PITD, assuming you went today, did you take advantage of all that half price Whiskey?

Had a tasty, plump burger at Erwin's last night. Perhaps not world reknown for burgers, but good stuff. As noted in an above post-very good fries, plus really nicely seasoned not too creamy slaw, and homemade pickle slices with a note of cumin. Added bonus: ya get to tickle yer appetite with a martini and some fried chicken livers.

I just tried a new spot in wrigleyville called "Cheweys" and it was average at best. They have 1/3 hand packed burgers with cheese ($4) that come with trimmings at an extra cost. The place is average at best although it is open late and I expect it will get traffic from Cubs games and people going to shows at the Metro. I wasnt that hungry so I didnt get any fries but the menu said they are hand cut in store. I looked the place up on google and found nothing so it must be brand new. It is located almost directly across the street from the Metro.

I grew up eating at Hamburger Heaven as well, and I still live within walking distance of eating there even though I don't care for their burgers as much now as I did when I was younger. I still go there a couple times a year for a chocolate shake or malt.

And yeah, their sign is indeed a classic. Given the way Elmhurst has been developing over the last decade, it's one of the few local shops in town that I remember from my youth that's still around and I hope they stay around for a long time to come.

I had the Kuma burger for the first time tonight.


Kuma Burger vs. Rosebud Cheeseburger

Bun
Goes to Kuma. The pretzel bun is so tasty i found myself eating the left over bun after the meat was already gone. I've never done that before.

Beef
Goes to Rosebud. The Kuma burger is 1/2 pound of black angus while the Rosebud burger is 3/4 pound of ground USDA prime. The Rosebud cheeseburger is not only jucier but more flavorful and better flavored than the Kuma.

Veggies
Goes to Rosebud. Tomato slices and lettuce seemed of a higher quality at Rosebud. I don't know about the onions, they didn't really strike me as special at either location.

Fries
Tie. Definitely a preference thing. I enjoyed the texture of the slimmer crunchier Rosebud pomme frittes more, but I prefered the potato-ey taste of the Kuma fries.

Overall
Both were excellent but I decisively preferred the Rosebud burger. While the bun for the Kuma burger was delicious I think its flavor was almost too strong and detracted from the burger. I like a big burger and while you can get a half pound burger anywhere, to get 3/4 of a pound of hand shaped ground beef is rare. But the main reason I preferred the Rosebud burger was that the combination of flavors just worked better with the Rosebud burger. The Rosebud burger is admittedly simpler, but it still works better.

If you think the Kuma burger is the best burger n the city you owe it to yourself to try the Rosebud as it might change your mind.

stewed coot wrote:Had a tasty, plump burger at Erwin's last night. Perhaps not world reknown for burgers, but good stuff.

Perhaps not, but they did top Time Out Chicago's list of best burgers in the "classic" category.

I hope I had a non-indicative Jury's experience: maybe someone can tell me whether this is par for the course or if I was just there on an off night - it was their Weds. night "Burger Mania" for what it's worth.

I sat at the bar, ordered a weiss beer (which was damn good, Franziskaner IIRC) and a blue cheese burger. Was offered raw or grilled onions, I picked grilled, with the burger cooked medium, and fries as opposed to slaw or pasta salad.

What I got was a burger whose bun disintigrated on the first lift, with straight-from-the-cooler onions which were almost impenetrable to human teeth. Every time I took a bite I ended up looking like the antagonist in this summer's Pirates of the Carribean movie.

And is it standard practice to leave in the burger the little piece of plastic that tells the cook what to cook it to? Because I would have bit right into that hidden little bugger...if it didn't jab into my thumb through the bottom of the bun.

The burger itself was allright, even if the whole of it was a stringy mess. The fries seemed to be of the Ore-Ida camp, but hey. It was a couple bucks off, right? Right? As a first-timer there, I just don't see what makes this such a destination for burgers, but like I said: everyone has an off night. I hope that's the case.

Jury's
4337 N. Lincoln Ave
Chicago, IL 60618

whiskeybent wrote:I hope I had a non-indicative Jury's experience: maybe someone can tell me whether this is par for the course or if I was just there on an off night - it was their Weds. night "Burger Mania" for what it's worth.

