Counter Cafe

I continued my hamburger tour through Austin, Texas today and had lunch with an old friend. He had no idea about my blog and yesterday when we set up lunch, he suggested we go to a burger joint that I introduced him to when I lived in Austin. I agreed and we went to meet up at the burger joint. He got there first and discovered that it was closed today. I told him I could suggest another place I wanted to try, having my August 2009 issue of Texas Monthly Magazine ranking the Top 50 hamburgers in the state. I suggested we go to Counter Cafe, located at 626 N. Lamar. He agreed and we were off. We arrived and got lucky and found parking in the small parking lot. We put our name on the list and had a very short wait. The building is real small and only accomodates approximately 25-30 people. We got a good seat at the counter right in front of the grill. I say good because you can see the cooks making all the food, the drawback is that you feel the heat from the grill. We both ended up ordering the Counter Burger with bacon and fries. Texas Monthly ranked the Counter Burger number 2 on its list, so I had to order it. We received our food and began eating. The first thing I noticed was how different the meat's consistency was. It was leaner and tender. Come to find out that they use fresh Niman beef, which just means that it's organic and doesn't have fillers. No fillers and also no salt or pepper. Anyone that reads my blog with regularity knows that for me, my hamburger patty has to be seasoned well. The patty was cooked medium well, which I like and was very juicy. The cheese melted fantastic and the bacon was very crispy. The bread was delicious and sweet. The lettuce is also organic and called bibb. The fries were freshly made and hand cut. Aside from the patty not being seasoned, the only other thing I can complain about was the price tag. The burger by itself was $9 and adding bacon tacked on another $3. The burger was good, but in my opinion, was not $9 good. I think though that you're paying for the Niman beef, since it's not the kind of beef you can buy at your local grocery store. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being The Perfect Burger, I give the Counter Burger at Counter Cafe, an 8.

Casino el Camino

I went to Austin, Texas this weekend to take in a UT football game against the UTEP Miners with one of my good friends. I decided that everyday I was there I would try to have a hamburger since I don't get to Austin much. I remembered watching the Food Network show "Diners, Dive Ins, and Dives" and they visited this restaurant. I decided that I would have to visit this place since it was on the show. I mean, how could I not? So I told my friend beforehand that after the game, we'll walk down to 6th Street and check this place out. So, yesterday, after the UT game, we walked down to 6th Street and visited Casino el Camino, located at 517 E. 6th Street. This place is mostly a bar that also serves food and must be ordered not only separately, but paid for separately. You can however, start a tab at the bar and have the food added on, so it's not a problem. I already knew before walking in what I was going to eat, having watched the show, and for the first time, it was not a bacon cheeseburger. The TV show profiled a burger called the Amarillo burger, which is made with roasted serrano chiles, jalapeno jack cheese, and chipotle mayonnaise. So I went to the burger counter and ordered my Amarillo burger with fries. You can also order other U.S. city named hamburgers, as well as other items. The menu and the chefs tell you in advance that it's going to be a bit of a wait, considering their burgers are 3/4 pound! Being an amateur chef myself, I would expect a thick 3/4 pound patty to take a while, which, being in Austin, is quite alright as you can sit in the bar and take in the ambience and people watch. Also, being that it was a hot day, the cool a/c and cold beer made the wait pleasurable. Finally, our burgers were ready and I picked them up at the counter. Taking my picture was a bit of a challenge since the bar was dark and I couldn't see my food. After several attempts though, I was finally able to snap a pic. The hamburger patty was indeed thick and is made by hand fresh. The menu says that the patty is made medium, unless you request it otherwise. My burger, however, I think was left on the grill too long and was made more well done. It was definitely not medium and had a bit of a charred taste to it. I could also tell it was well done because the patty was dry. I had to add salt and pepper, as the patty was not seasoned at all. As you might imagine, the peppers, cheese, and mayo, all together, made it one spicy burger! But with a cold beer by your side, it's all worth it. You will still, however, sweat a bit. The fries, at least my fries, were less than good. They're supposed to be fresh and hand cut. Well, they definitely are hand cut, but I don't think mine were fresh. I think they had been sitting there a while, because they were a tad cool and they were hard. I've never had that experience with hand cut fries before. I could also tell they weren't fresh, because there was no oil or grease on them, as if they had just come out of the fryer. I don't know if it was just my order or if it's like that all the time, I tend to think it was just mine. Next time I go, I'm going to get my usual bacon cheeseburger, which is what my friend had, the Chicago burger. For this visit, I'll take a few points off for the patty not being seasoned and the fries being bad, but i'll add a few points for the ambience and the overall experience. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being The Perfect Burger, I give Casino el Camino a 7.

