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Vesuvio potatoes for fries almost enough to get me to Harry Caray's, brilliant.

Tasty burger earlier in the week at The Beetle, med-rare on the nose, quality beef and not packed too tightly, I hate burgers that are solid as hockey pucks. Bonus points for comfortable seating, reasonable music volume and friendly service.

The Beetle changed hands about a year ago, pleasant neighborhood feel as opposed to the closed off which semi should we heist next atmosphere of old.

The Beetle
2532 W Chicago Ave,
Chicago, IL 60622
773-384-0701

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Low & Slow

I tried The Burger Philosophy the other day for lunch. It's basically another upscale burger joint that grinds their own meat, cuts their own fries, etc. I'm sorry to say that it did not live up to my expectations.

First, the good: the fries were excellent. They were crispy and nicely seasoned. It's $1.99 for enough fries for 2-3 people. They also have blue cheese and bacon fries and Greek fries (topped with feta and oregano).

I had the "back to basics" burger which is an "All beef patty with fresh crisp lettuce, tomatoes, and onions topped with American cheese" (from the website). Why go through all the trouble to grind your own beef, cut your own fries, if you are going to put an industrial version of a Kraft single on top of the burger? Half-decent cheese is still pretty darn cheap.

The main problem with the burger, though, was that it didn't have much taste. The meat needed to be properly seasoned. So the burger tasted like a mixture of bread, lettuce, gross cheese and condiments. The industrial tomato didn't have any taste and the meat didn't have any taste.

You cannot get the burger any less cooked medium-well, but even then the meat wasn't dry. Just flavorless.

The Burger Philosophy
1541 W BRYN MAWR AVE
CHICAGO IL, 60640
http://burgerphilosophy.com/home

I had a fantastic Tallgrass beef burger at Harry Carey's Lombard/Yorktown location. Loaded, cooked a perfect MR and the pretzel bun held it all together. The tomato, lettuce and pickle were even great! Lucked out as what would have been a 16 dollar burger was half price because our Cubbies were playing!!

Toons Bar and Grill was picked in the new Cheap Eats issue of Time Out Chicago. $4 Half Pound Cheeseburgers with chips every Wednesday. Top 50 best dishes under $10. Yes I am affiliated with Toons.
Danny

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Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans?...........Louis Armstrong

Congrats Danny! It's been way too long since I've been there. I'll have to stop by once football starts up.

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Steve Z.
Photographer/Pseudojournalist

"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

if you're ever in the west burbs, i highly recommend Chicago Burgerwurks on Ogden in Brookfield. tiny stand that has a big selection of great burgers

Juan,

Thanks for the burger advice. What have you been doing since Welcome Back Kotter?

Some other mentions of Chicago Burkerwurks:

viewtopic.php?p=316963#p316963

Best burger I've had recently (besides Edzo's): BIG and little's. Hands down. Just fantastic.

Also went to the Bad Apple about a month ago. It was ok. Trying hard to be Kuma's (I had a burger topped with: "Edmund Fitzgerald porter, fig & bacon relish, goat cheese, smoked onion"). Beer list was more impressive than the burgers, IMO. That being said, if I lived up in that 'hood I'd probably be there all the time.

B&L's burger is great.

But I also really like the Bad Apple. Cheaper, easier to get into, and nicer vibe than Kuma's. And, I think, better burgers. Had a Slow Burn last night that was as good as any burger I've had at Kuma's.

Frankly, I wish Kuma's were tastier and less crowded.. I live pretty close. But I can get to Bad Apple, order, eat, and home faster than a lot of people can get seated at Kuma's.

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Ed Fisher
my chicago food photos

RIP LTH.

Tried the new DMK Burger Bar in Lombard. I've never tried the Lincoln Park location but this burger (#8) was small, overcooked and somewhat tasteless. No juiciness or real burger flavor. The ratio of meat/bun/toppings was totally off with the bun being much larger than it should have been, and the sea salt and pepper fries were undercooked and bland.

The beer list is nice. Allegash on tap was excellent.

Pretty disappointing overall.

I haven't been to Kuma's in years because of the wait (my wife refuses to wait an hour or more to get a burger). Nevertheless, we've found that the Bad Apple is an excellent substitute, with imaginative preparations and high-quality Pat LaFrieda beef (I don't think that Kuma's patties match the quality of the Bad Apple's). We were there on Saturday and I enjoyed the "Red Dragon" with brisket hash, fried egg, pepper jack cheese and roasted red pepper sauce, and my wife had a terrific "Strange Famous" house-made veggie burger (mushrooms, chick peas and seitan).

I really enjoy the burgers at The Grand Victoria Casino in Elgin. Friday I had a mushroom burger with mushroom duxelles and sauteed mushrooms, gruyere and my addition of caramelized onions, cooked medium rare. (I always say rare there and it comes out MR). A side of truffle fries with basil mayo and a Blue Moon and I was a happy camper after a tough week. The truffle fries are tossed with white cheddar powder, herbs and then sprayed with truffle something, served in those tall cone shaped things with wax paper liners. Crisp, not greasy, not too thick or too thin. It's the kind of place that has several burgers with various toppings and then a long list of options if you want to design your own. It was $15 plus tip.