I sat at the bar, ordered a weiss beer (which was damn good, Franziskaner IIRC) and a blue cheese burger. Was offered raw or grilled onions, I picked grilled, with the burger cooked medium, and fries as opposed to slaw or pasta salad.

What I got was a burger whose bun disintigrated on the first lift, with straight-from-the-cooler onions which were almost impenetrable to human teeth. Every time I took a bite I ended up looking like the antagonist in this summer's Pirates of the Carribean movie.

And is it standard practice to leave in the burger the little piece of plastic that tells the cook what to cook it to? Because I would have bit right into that hidden little bugger...if it didn't jab into my thumb through the bottom of the bun.

The burger itself was allright, even if the whole of it was a stringy mess. The fries seemed to be of the Ore-Ida camp, but hey. It was a couple bucks off, right? Right? As a first-timer there, I just don't see what makes this such a destination for burgers, but like I said: everyone has an off night. I hope that's the case.

Jury's
4337 N. Lincoln Ave
Chicago, IL 60618

Last Wednesday?

They effed up my patty melt, too.

First time ever, after, oh, 40 visits.

In any event, that is my first and last time going to Jury's on el cheapo night.

And, I didn't even realize that it was el cheapo night until we got there.

E.M.

Just last night, actually.

I guess the moral: No more Jury's on Wednesdays.

whiskeybent wrote:Just last night, actually.

I guess the moral: No more Jury's on Wednesdays.

Based on my singularly bad experience I cannot make any generalizations about the quality of the burgers on Wednesday nights--my girlfriend's burger was perfect--but I will give Wednesdays a wide berth if only for the zoo-like atmosphere of "Burger Mania." Hell, my habit is to drop in at Jury's on Friday, of all nights, and it's never been as bad on a Friday as it was last Wednesday.

E.M.

I had dinner at Jury's last week Thursday and my waiter told me that the previous night had been just insane. So that may be why Eric's patty melt got screwed up. I've been eating at Jury's burgers for many years and they've always been great. (I used to work at the library and Jury's was a great retreat when the public had me down.) If they do screw something up, staff are usually good about fixing it.

Things are libel to be zoo-like at times over the next week. From the 12th to the 18th they are serving their corn beef dinners. Last year I went a few days before St. Paddy's day and it was mobbed. This year, I'm thinking about a late lunch on Friday. Should be safe.

Jamie

germuska wrote:Perhaps not, but they did top Time Out Chicago's list of best burgers in the "classic" category.

I read that whole article, and never found reference to the burger on the cover, with the fried egg and what looked like french fries. That burger looked fantastic. Does anyone actually serve it, or was it just made by the photo studio to sell magazines?

jeremy12321 wrote:

germuska wrote:Perhaps not, but they did top Time Out Chicago's list of best burgers in the "classic" category.

I read that whole article, and never found reference to the burger on the cover, with the fried egg and what looked like french fries. That burger looked fantastic. Does anyone actually serve it, or was it just made by the photo studio to sell magazines?

The latter - it was a fictional burger, created out of the best ingredients of
various burgers around the city ie bun from Paradise Pup, black pepper
truffle mayo from Fixture, Crispy Pancetta from May Street Market, Fried
egg from Kuma's, Caramelized onions from Naha, Mrs Quicks Farmhouse
Cheddar from bin wine cafe, sirloin patty from David Burke's Primehouse,
House-made pickles from Hot Chocolate. There arent any fries in the
picture. They claim the best fries are at Susiue's, which Ive never
tried - but all their fries seem to be "fries-with-stuff" IMHO. Id much
rather just have a good fry with salt... I dont think thats what TOC is
going for (and if it is, no publication that doesnt list Top Notch's fries
deserves any consideration, anyway

c8w

I don't know that I've ever eaten at Jury's on Wednesdays-- I've picked up 2-for-1 burgers-- but if Wednesdays are a madhouse try Mondays, when it's second entree free up to $10 or something like that. I can't swear the burger's included, but I think it is. Anyway, Mondays are busy, but not crazy, as I recall.

jeremy12321 wrote:

germuska wrote:Perhaps not, but they did top Time Out Chicago's list of best burgers in the "classic" category.

