Plan A just didn't work!

Venue: Plan B (Stamford Location)
Location: 230 Tresser Blvd, Stamford, CT 06901
Date of Visit: November 2nd, 2012
Burger: Bacon Cheese Burger
Score: 7.3
Price Range: $$$$$






Kenny: This was the first time a challenge was issued through twitter by a venue, claiming they have the best burger we’ll ever taste. So, I responded that I’d be taking them up on their challenge. When I finally got the chance to go to Plan B, it was a Friday night while in route to Boston. Not knowing where I was going, I keyed their address into the GPS and ended up at some kind of mall right off the freeway. I parked the car, went to the restaurant, and put my name on the 45 minute waiting list. At this point, I’d gone too far to turn away and just go to chipotle. So, I waited and watched as party after party came and followed us. After the long wait, I was very hungry, and spent the last 30 minutes looking over their 22 burger menu, which also featured other kinds of comfort food. I decided to ask the waiter which burger was their best; it was a toss-up between a few of their most ordered burgers, one of which was the Bacon Cheese, which was what I ordered.
For another first, I ordered my burger a lil’ pink instead of medium. Let me explain; you order your meat by the amount of pink you would like, and the only options were: Pink, no Pink, or a little pink. So, I figured a little pink would be medium, and the waiter confirmed that for me. There was also the option of a side: regular fries, truffled fries, parAsian fries, and green fries. I wasn’t feeling fancy, so it was regular fries for me. Around 10-15 minutes later, a sizable bacon cheese burger arrived in front of me. The patty was housed on a country bun, topped with a garlic mayo, a slice of American cheese, and three nice sized strips of bacon. With the first bite, I noticed something a little different from a lot of burgers we’ve had, spices. The seasoning seems like something you would put on a steak, but I think there was a little too much salt in this batch. The patty, itself, had a beautiful char, was very juicy, and working well with the spices. For white American cheese, it added a lot of flavor when it mixed with the garlic mayo and the bacon. The bun was big and fluffy, and had a hard time keeping in all the grease from the patty and the bacon. Overall, this was a pretty good burger, and I would love to visit again when I’m in the area.
One more thing about Plan B, the B stands for 100% Verified Humane Beef, Burgers, Beers, and a very large selection of Bourbon. Plan B has it right, Burgers and Bourbon.

The Devil is in the Details

Corey's Catsup and Mustard

623 Main St., Manchester, CT

Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2012

Oh Burger, You Devil

Score:7.1

$$$$$

Mike: Last week, I ventured up to Manchester, CT to visit some old friends and take in a traditional Thanksgiving feast.  What better way to prime yourself for the consumption of large quantities of protein and carbohydrates than to devour a big ‘ole burger and fries.  Such was the case this past turkey day-eve.  My friend introduced me to Corey’s Catsup and Mustard, a burger bar that has been reviewed by the New York Times and featured on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, with the irritatingly mad, Guy Fieri.

            Corey’s menu consists of a dozen different burgers, but the one I ordered stood out from all of the rest, literally.  Listed on the menu with pitchfork and hellfire, Oh Burger, You Devil beckoned me; so, it seemed to be the obvious choice at the time.  Oh Burger, You Devil is a 6.5 oz. burger seared with crushed red pepper, topped with jack cheese, jalapeno relish, chopped lettuce, tomato, bacon, and sriracha mayo stacked on a hard roll.  Corey’s gives you the option of substituting a warm pretzel bun for an extra 50 cents, which I couldn’t pass up. 

            When it comes to spicy food, too much heat oftentimes diminishes the flavor potential.  But, if the heat can be used to accent the other flavors, you’re bound to have something special.  This was almost the case with Oh Burger…  There wasn’t enough heat to dominate the more pronounced flavors like the bacon and beef, but the cheese and sriracha mayo were virtually undetectable.  The beef was seared in crushed red pepper; so much of its prominence contributed largely to the overall heat of the burger, and negation of the more subtle flavors.  This was a problem.  The ingredients shouldn’t be battling one another; instead, they should be working together like the sections of an orchestra.  The lettuce and tomato provided moments of respite from the spice, but I would have much preferred whole leaf lettuce over the chopped.  The chopped lettuce created an unstable base for the top bun to rest on, making it a bit clumsy to handle; but, at least it was romaine and not iceberg.