Yeah, Bad Apple is still a good burger. I went in expecting GREAT burger, though, so I left a little disappointed. I definitely agree with it having a better vibe - I could hang out there drinking beer all night.

Nightwood puts out a fantastic burger. I think it's made with Slagel Farm beef. I've had a couple over the past few months and they've been terrific each time. They're beefy and fatty, and served with great condiments, though the meat is so good, they and the bun are all but overkill. This burger would be awesome totally on its own. The one I enjoyed last Saturday is shown below and it was cooked perfectly rare (of course, since my lousy didn't capture that, you'll have to take my word for it) . . .


Nightwood Burger with Egg Cooked in Foie Fat - 11.0827

I know this thread is about burgers but I have to add that those fries were among the best I've ever had. Seriously.

=R=

Nightwood
2119 S. Halsted St.
Chicago, IL 60608
(312) 526-3385

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If you want a great burger from Bad Apple, get the Elvis' Favorite, topped with house-made peanut butter and a couple slices of bacon and make sure to order it medium rare. Never less than awesome.

I too much prefer Bad Apple to Kuma's these days for a number of reasons, many listed above, but a lot of it has to do with the fact that at Kuma's was always out of the first 3 beers I wanted, no matter what I wanted. No worries about that at Bad Apple.

But please, Bad Apple, quit using that terrible sour ketchup.

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Tweetyspacing @karlklockars.
Writing about craft beer at GuysDrinkingBeer.com
"You don't realize it, but we're at dinner right now." ~Ebert

I thought Burger Philosophy was ok, though for less money you can go across the street to the Edgewater Lounge and get what I consider the best bar burger in the city. Thursday night I think its $5 including a little slaw and thick hand cut fries.

The place I don't get is Uber Burger in Evanston. Utterly insipid "service"---a pseudo-hipster taking orders who can't be bothered to look up from his cell phone. I tried the basic burger and fries. The basic burger was, in terms of taste, on par with a Whopper jr---not even an "OB" Whopper jr. The fries were supposedly fresh cut, but tasted frozen to me. Getting anything interesting *on* the burger, like gyros say, doubles the price. There is nothing good about this place at all. It is a defilement to Evanston as an elite burger destination.

My medium rare burger at Hot Chocolate last night -- with house-made sesame and poppy seed studded bun, loosely packed and house ground Heartland beef, bacon, 4-year aged Widmer cheddar cheese (perfectly melted) and a perfectly fried, sunny side up egg on top -- might have been the best burger I have ever tasted.

I'm looking for a very casual place somewhere along the red or brown line anywhere north of downtown where I can get a decent greasy late night burger. For those who've been to Jimmy's in Hyde Park (aka Woodlawn Tap), that's the kind of burger (griddled and far from fancy) and place I have in mind. Any dive bar type place or BYO place with a similar relaxed vibe would do.

Here is another map of this thread

This should be a good start...

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"Make Lunch, Not War" ~ Anon

Thanks, Panther. A recent fave for me was at the previously noted Skylark, where I'd only really admired the beer list and monumental lavatory fixtures before. Medium rare to a T, and spicy sage-rich slaw was an unexpected plus. Tater tots done right as well.

This is what you want: Brown line to Irving, Pick up some double cheeseburgers with grilled onions (fried egg, if you like) at Diner Grill and take them into the Long Room across the street or the Ten Cat around the corner.

A member of our group came up with the same idea a couple of days ago. Not Ten Cat though. That's just about perfect. Thanks!

I’ve probably mentioned this before in the Bad Apple thread previously, but I’d like to add my voice to the Bad Apple fan base here. I actually think it’s rather unfair to state that Bad Apple “Trying hard to be Kuma's”. The similarities stop at the fact that they both decided to put a variety of toppings on their burgers. I think Bad Apple has better meat and to me that is what's important. If there was any copycatting going on here, I do not see a fault when one restaurant copies another, and does a better job.

I live right around the corner from Bapple, and being a self-proclaimed beer nerd, find myself in here on average once a week. The beer list (complimented by extremely knowledgeable staff) brought me in, but the burgers keep me coming back. I REALLY love their beef. It seems to be very lean and flavorful, yet when served medium rare it is as moist and probably more flavorful as any fattier cut of beef (if you order it cooked more done than medium rare you’re not going to like this burger, it will seem dry). To me, the less fat ratio in this burger is great, because I’m not always in the mood for a fatty burger. As far as the toppings go, if you’re in that extravagant mood, they do them well. Personally I prefer the plain burger most of the time, or occasionally the belly burger in which the melty pork belly simply acts as a cheese replacement for me. If I’m especially hungry or feeling thrifty, I’ll actually order the hangover because it comes with an egg, ham and bacon, remove those, eat the plain burger and have breakfast on the side. I think the hangover comes with some sauces (ketchup and/or mayo) but I always order it without. Whether bad apple was cashing in on a burger (or toppings) trend or not, they are clearly passionate about what they do and do a very good job at it.