I read that whole article, and never found reference to the burger on the cover, with the fried egg and what looked like french fries. That burger looked fantastic. Does anyone actually serve it, or was it just made by the photo studio to sell magazines?

The burger they showed on the front cover is a teaser for any number of their selected burgers inside. For instance: the fried egg is a staple of the Kuma's Corner burger, and what looked like french fries are actually "Mrs. Quick's Farmhouse Cheddar" from the bin wine cafe. It's broken down on the table of contents page in the print magazine; I haven't seen it online.

I'm not the first one to say it, nor will I be the last, but the Sweets & Savories burger is fantastic. For those who don't believe that foie gras on a burger makes sense, I point you towards the butterburger (in particular Solly's Grille in Milwaukee). A little bit of sweet fat mixed with high quality meat on a well prepared bun, it just doesn't get any better than that.

Also, thanks LTHForum for telling me before the Time Out Chicago crowd. And thanks Time Out Chicago for not mentioning the fact that it's only $10 on Wednesday night or that you can make reservations online.

I had sampled the Rosebud burger before the issue as well (due to a suggestion on Metromix of Chicago's best burgers). I find it to be a very good burger, but somehow everything about it screams "meat". It's not so much a pretzel bun as "something to hold meat with". Even though I consider myself a big guy, 2/3 lb of meat always leaves me feeling like I never want to see another hamburger. However, I've been back a number of times since, as it's the platonic form of the giant burger. Also, if you're lucky, you'll see a man proposing with a moving billboard parked right outside the restaurant, giving it better ambiance than most steakhouses.

d4v3 wrote:

germuska wrote:Cross-Rhodes in Evanston has a very good char-burger, served with their greek fries in lemon-herb dressing.

For years, Cross Rhodes has served one of my favorite burgers. They are not huge and they don't come with a lot of options (just lettuce, tomato, onion and a pickle spear). They are just good basic char-grilled burgers.

I recently had a nearly head-to-head charburger taste off, and the comparison was telling. I ate at Cross-Rhodes and Muskie's in the same week, so I was able to compare them based on recent memory.

I had thought that the CR burger was quite flavorful when I had it, but it almost became moreso even days later when I encountered a truly nearly flavorless rendition from Muskie's. It had a decent char, but the meat was clearly another (lower) class.

They do make some nice fries at Muskie's -- no point in comparing them to the greek style fries at CR. The Muskie's fries are fresh-cut and double-cooked, and even a side order is gigantic. Alas, mine weren't all that hot (temperature), which is a little odd because they seemed to be doing steady business -- but they were still good. Fresh out of the fryer they'd probably be excellent.

germuska wrote:Cross-Rhodes in Evanston has a very good char-burger, served with their greek fries in lemon-herb dressing. $5.65, I believe.

Germuska,

Based on your recommendation, we were chatting about burgers at the LTHForum Cocktail Hour, and others positive comments, including d4v3's, upthread, I had a Cross Rhodes burger for lunch yesterday. I'd agree, a very good burger, beefy flavor, bit of char, done dead-on to my med-rare specs and good value.

Cross Rhodes Burger



Kitchen crew


I had not been to Cross Rhodes and found it friendly, spotless, comfortable, and reasonably priced. Steve Z had a gyro and, while standard issue ingredients, it was a tasty and well managed sandwich.

Cross Rhodes


Also had the pleasure of running into an LTHForum lurker and her husband.

