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.