Cathy2 wrote:A friend brought a butcher buddy to Fuddruckers when they had butchers on the premises. Butcher buddy never believed the meat being prepared on-site in plain view was really served there. He felt there was a big disconnect between what you saw and what was served.

Not that I'm defending Fudruckers, but why would anyone go through such an elaborate charade of butchering and grinding the meat on premise and then not serving it? There seems to be a disconnect in logic.

Erik M. wrote: This was my second visit to Bin Wine Cafe and, for me, it is a welcome addition to the neighbourhood. I have now tried 12-14 items from their "seasonally-inspired" lineup of starters, pizzas, and entrees, and I would heartily recommend the Caesar-dressed Romaine Salad, the Saffron and Mussel Soup, the Clams with Chorizo, the White Pizza, and, of course, the Hearth Burger.

Erik - how do you feel it compares to the original Bin 36? We always thought that one a bit overpriced, so hubby has been reluctant to visit the one on Milwaukee

(and we must live near each other, as we are in spitting distance of Darwin's as well - is it just us or did they tone down their flaming hot wings after re-opening?)

stevez wrote:

Cathy2 wrote:A friend brought a butcher buddy to Fuddruckers when they had butchers on the premises. Butcher buddy never believed the meat being prepared on-site in plain view was really served there. He felt there was a big disconnect between what you saw and what was served.

Not that I'm defending Fudruckers, but why would anyone go through such an elaborate charade of butchering and grinding the meat on premise and then not serving it? There seems to be a disconnect in logic.

Potemkin Village?

leek wrote:Erik - how do you feel it compares to the original Bin 36? We always thought that one a bit overpriced, so hubby has been reluctant to visit the one on Milwaukee.

By the looks of the Bin 36 menu which is available online, Lee, I would think that you might find better value at the new Milwaukee location. Granted, the Milwaukee menu does not have nearly the same breadth as that of the original Bin 36, but I think that there are plenty of options to consider in each iteration, and as the menu changes with the season(s).*

leek wrote:(and we must live near each other, as we are in spitting distance of Darwin's as well - is it just us or did they tone down their flaming hot wings after re-opening?)

I have not moved yet, but I will be situated on Cortland between Damen and Ashland. And, I have yet to try the wings at Darwin's, Lee, as I cannot yet get past the burgers and the pumpkin-jalapeno soup.**

E.M.

* There are significantly fewer wine offerings by the glass at the Milwaukee location. Same too with cheese. The pricing for these items, however, would seem to be the same.

** I would suggest that you try the soup if you are looking for heat. It is quite spicy.

Went to Brandt's in Palatine for burgers this weekend. Very good burger (had mine med rare, on dark rye) with good steak cut fries. Good "joint" atmosphere, and it was kid friendly. Definitely worth it if you are in the area.

Brandt's
SW Corner of Quenton and Northwest Highway
Palatine, IL

Erik M. wrote:I have not moved yet, but I will be situated on Cortland between Damen and Ashland. And, I have yet to try the wings at Darwin's, Lee, as I cannot yet get past the burgers and the pumpkin-jalapeno soup.**

** I would suggest that you try the soup if you are looking for heat. It is quite spicy.

We are on Shakespeare between Damen and Hoyne now, moved there in September. And we LOVE that pumpkin soup at Darwin's! I think the burgers are fine, but we've been spoiled by living across the street from Pete Miller's for too long

And thanks for doing the Spoon menu, by the way, I finally got there last week and used your descriptions and translations to help in ordering.

saps wrote:Went to Brandt's in Palatine for burgers this weekend.

This is my favorite local spot for a burger. Even better, we're getting around the time of year where the servers hand out free bottles of wine to every customer, out of gratitude for their support.

Charlie Beinlich's, often mentioned in this thread, is a place that I had not been to since I was a child. That is, until Saturday.

Petit pois and I found ourselves in Northbrook around lunchtime and stopped in at Beinlich's for a couple cheeseburgers. I take mine with swiss cheese and raw onions, she goes for cheddar and grilled. Both medium-rare and a healthy dose of mustard (no ketchup) for me.

This is truly an excellent burger. Tender, juicy, and beefy.

The top-notch atmosphere of Beinlich's was punctuated by the two octogenarian ladies out for a girls' lunch at the next table. Two grandmothers who seemed like there was no place that they'd rather be than at Beinlich's, ejoying crab meat cocktail and cheeseburgers.

If you haven't been there in a while, put it on your list.

