Review #65 - BOOMburger

BOOMburger
Variety: Gourmet Burger
Address: 64 Dellridge Lane
Date Visited: Monday, August 3, 2015
Orders: Little Boom Bacon Cheeseburger, Little Boom Cheeseburger

Taste: 7 + 5* = 12/20
Portion Size: 9 + 8 = 17/20
Presentation: 5 + 5 = 10/20
Value: 8 + 8 = 16/20
Service: 7 + 7 = 14/20
Bonus: 1
Minus: -
Final Grade: 70% (Good)

(Scoring: 100% to 140% = Exceptional, 85% to 99% = Excellent, 67% to 84% = Good, 60% to 66% = Satisfactory, 50% to 59% = Marginal, 0% to 49% = Poor, -40% to -1% = Abysmal)

Notes: We tried BOOMburger the first day it opened back in the spring of 2014 and were more than a little disappointment by their lack of action to our disappointed tweet commenting on their omission of the bacon on our Little Boom Bacon Cheeseburger. (They "favourited" the tweet but didn't actually do anything about it. Bizarre!) So, although this joint is in our neighbourhood, we decided to give it a miss for a good long while. Truth be told, it might be a while longer before we go back, especially with Relish having just opened up down the street.

On the plus side, the place is spotless. It feels hospital grade clean. You could probably eat off the floor and walk out of there healthier than if you chowed down on some pristine fare from some other local establishments. It's so clean that while we were there, an employee actually scrubbed down the already-clean picnic benches outside. Bonus point for cleanliness.

Ordering was a little weird. In short: there's no combo option, you have to buy your burger, your drink and your fries all separate, and they're not particularly cheap. Yes, refills of the slightly watered down fountain pop were free, but when you grab yourself a burger, if you're anything like us, you want to feel you're getting a deal.

Although the place wasn't particularly busy, it took almost 10 minutes to get our food, which is a little long given their assembly line formation. J ordered the Little Boom Bacon Cheeseburger (hooray, it came with bacon this time!) and T had the Little Boom Cheeseburger. (Little Boom = one patty, Big Boom = a double dose of beef). The burgers were very tasty, and the Cows cheese (this is a PEI establishment, after all!) was a winner.

The fries, on the other hand...T put it best when she said "There is a way to make tasty hand-cut fries, they just haven't found it yet." The fries were very greasy, overly crispy and borderline burned. Some of them actually tasted bitter. We wonder if perhaps the bitter taste came from the bag - although we ordered "eat in", our order came in a paper bag and although there was a very generous portion of fries, they were quite literally just dumped into the bag (see photo below). As such, the "presentation" category took a massive hit, and although T would have given the burger an 8, the fries were a 3, giving it a paltry 5/10 score for her (hence the asterisk above).

For a place that's been open almost 16 months, they still have a lot of work to do.

Final Verdict: Go for the burger, but definitely skip the fries.

Review #45 - Flipburger

Flipburger
Variety: Gourmet Burger
Address: 277 Lacewood Drive
Date Visited: Saturday, February 2, 2013
Orders: Blue Cheese Burger, (unsure of the name of the) Burger, Poutine, Strawberry Milkshake, Peanut Butter/Banana/Bacon Milkshake

Taste: 8 + 8 = 16/20
Portion Size: 9 + 9 = 18/20
Presentation: 8 + 8 = 16/20
Value: 7 + 8 = 15/20
Service: 8 + 9 = 17/20
Bonus: -
Minus: 1
Final Grade: 81% (Good)

(Scoring: 100% to 140% = Exceptional, 85% to 99% = Excellent, 67% to 84% = Good, 60% to 66% = Satisfactory, 50% to 59% = Marginal, 0% to 49% = Poor, -40% to -1% = Abysmal)

Notes: We've been on diets lately, hence the lack of reviews. But, a birthday resulted in a trip to Flipburger, one of the growing number of gourmet burger joints in Halifax. It was a Saturday night around 5:00 and it was quasi-busy when we arrived. Minutes later, after claiming some seats and getting in line, the place got PACKED. As such, the restaurant was a little crammed and loud, but that's probably a good sign. The crowd was quite varied, too - from toddlers to seniors, but mostly thirtysomethings. J selected the Peanut Butter, Banana and Bacon Milkshake (yes, bacon), but figured he should probably get a burger, too. Honestly, neither of us can remember what it was called, and their website appears to have been attacked by malware, so checking the menu online isn't possible right now. Basically, it was a big, beefy burger with loads of toppings, including crispy onions and avocado. And it was good. But the milkshake was the real point of interest. Bacon in a milkshake? We kinda figured it woulda been ground up bacon. Nope. A big honkin' strip of bacon. Didn't really add anything to the taste, but it was novel. T's Blue Cheese Burger was also very big and very good, and her milkshake was pretty standard. We split a poutine (yeah, our diets went to hell that night) and, honestly, it wasn't fantastic. The gravy was too watery and salty, the fries weren't cripsy and there weren't enough cheese curds (hence the minus point). But overall, it was a tasty trip, and we'll probably be back.

Final Verdict: Great burgers but pass on the poutine.

Review #43 - Cheese Curds

Cheese Curds
Variety: Gourmet Burger
Address: 380 Pleasant Street
Date Visited: Friday, November 30, 2012
Orders: Legendary CC Porker with onion rings, BBQ Triple Bacon Burger with poutine

Taste: 9 + 8 = 17/20
Portion Size: 9 + 9 = 18/20
Presentation: 9 + 9 = 18/20
Value: 7 + 7 = 14/20
Service: 8 + 9 = 17/20
Bonus: -
Minus: -1
Final Grade: 83% (Good)

(Scoring: 100% to 140% = Exceptional, 85% to 99% = Excellent, 67% to 84% = Good, 60% to 66% = Satisfactory, 50% to 59% = Marginal, 0% to 49% = Poor, -40% to -1% = Abysmal)

Notes: This was J's third visit, but T's first - first to any gourmet burger joint in Halifax, that is. They've seemingly sprouted up all over the place in the past year or so, with no signs of stopping. Upon entering, the server was very enthusiastic and charismatic, attempting to build rapport right off the bat. T thought this was cool, but J thought it was borderline annoying - he was there for the burger, not the chit-chat. Cheese Curds burgers always take a while to make, but that's probably because they're made fresh. They're worth the wait. J went for the double decker classic CC Porker, which was massive and required utensils. No knives available, so he made do with a couple of forks. Solid burger, onion rings were coated with buttermilk batter and drizzled with honey. Good stuff. T is a poutine aficionado, and gave this one an instant 10. The burger...not so much. You see, in his attempt to build rapport, the cashier would not rest until she ignored the menu board and looked at the photos of the burgers above the grill. Unfortunately, she's not the type who like a whole bunch of extras on her burger, so the Triple Bacon one looked the "most" normal. Had she had a chance to look at the menu board, the plain Black Angus Beef Burger would have been her weapon of choice, and she would have left happier, and with a few extra coins in her pocket. Hence the minus point, and the docked taste score. Although the gourmet burger craze is a welcome one in Halifax, we both find that the burgers are a little too expensive. Clearly, they're no McDonalds, but they're still a little pricey for our liking. Nonetheless, it was an enjoyable experience, and as good of a reason as any to take a trip over to Dartmouth!

Final Verdict: A little pricey, and kinda hard to focus, but worth the trip.