing, funny dude who was talkative and putting everyone in a great mood. He even hooked us up with some ice cream:

Paulie says "fuck you" to the camera. — Paulie says “fuck you” to the camera.

The only down side here was that Malik said his favorite steak was from Sizzler. My man – I hope you contact me because we need to grab a steak somewhere else together. I bet even sinking your teeth into one at PJ Clarke’s will change your whole outlook on steaks.

Burgers, Flash Deals, Midtown East, Restaurant Reviews

Dag’s Patio Cafe

October 31, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

I picked up a Groupon for this joint recently: $16 for two burgers, two fries and two shakes. They were out of shakes, so they gave us beer and wine instead. Not bad!

So this place stands out as one of the better burgers that I’ve had recently and the reason is because of two things: (1) ratio of bread to meat to toppings, and (2) the potato roll. We tried the applewood bacon cheddar burger with grilled onions, and the Dag burger with lettuce, tomato, onion and American (fuck yeah) cheese. Both were wonderful.

For point number one, regarding ratios, I implore you to look at the cross-section of the burger. Look at it. Not too much bun. Meat is a decent thickness, but not so thick that you have to unhinge your fucking jaw. Just a couple of basic toppings so you aren’t stacking up shit on top of shit and building a skyscraper.

As for point number two, the potato roll holds up to intense scrutiny like no other. It is strong, yet soft. It is flavorful and it absorbs juices. It is magical.

As I was browsing the menu a few other items caught my eye. Typically I will try a Chicago dog before any other hot dog menu item (Chicago beats New York on hot dogs, but New York beats Chicago on pizza). However I was enticed by the Dag dog, so I gave that a try.

The Dag dog was essentially the same as the bacon, cheddar and grilled onion burger but in dog form. It was nice. Not too sloppy, as a Chicago dog can sometimes be. They also split the dog and griddled it up nice on the flat top.

The fries were nice too. A thicker style but not quite steak fries. Nicely crisped on the outside and soft inside. A good sized portion too. The overhead pic from above shows the accurate portion size pre-gorging. The pic below was taken after I attacked those shits for a few minutes, dipping them in the Sri Racha ketchup and Tabasco mayo that I masterfully mixed up at their fixin’s bar.

DAG’S PATIO CAFE
342 E. 47th St.
New York, NY 10017

Burgers, Midtown West, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

Alfie’s

October 29, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

I stopped into Alfie’s for a late night bite to get my burger fix in. The meat was not seasoned enough, but it was certainly cooked to the proper temperature. It was good and juicy. I just wish they packed on some salt and pepper before slapping this titty-fuck onto the grill. The rosemary herb fries were nicely cooked too, but they needed seasoning and salt as well:

ALFIE’S
800 9th Ave.
New York, NY 10019

American, Burgers, Midtown West, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

Rosie O’Grady’s Saloon

October 28, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

I popped in here for a quick lunch with a buddy of mine who was in town for a convention. I’d never been here before despite walking by a million times and always being aware of its existence. Perhaps I just assumed it was a standard overpriced midtown tourist trap or something.

So I took down their burger. I had a feeling it was going to be thick, so I didn’t go crazy with toppings: just cheese. I was right. Look at this fat fuck:

It was nice and tasty, well seasoned… and well… done… I ordered medium but it came back pretty much well done.

There’s still a slight bit of pink in there, so maybe medium well.

Anyway, the fries were not my preferred style. I like shoestring but these were steak fries.

The odd thing was that my buddy ordered a chicken sandwich and his came with shoestring fries. Hmm.

Anyway, the burger was still good despite being overcooked, So I may venture back in here for a steak some day, or perhaps the corned beef sandwich.

ROSIE O’GRADY’S
800 7th Ave.
New York, NY 10019

American, Burgers, Flash Deals, Midtown West, Restaurant Reviews

Hudson Eatery

October 28, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

I grabbed a local Groupon deal for this joint to try out their burger. It turned out to be a pretty good meal. $30 for two drinks, two entrees, and a shared app.