Charlie Beinlich's Food and Tap
290 Skokie Blvd
Northbrook, IL 60062
Tues-Sat: 11:30 am-10:45 pm
http://charliebeinlichs.com/

Best,
Michael

+1 for Jury's here....

i've had.. twisted spoke, 2 nicky's big daddy's, the 1/2 # top notch beef, strat's, kevin's, & weiner circ's in bit over 7 day's worth just to keep the beef fresh in my mind.

and on Jury's Wednesday burger nite burgers are only $4.95 with fries. Cheeseburgers only $5.50, i don't think it can be beat for the taste/value ratio. balanced char flavor, juicy beef, green leaf lettuce, just the right dab of raw/grilled red onions, real mayo... still, it's no Mazo's...

that said, i haven't been to many of the other 2 worded "burger joints"... but since i'm not readily inclined to pay double digits for gigantic burgers i think i shall remain distant from smith & wollenskies, etc.

Yesterday was one of those rare lazy days that Barry and I had where we both actually had downtime at the same time. Since we did just get a new car, and neither of us had been to Charlie Beinlich's, we decided to give it a go.

We both liked it. Not sure if I would say it's the best, but I enjoyed the whole experience. The place was jammed, by the way, for a Wednesday afternoon. So busy that I opted not to take pictures! We got there just after one and we got the last table. About eight people were waiting for a table as we left.

With all the closings going on in the city, it was nice to see a place thriving. Kind of odd to see a Bentley-Rolls Royce dealer next door though....

The only bad point: the price.
Two rootbeers
One shrimp cocktail
Two burgers

$31.00!

Erik M. wrote:In no particular order, my current list would include the following:

Darwin's
Wiener's Circle
Paradise Pup
Jane's
Charlie Beinlich's
Top Notch Beefburger
Bill's
Don's
Smith&Wollensky
Steak&Shake

E.M.

OK, I am going to give Steak&Shake the shove, and I am adding LuxBar to my list.

"Hi, my name is Erik M. and I am a LuxBar patty meltaholic."*

I have had five LuxBar patty melts in as many weeks.

E.M.

* I like the regular burgers at LuxBar too, but they haven't driven me completely nuts like the patty melts have. Where the regular burgers are concerned, I am particularly fond of the "pub cheese" option. If it isn't Merkt's™ cheese spread, it is awfully close. And, oh, yes, I cannot forget the pickles; LuxBar has excellent housemade pickles.

Erik M. wrote:

Erik M. wrote:In no particular order, my current list would include the following:

Darwin's
Wiener's Circle
Paradise Pup
Jane's
Charlie Beinlich's
Top Notch Beefburger
Bill's
Don's
Smith&Wollensky
Steak&Shake

E.M.

OK, I am going to give Steak&Shake the shove, and I am adding LuxBar to my list.

"Hi, my name is Erik M. and I am a LuxBar patty meltaholic."*

I have had five LuxBar patty melts in as many weeks.

E.M.

* I like the regular burgers at LuxBar too, but they haven't driven me completely nuts like the patty melts have. Where the regular burgers are concerned, I am particularly fond of the "pub cheese" option. If it isn't Merkt's™ cheese spread, it is awfully close. And, oh, yes, I cannot forget the pickles; LuxBar has excellent housemade pickles.

I must say that you have some very good burgers listed . . . but I won't try the one at LuxBar. I was there two Sundays ago and had one of my worst dining experiences in Chicago. Was there with a friend -- I ordered the fried chicken sandwich . . . (can't remember what my friend ordered but it was a brunch item) . . . 55 minutes later, our food was delivered. Our waitress kept apologizing and telling us it should be soon -- how long does it take to cook such simple foods? Anyway, it wasn't worth a 10-minute wait. The chicken had minimal breading, little flavor other than salt and was served on stale bread. It was also served with fries which I'm guessing had very sadly left their very comfortable home of years -- their home under the heat lamp that is. My friend had an equally bad experience with the food. On a plus note and in fairness to LuxBar, the manager came over and apologized and comped the meal -- appropriately, but nonetheless very appreciated. And of course we tipped the waitress b/c it probably wasn't her fault and she did her job of telling the manager of the problem. I noticed three tables right around us were also comped. Funny thing is I told the story to a friend who said she had the same experience there a week earlier (food and service).

Of course, this is not to say that the burgers (or melts) at LuxBar are not good. I'll just never find out. I'd rather be yelled and sworn at by my friends at the Wiener Circle.

Erik M. wrote:* I like the regular burgers at LuxBar too, but they haven't driven me completely nuts like the patty melts have.

hmf. the "regular" burger in Q is the wagyu/kobe burger? after 3 Sweets & Savories burgers in a month, i'm ready to diversify. is it possible to finish the buttermilk breaded friend chicken and the burger by oneself in 1 sitting? probably not...