Yankee's Tavern & Grill

Today, my work took me to the sprawling metropolis of Iola, Texas. Along the way, I passed by a biker bar called Yankee's Tavern & Grill, located at 10328 FM 244 in Carlos, Texas, and having been there before, I decided to stop by for lunch. I ordered my usual bacon cheeseburger and fries. I stopped by early, so there was not that long of a wait. Here, they serve a thick, fresh 1/2 pound patty, that even though it's not seasoned enough to my liking, the tradeoff is how juicy it is and tender it is. The cheese melted nicely on top and the bacon was crisp. Today, the mustard was spread a little too thick, but the A-1 Steak Sauce available counteracted the strong mustard taste. The bread was nothing special, not homemade, my guess is it's store bought, but when the patty is thick and juicy as it is, all you need is something around the patty to hold on to. The same could be said about the fries, nothing special; I didn't even finish them. They were also a little pricey. The patty here, however, overshadows everything else and makes it well worth the trip. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being The Perfect Burger, I give Yankee's Tavern & Grill an 8.

Mooyah Burgers and Fries

Today my work took me to the most southern part of Harris County, right across the county line from Pearland. I Googled burger places in Pearland before heading down there and discovered a new place I had never heard of, Mooyah Burgers and Fries. This is a franchise based in the Dallas, Texas area and they have three locations in the Houston area. When I took a look at their menu online, I discovered that they have a similar layout and menu as another burger franchise that I really like that I haven't yet reviewed. So, I already had an expectation that this burger joint would be good. Well, I wasn't disappointed. I went with my supervisor and I ordered my customary bacon cheeseburger. Here, they call it a Mooyah Burger, which is made with 2 all beef patties that are never frozen. The bacon and cheese were extra, $0.60 each. All the other fixings are free. And boy, they have many fixings to choose from. You can select from the standard tomatoes, onion, lettuce, etc., as well as jalapenos, Mooyah Special Sauce, BBQ sauce, and other toppings. I went with jalapenos and A1 Steak Sauce to go with lettuce, mustard, mayo, and pickles. After a short wait, we received our food and I was immediately impressed with the size of the burger and how the cheese was all nice and melted on the patties. The patties were very well seasoned and juicy. The bacon was nice and crispy. The A1 and mustard blended together well and gave the burger a nice flavor. I didn't care for their pickles, as you can see from the photo, they used bread and butter pickles and I prefer dill pickles. The only other thing that I didn't like about the burger was the fact that they put lettuce on the burger that was wet. My burger got soggy after a while, and not the good kind of soggy when grease is being squeezed out of the burger, but water was being squeezed from the lettuce. The french fries were good and you get quite a bit when you order the regular size, which feeds 1-2 people. They're homemade and are freshly cut. Too bad I don't live closer to Mooyah's, I'd be in there at least twice a month. I'll have to settle for whenever I can get there. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being The Perfect Burger, I give Mooyah Burger and Fries a 9.

Burgers, Fries, n Things

Today my work took me to the 610/Cullen area of Houston. I did some research before I went down there to see what burger establishments were in the area. I decided to go with a close restaurant and I visited Burgers, Fries, n Things located at 8525 Scott St. I Googled the business and was able to see a picture of the building. I immediately got excited as the picture indicated it was a hole-in-the-wall/greasy spoon type place. When I arrived, my excitement was affirmed as the building is indeed a shack. It doesn't even have anywhere to sit and eat, I had to eat in my car. So, I figured the food must be good. Then, when I saw the prices, my heart skipped a beat because you can get a bacon cheeseburger basket, WITH fries AND a drink for only $5.05! Well, the proverbial saying, "You get what you pay for," really applies to this place. Sorry to say that the hamburger patty, although well seasoned, as you can see from the picture, was extremely thin and dry as a bone. It also seemed to almost be fried. The bacon was tough and did not seem as it was just made, more like it had been sitting there for a while. The old school crinkle cut fries were decent, even if they had been left in the frier too long. Their menu is varied, from pork chops to fried catfish, and I'm guessing there are better things to eat here since there was quite a few people waiting for food. In a pinch, I guess I would eat here again, but there are probably better hamburger choices in the area. I would've rather spent a little more and have gotten a better burger. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being The Perfect Burger, I give Burgers, Fries, n Things a 4.