We started off with some drinks, beer & wine:

Next came the apps (we ordered an additional). Bacon and onion mac and cheese, followed by chili duck sauce shrimp. Both were tasty, though I didn’t think the $3 up charge for the bacon and onion in the mac was worth it. Also the shrimp came with a thousand island dipping sauce which didn’t mix well with the asian style sauce that was already on them. Other than that the batter and frying were perfect.

Then the burger came out. I ordered a burger with American cheese, bacon, and jalapeños. My only gripe was that the bun was a little flakey/crusty, but other than that it was well seasoned, they used fresh jalapeños, the bacon was crisp, the cheese was melty and good, and the burger was cooked just right.

The fries were pretty good too – nicely salted, unlike Thalia from the night before, but with that same natural cut style.

My wife had a salmon sandwich that looked pretty nice as well, topped with lettuce, tomato, onion, and avocado.

HUDSON EATERY
601 W. 57th St.
New York, NY 10019

American, Burgers, Long Island

Joe’s Sirloin Burger Grill

October 26, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

This new joint on Long Island serves up some pretty damn good grub. And it’s right near my brother’s house, so now there’s a sweet go-to spot for when I visit.

I had the classic bacon cheeseburger with added jalepenos. This was awesome. My only real gripe is that I wish they used fresh jalapeños instead of pickled pre-sliced ones. No matter though, because it was still jerkworthy:

I had half of my wife’s gorgonzola burger too. This was great as well, and the cheese did not overwhelm the meat:

The cool thing is that, like Charly’s, the burgers are packed in clamshells rather than wrapped up in paper. The rigid packaging material prevents burgers from getting all fucked up in the bag if you buy it to go.

The fries and onion rings were solid too. I liked the onion rings better than the fries, but I attribute that to the fact that they held up better in the bag. We arrived out to LI late, so my brother picked dinner up for us. Even after sitting in the bag for a while the fried items were still pretty crispy. Nice!

JOE’S SIRLOIN BURGER GRILL
1400 Lakeland Ave
Bohemia, NY 11716

American, Burgers, Restaurant Reviews, Upper East Side

JG Melon

October 19, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

I came in here with my wife and parents on a Sunday morning at 11:40am. The place was already jam packed and it was non-stop even after we left.

This place is a landmark NYC icon. A cash-only wonder. A haven for burger aficionados. A pub crawler’s dream.

Since this place consistently ranks among the top burger places in NYC, I had to try it. My verdict: I think the name has some hype to it, like a Peter Luger steak. It was good, don’t get me wrong, but not THAT good.

My dad and I had bacon cheeseburgers. Each coming in at $11.50, these fuckers are a bit on the pricey side, especially since they don’t come with fries. I ordered medium, but it came back pretty much well done. I didn’t take a look at my dad’s. Sucks, but it was at least very tasty.

Great bun – they stick to the potato bun which holds up under intense scrutiny. Bacon was crispy, and cheese was yellow and American, just how I like it.

The fries were little discs. Crisp on the outside, soft and mushy on the inside. I just prefer a tradition stick shape.

My wife had a grilled cheese with tomato and bacon. Also a hefty price tag at $11+ without fries. It was, however, very good.

My mom had an omlette – very good portion size, and it came with fries.

For dessert, my wife and I split the sour cream apple walnut pie, which we noticed while reading over the wall-o-desserts and taking in all the watermelon themed art.

Delicious. Not too sweet, nice and warm, and a really great way to end a meal on a cold day.

Cool thing about this place too is that the kitchen is wide open to your viewing, and small/basic as hell:

JG MELON
1291 3rd Ave.
New York, NY 10021

Burgers, Midtown West, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

McHales

October 15, 2014 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

McHale’s was once known for its great burgers. It recently closed, switched locations (slightly) and re-opened. I’m not sure if the management is the same, or the chef, or any of that. The place is gorgeous inside, very classy and old school-ish. And yet they play UFC fight events in there, which is good for me since I am a fan.

On to the burger.

At $13 for the McHale’s burger with a slice of american and fries, this baby is near perfect. The only downer was the sesame seed bun that was a bit crumbly and got thin along the bottom once the burger was stacked up. It came with lettuce, onion, tomato and pickle. Photo lighting credit goes to my chicken-sandwich eating friend, who sacrificed half an apartment rental commission to dine with yours truly. That’s a $600 chicken sandwich he had!