TonyC wrote:hmf. the "regular" burger in Q is the wagyu/kobe burger? after 3 Sweets & Savories burgers in a month, i'm ready to diversify. is it possible to finish the buttermilk breaded friend chicken and the burger by oneself in 1 sitting? probably not...

I have not tried the Kobe beef burger at LuxBar. I have only tried the regular burgers/melts ("natural beef, fresh ground, hand formed on the fly"), and the "slider" variants.

Knowing you, I don't think that the fried chicken and burger back-to-back combo would be any great hardship.

E.M.

We skipped out on Semiramis/Maza and went the burger route instead.

I chose Rockwell's Neighborhood Grill and have to say, the burgers were not all that. My boyfriend put it well when he said they tasted like Big Macs. The sesame bun and the overwhelming taste of mustard was part of the problem.

While there was nothing particularly wrong with them, there was nothing exceptional about them either.

There was a Mardi Gras party going on and we felt very out of place in this seemingly "neighborhood" joint. However, even though no one came by to take our order for a good 15 minutes, our waiter made up for it by giving us a couple of beers on the house.

I might return if asked by a friend, but I would definitely not order the burger.

I'd have to disagree with whoever said they liked Rockwell's better than Jury's.

Carlywood wrote:I chose Rockwell's Neighborhood Grill and have to say, the burgers were not all that. My boyfriend put it well when he said they tasted like Big Macs. The sesame bun and the overwhelming taste of mustard was part of the problem.

I'd have to disagree with whoever said they liked Rockwell's better than Jury's.

Carlywood - We also had the burger on 2/25 and were disappointed. Since we live in the neighborhood and b/c it is a very family-friendly place, we eat at Rockwell's every couple weeks. Generally, the burgers are well prepared and have plenty of flavor. On Saturday, my medium/well burger was delivered to me rare; I had to send it back (a first for me). Our experience that night was nothing like the pretty good experience we normally have. Hopefully, it was just a bad night for the kitchen.

If you live nearby, the Rockwell burger may deserve another shot. On a good night, I enjoy the Rockwell burger's juicy, meaty taste. I've often found Jury's burger to be a bit dry. But Jury's half-priced night is still a great deal.

Anytime you order a burger past medium you're going to run the risk of drying it out. The longer you cook beef, the more it loses its unique flavor and texture. Once you cook a burger medium at Rosebud Steakhouse or Beinlich's they taste the same- just ordinary. If you cook a piece of prime meat from Gibson's long enough, you run the risk of giving it the flavor of a steak from Lone Star, IMHO.

[Talking about Luxbar]

TonyC wrote: is it possible to finish the buttermilk breaded friend chicken and the burger by oneself in 1 sitting? probably not...

Reminds me of..... How many psychiatrists does it take to change a light bulb? One, but the light bulb has to really want to change.

Speaking of Luxbar burgers, I'm with Erik on the pub cheese, really pretty good. Far as Wagyu burgers I had one with the foie gras addition which was a bit of a waste, as the foie gras was completely lost, taste/texture wise.

Luxbar Wagyu burger w/foie gras


Luxbar's buttermilk fried chicken is good, nice size portion as well, but in two tries I have not noticed any hint of butter milk.


Luxbar Mac and Cheese is a good side option


as are the crisp onion strands.


Next time at Luxbar I'm going with Erik's pick of patty melt, which I have not tried as of yet.

Enjoy,
Gary

LTH,

Went for a late burger at Jury's last evening, after a play at the Bailiwick, Seth Z's wife Kerensa Peterson was in the play, and quite wonderful, we hit it lucky, it was Burger Night at Jury's.

Burgers were $4.95, a number of 'burger wines' were discounted, we had a bottle of nicely drinkable Sangiovese for $19. Burger was perfect, rare as we asked, crisp fries, onion rings were good and no attitude for ordering food 10-minutes before the kitchen's weekday 10pm close. Jury's has been, and remains, in my top few bar/restaurant style burgers.

Enjoy,
Gary

Jury's
4337 N. Lincoln Ave
Chicago, IL 60618
773-935-2255
http://www.jurysrestaurant.com/

G Wiv wrote:Luxbar Wagyu burger w/foie gras

the fries I had last night did not look like that. They were much thinner and quite hard - not crispy - hard. Pretty inedible. The burger was tasty though.