Enjoy,
Gary

Cross Rhodes Restaurant
913 Chicago Ave
Evanston, IL 60202
847-475-4475

so i work in the building where poag mahone's is located and due to a professional relationship (i work for the company that owns poag's), i can have free food there whenever i want. they have very good burgers and i've eaten plenty of them. they've also been talked about here enough.

anyway, lately, when i feel like having a burger elsewhere, i've been loving the steak-n-shake style of burgers as an antidote to the poag's thick, juicy, mid rare burger....you know, the throw-a-fresh-ball-of-beef-down-on-a-griddle-and-smash-it-flat-with-a-spatula kind.

purely by chance, my mother-in-law is in town this weekend and suggested that we all take the toddler to the choo-choo diner in downtown des plaines for his second birthday. (it's tuesday, but we're having quite the little celebratory weekend).

so, although i'm somewhat dubious of these type of kid-friendly theme places, i tag along and what do i find but perhaps the best burger of this genre that i've ever had.

their menu explains:

"we cook our burgers the old fashioned way. We start with a large scoop of fresh meat on the grill, press it flat and cook it until it has just the right amount of delicate crispness around the edges."


so i order the choo-choo double, with cheese, bacon, and grilled onions, and soon enough the train comes rollin' around the track with my order in tow. yes, it's a kiddie theme restaurant. yes, it's noon on saturday and there's four different kids howling, a line out the door, and i'm crammed into a tiny booth with my belly wedged against the formica table. and, yes, i DO find it annoying that they give all the kids little plastic train whistles and they're all blowing them, which, combined with the 50's jukebox music, and the chug-chug-chugging of the little model train that keeps whizzing by my head hauling baskets of burgers and fries serves to creat a cacophony of chaotic noise....

but dammit, this is one of the best burgers i've ever had! thin, unevenly shaped patties cooked crisp but very tender, cheese under and between, crisp bacon slices, chopped sauteed onions in a cup on the side which i dumped on top and covered with ketchup.

while my toddler waved his grilled cheese around and smeared ketchup on his face, i was focusing on this burger and trying to figure out a way that i could stop in and grab a burger when i'm in the area running errands or something without looking like some weirdo pedophile. will i have to bring my kid along as a prop every time i crave this type of burger? too bad they don't have a drive-thru.

so, aware of the choo-choo's half-hour time limit on table-sitters, we finished our burgers, pushed away our baskets still half-full with mediocre crinkle-cut fries, and slurped up the last of our hand-dipped oreo milkshakes that they serve in the stainless steel cup from the mixer (also fantastic) and managed to snake our way past the throng of people waiting in the vestibule to get in.

this, despite the kiddie theme, is one of the very best examples of this style of burger, which is quickly becoming my favorite. don't get me wrong, i'm a big fan of a thick, juicy, med. rare burger too, but this type of burger really scratches an itch for me. and on this day, the choo-choo was really an unexpected treat.

choo-choo diner
600 lee st.
des plaines, il
847-381-9815
http://www.thechoochoo.com/index.html

elakin wrote:so i order the choo-choo double, with cheese, bacon, and grilled onions, and soon enough the train comes rollin' around the track with my order in tow. yes, it's a kiddie theme restaurant. yes, it's noon on saturday and there's four different kids howling, a line out the door, and i'm crammed into a tiny booth with my belly wedged against the formica table. and, yes, i DO find it annoying that they give all the kids little plastic train whistles and they're all blowing them, which, combined with the 50's jukebox music, and the chug-chug-chugging of the little model train that keeps whizzing by my head hauling baskets of burgers and fries serves to creat a cacophony of chaotic noise....

but dammit, this is one of the best burgers i've ever had!

I also enjoy those steak-n-shake type burgers, and I'm glad you liked your choo-choo burger. But after reading your desription of the environs, you couldn't get me in there for a free meal even if you had a cattle prod.

I'm blogging about TOC's burger list with my friend Adam here.

http://chicagoburgerproject.blogspot.com/

I went to Monk's Pub for lunch last week. It's so dark from the exterior, I never really even noticed it til my friend suggested it to satisfy her burger craving. I like having the option of grilled vs. raw onions as a standard topping. My burger was cooked to perfection. I brought the other half home w/me, and it was still good as leftovers.

I was starving last night after waiting for the Georgetown-UNC game to end in OT and running in the Shamrock Shuffle earlier in the day. Usually, when I'm hungry, I find myself a little less critical of whatever I'm eating. However, I was pretty disappointed w/my burger at Jury's last night. I asked for it to be cooked medium w/a little pink in the middle. It was prepared well done, and I found the char to be salty tasting. Being overcooked on a thick bun, my burger was really dry. I am surprised it is ranked on so many listings. My server was awful. It wasn't particularly busy last night, but she was cold, rude, and oblivious to us. She never came in to check on things after we were served our food. I tried to flag her down the two times she came by the table next to us - no luck. I finally had to bring my glass to the bartender to get a refill. The busboy checked in on us at the end of the meal. I didn't even tip her 15%, which I've never done before.