As for kuma’s, to me it’s not worth the wait and hassle. I’ve walked out of Kuma’s feeling sluggish and heartburney from their beef (not sure what beef they use). I don’t find Kuma’s to be anything spectacular, nothing more than a thick, fatty patty. I have not spent the time to explore the menu, so I cannot speak of the extravagant toppings there.

If there is one burger in Chicago that I liked as much (maybe more) than bad apple, that would have to be the one I had at Owen and Engine. I’ve only eaten there once, but from memory it was astounding and worth adding to this burger list.

Places I've had some noteworthy burgers at lately are Revolution Brewery, Bad Apple, and Flub a Dub Chubs. The Roe Burger at FADC was the latest one I had, and it was damn good. Well cooked beef, great toppings, and a delicious pretzel bun that didn't overwhelm everything else. At 9 bucks and some change, including nicely seasoned and crispy fries, it's a crave worthy experience.

Roe Burger

I agree 100% with this. Went to O&E for the fish and chips, and left raving about the burger. My wife and I split it, and it was all I could do from ordering another one. If you haven't tried the burger there, run there and get one.

I also like the burger at Labriola on Butterfield in Lombard.

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Toria

"I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it" - As You Like It,
W. Shakespeare

The "Butcher Burger" at BLT American Brasserie is very good - a 3/4" thick patty, blue cheese, bacon, mushrooms and carmelized onion. It's a very generous serving - I could only eat half in one sitting.

The burgers at Schoop's in northwest Indiana are my favorite Chicago-area fast food burgers (my all-time favorite is In-N-Out). I especially like the waffle-like marks on the burgers, which are cooked on a flat top to develop a nice crust - I assume that the marks are made by the grill iron used to press the patties on the grill.

My god, YES. I LOVE FADC. Place does not get the recognition it deserves.

Glancing through this thread, it is interesting to note my agreements and disagreements with the commentary. I guess that is just that, the qualities that make up everyone's best burger differ quite a bit. In agreement with Santander, I must say the the Skylark serves up a mean burger. The burgers are always cooked to perfection (except for the fateful spring of 2010 when their cook was "in a really bad mood" as the bartenders told me...), served up in a basket with a side of extra crispy tots. Definitely the most consistently delicious burger that I have had in Chicago... it doesn't hurt that the Skylark is also one of my favorite happy houring bars.

Anyways, because of our love for the Skylark burgers, we have started the Burger-Off using the Skylark as our gold standard. We are only 3 burgers in, but I figured that I would post the scoreboard and our results so far. And as we add Burger-Off challenges, I will definitely try to remember to post them on LTH.
#1 Skylark vs. Burger Bar... Skylark 1, Challengers 0
#2 Skylark vs. Revolution Brewing... Skylark 2, Challengers 0
#3 Skylark vs. Owen & Engine... Skylark 2, Challengers 1

SKYLARK VS BURGER BAR
At Burger bar, I ordered a burger with horseradish cheese, sauteed onions, pickled onions, fried onions, lettuce, tomato and avocado. Medium rare, as always. The sauteed onions were just ok, but the fried onions were delicious- thin & crispy. The pickled red onions were good. The shoestring fries were lighter than tater tots, so that was a nice change. The horseradish cheese barely satisfied my craving of crappy, processed cheese as it was an odd flavor/texture. The burger was good... not great. The bun was a little too big & dense, the patty was a little too big for my preferences. The patty was good in flavor, but I missed a certain oomph- like a grilled flavor or smoky flavor. Bottom line, I prefer the Skylark burgers which are a few bucks cheaper too boot.
Skylark 1 - Competitors- 0

SKYLARK VS REVOLUTION BREWING CO
At Revolution, I ordered a burger with mushroom, fried shallots and gorgonzola. After the first few bites, I thought, hhmm this burger is OK... I'll enjoy it, even though the flavors of the toppings did not come through. A little salt fixed that somewhat. As I got into it about halfway, I decided it was one of the worst burgers I have ever had. The patty was huge! It was also shaped exactly like a hockey puck- compressed meat into an exact shape with sharp lines. I believe the biggest problem was in the cooking technique. Our theory is that they make these huge compressed patties, cook them in a combi-oven, then wait for the orders to come in. Then they throw them on a grill to warm them up & to get grill marks on the meat- the grill lines may as well have been drawn on. There was no true maillard reaction, which is what gives a burger that delicious crust and meaty flavor. I won't be back to Revolution, Skylark beats them to the curb in both flavor & value.
Skylark 2 - Competitors- 0

SKYLARK VS OWEN & ENGINE
As mentioned in my review of Owen & Engine, they have a great deal on burgers Tuesday nights [a burger, beer & bourbon for $14...!] Oh boy, is it worth it. First of all- it is a big, satisfying burger served with plenty of delicious fries with a malt mayonaise. The burger is served on a really soft, tasty bun that holds up to the dripping meat juices. The burger was cooked perfectly, with excellent meat flavor and a really nice caramelized crust. If we lived closer, I am sure we would be there at least once a month for the deal. While I still love my Skylark burger, O&E kicked it's ass.
Skylark 2 - Competitors- 1

Burgers are delicious!

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