I just had a great burger on Tuesday at Darwins. The bun was whole wheat and substantial, great texture. The burger was juicy, cooked perfect to order, and garnished with very fresh lettuce, tomato, and onion. The presentation was also an A+....cut in half on a twisted aerodynamic platter with a heaping bunch of crisp perfect fries in the center. My friend ordered a salad substitute and it was a very decent mix of baby greens.

Most remarkably Tuesdays nights are the $2 burger/$2 PBR special!!!!

cuteheart1977 wrote:I just had a great burger on Tuesday at Darwins.... Most remarkably Tuesdays nights are the $2 burger/$2 PBR special!!!!

Must you order the PBR to get the burger at $2?

Cathy2 wrote:

Greasy Spoon wrote:They say they grind the meat in-house. Are there very many places that do that?

Fuddrucker's claims to do just that, though their hamburger isn't worth posting about.

A friend brought a butcher buddy to Fuddruckers when they had butchers on the premises. Butcher buddy never believed the meat being prepared on-site in plain view was really served there. He felt there was a big disconnect between what you saw and what was served.

Not that this is burger-related, but I've always thought the same of Arby's - who claims to roast their meat in-house; it always tastes steamed to me. I wonder if the FCC has ever researched these claims.

Mhays wrote:Not that this is burger-related, but I've always thought the same of Arby's - who claims to roast their meat in-house; it always tastes steamed to me. I wonder if the FCC has ever researched these claims.

Having worked at Arby's a long, long, long time ago (even though only for a very, very short time), I can tell you that they do roast the meat in-house. However, before it's cooked, it appears to be a disgusting, mushy loaf that I swore I'd never eat after having seen it pre-cooked. But of course, years later I pretend that I never saw the beef pre-cooked and thus, I still go to Arby's occasionally and savor the Arby and Horsey sauce on the sandwiches. Yummmm

I think it tastes steamed because it steams itself while roasting, being an assembled loaf of odds and ends pressed and glued into shape with tons of injected, beef-flavored liquid.

Astronauts eat more authentic roast beef than Arby's customers.

Stumbled into Hackney's Sunday night and ordered the lamb burger from their specialty menu.

I'm not saying that this was the best burger I've ever had, just that it was VERY flavorful (cooked rare, served on sourdough with cumin-flavored yoghurt), and it's a nice option to have available (I don't recall having seen it elsewhere, altho Greek taverna might offer similar ground-lamb-yoghurt sandwich combos). Maybe if enough people order/ask for it, it'll become a permanent part of their menu.

733 S. Dearborn
Chicago, IL 60605
312-461-1116

Hi,

I was Celtic Knot this evening, they also offer a lamb burger with mint relish.

Add Celtic Knot to list of places which cooks hamburgers their way. A few weeks ago, I was with a person who ordered their hamburger medium rare. The hamburger arrived medium well with just a trace of pink. This evening a friend ordered her hamburger medium well to find it totally cooked through. While there is a lot I like about Celtic Knot, I will pass on the hamburgers.

Last week I had a late evening dinner at Denny's after the election. I was contemplating having a hamburger. I asked the waiter, "How do you cook your hamburgers?" "Well done." "Thank you for your honesty, I will have the turkey with stuffing and gravy instead." I tipped him better for his honesty.

I really dislike the trend of promising to cook your hamburger *your way* when they fully intend to cook it *their way.*

Regards,

My fave was the Kobe/foie gras burger with truffle fries at Rockit Bar. Now though, I'm digging the burger at Dine-a new restaurant at the corner of Madison and Halsted in the West Loop. My husband swears by the burger at Naha. I've never had it.

CTB wrote:My fave was the Kobe/foie gras burger with truffle fries at Rockit Bar. ...

I'd have to second the Kobe burger @ Rockit... However, if you're not in the mood to pay the $16 for it, their Sirloin Burger is just as good. And I think it's only $8 or $9... I know this comment has the potential to open up a can of worms, but I think it's the bun they use that really makes it great. It (the bun) tastes a bit like a pretzel. All together it brings a great flavor. And best of all, it goes great with a beer! And THAT is very important to me.

I don't think I could say the same for that burger I had over at Sweets and Savories though... I couldn't pick the damn thing up! It was sliding all over the place. It was a bloody mess I tell ya... It was horrible... Ah well, to each his own.

I was over at the Twisted Spoke in the West Loop on Saturday and had one of the worst burgers in recent memory.

I asked for it medium-rare and it was so over cooked there was not a trace of pink. Also, the burger was so overpowered by the "Lipton Onion Soup Mix" spices that it was almost inedible.

To make up for the whole mess I went to Poochies today in Skokie for a double cheddar burger! As always, Poochies did not disappoint.