I was at Erwin for brunch yesterday with five of my family members. All six of us ordered burgers - we clearly lack creativity . Our burgers were cooked perfectly to order (we had two medium-wells, a medium and three medium rares), matched up perfectly with our cheese selections. I know I shouldn't be applauding a place for cooking your food to order, but it seems to be an issue more and more with burgers and especially with this size of party. My med-rare burger was pink and juicy on the inside and the seasoning was fantastic. Good without overwhelming the quality of the beef, which is also another issue with burgers (IMO, Twisted Spoke's seasoning is too strong). I absolutely adored their fries, though. We lingered over beers and drinks, and I found them still tasty even when not hot.

Had the Merkt's hickory burger at the Gaslight last night. As described from their menu:

A 1/2lb. burger topped with Merkt’s renowned cheddar spread, hickory barbecue sauce and applewood smoked bacon on a warm fresh bun.

It was a tasty burger, especially along with their seasoned fries and a few pints of guiness. On wednesday's its $5 sandwiches and $3.50 pints, a good deal to me.

Gaslight Bar & Grille
2426 N. Racine Ave.
Chicago

Over the weekend and near Valparaiso, IN, it was lateish and we had a carload of hungry hikers. Taking a pass at most of the standard fare I spotted Red Robin and we decided to give it a try.

We had a non-red meat eater with us and sometimes my bride will go with an alternative... One had the California Chicken Burger and the other the Baja Chicken Burger.

They enjoyed it very much and there are many varieties in toppings. The guacamole was a tasty addition.

I had the Royal Red Robin burger.

This is the aristocrat of all burgers because we crown it with a fresh fried egg. In addition, topped with three strips of hickory-maple smoked bacon, American cheese, crisp lettuce, tomatoes and mayo.

Mmmm. Fried egg (ala Kuma). The egg and bacon were sizeable enough to be tasted along with the burger patty. The patty itself was nothing special. A uniform shaped patty, not too thick.

I started off with the French Onion Soup. Tasty, but it could of been browned a little more.

Fries? Very good steak fries. All you can eat.

It looks like they are trying to attract families with the cartoon character, game room and under the floor mounted TV showing cartoons in the foyer.

Prices? Not too bad. Most burgers $8.

Nice selections of cheese... Cheddar, American, Swiss, Monterey Jack, Bleu, Provolone or Pepper-Jack.

Red Robin - Valparaiso
3004 John Howell Dr.
Valparaiso, IN 46385
219-531-7337

I couldn't be more surprised. The Red Robins in Madison and Janesville, WI, serve some of the worst burgers I've ever had. Toppings are anemic, vegetables are slimy...I'll take a TGI Fridays--even a Denny's--over these any day.

I was glad to see someone else had a bad experience at Jurys. I always figured I was overreacting or something.

The last time we were there I ordered a medium rare burger and got well done. There was nothing I could do about it because the server didn't come back to the table the entire meal. I had to get more water from the bartender. I mentioned the burger to the owner and he was indifferent. It's not as though I was asking to be comped either. He obviously just didn't give a shit. Nor did the server.

We won't be back.

The Red Robin in Valpo was good. Toppings fresh and the burger was good.

Not bad at all for a chain but then again a chain will vary from location to location.

I've been reasonably pleased by the Red Robin in Lincolnshire (Aptikisik and Milwaukee). Except for wanting to put mayo on most of their burgers, I'm reasonably pleased with them.

Their Chipotle Mayo on the Blue Ribbon burger is nearly tolerable for this mayo-hater, but could use a 10X increase in chipolitude.

I went to Jury's once 2 months ago with my girlfriend and we both thought the burgers were subpar -- dry and very poorly flavored...
I wondered if they just forgot the seasoning?