            Speaking of the bun, I really enjoyed the pretzel roll on this burger.  Not only did it present its own savory goodness, it helped immensely to keep the heat insulated within the burger.  This allowed me to taste and enjoy each bite without destroying my taste buds and making my mouth go numb.  The pretzel roll is also fairly dense, making it extremely durable.  This allowed it to hold up well to the combination of juices and condiments on the burger.

            Overall, I enjoyed the experience.  In hindsight, I wish I would have gone with one of their other burgers; but, it also gives me a reason to go back.  I also want to point out that the fries were good.  Like their burgers, there is a variety of types of fries from which to choose.  On a final not, I was disappointed in the pickle; they can keep their “half-sours” to themselves. 

The largest burger

Thurman’s Cafe

183 Thurman Ave,
Columbus, Ohio, 43206

$$$$$

The Thurmanator

First off, I don't remember seeing this episode of Man vs. Food, but this burger was the biggest I’ve ever seen.  After a long day of work, I came here for wings and a beer. After arriving, there was a 45 minute to an hour wait; this was why the waiting area was bigger than the dining area.  When we finally were seated, I started looking around at the burgers coming out and just knew they were double patties; they were about twice the size of the patties we normally have.  With that in mind, we ordered 12 wings(largest full wings ever) and I got the “Thurmanator.”  From the bottom up, this burger was stacked: Bottom bun, mayo, lettuce, tomato, pickle, banana peppers, 12 ounce burger, bacon, cheddar, another

12 ounce burger, sautéed mushrooms & onions, ham, mozzarella & American cheese, top bun.

They sat the two of us at a small table and the sheer amount of food caused us to need a larger table. The burger was held together with three wooden sticks.  This burger was bigger than my head.  Well, after I picked up the burger, there was no putting it back down.  There was so much mayo that, coupled with the pressure from my hand, it slowly killed the bottom bun within the first 5 to10 minutes. After that, I used the lettuce as the bun until it also slipped out. The meat had a good flavor with a nice char to it. I would have liked there to be  little more spice on it, but all the toppings made up for that.  This was like eating two burgers in one, with bacon as the ambassador between the two burger hemispheres.  The bottom was more of a traditional burger with a bit of veggies and mayo, while the top was sweeter and had more texture with the ham and onions.  The cheese was different in both sections.  Overall, I enjoyed this experience, but I wish the meat had a little more flavoring on it.  

Overall Rating 7.6

The Hour At The Oar House

The Oar House

34455 Brooten Rd.

Pacific City, Oregon 97135

Score: 6.3

$$$$$

Tom: Not the most exciting, the presentation was standard, the restaurant resembled a dive bar and the burger had nothing original but something worked.  After a 6-mile hike on the Oregon coast and a chilly stroll along the beach, this monster double cheeseburger was everything I needed it to be!  Two 1/3, unseasoned, warm and comforting patties, stacked with molten American cheese and other classic double cheese burger elements (tomato, onion, pickle, lettuce, bacon) that were completely un-noteworthy.  Though the meat quality was never going to wow any burger connoisseur, it was prepared expertly. And since I received recent criticism about my lack of bun attention I feel compelled to point out to the bun aficionados of the world, which I have lovingly dubbed “burger bunies”, that this potato sinker was soft, under toasted, and nothing more.  The standout performance of the meal, were the perfectly cooked, deliciously golden onion rings.  Ultimately the meal was over priced and the food was slightly better than the typical fare from a pub that would offer everything from Asian noodle salad to a meatball sub, yet sometimes the stars align to match primal burger cravings with a hefty plate of satisfaction.

Fat Failure

Fat Freddy’s Diner

6320 Pacific Ave

Pacific City, OR 97135

Score: 1.4

$$$$$

Tom: Located in the oldest building in Pacific City, Oregon (built way back in 1985) with a long history … blah blah blah… Don’t bother.  The onions were old and tasted like cleaning products.  The bacon was beyond crispy and had obviously been cooked in old fry oil by the deeply disturbing smell.  The “double” cheeseburger only had cheese on one rubbery patty, making it a cheeseburger/hamburger.  The “secret sauce” was mayo and bbq sauce and for 50¢ you could have a baby side of it.  After 3 bites and paying $12 for this miserable stack of garbage I went home, brushed my teeth and cried myself to sleep.  Come on Pacific City… have a little dignity.