Forgive the silence. I’ve been traveling and tasting for the last 10 days. Amongst my travels, without my macbook, (sigh, a nice break from my normal techno strapped reality) I landed in L.A. for one day. Having used all four of the standard tastes at excess in the proceeding travel locations, I thought it was time to explore the fifth, and somewhat new, taste at the aptly named Umami Burger. Ranked number three in the laist list of best gourmet burger in Los Angeles, I figured this would be a pretty solid hit.

The menu is simple with 9 burger choices. The last two, the greenbird and the earth, were tossed out immediately since we were looking for beef not turkey or veggies. That left me with seven choices. Actually, I had six choices. I also tossed out the Triple Pork Burger. I know, it’s not like me to throw out any pork, let alone 3 types all wrapped into one delicious patty. As I said, I wad looking for beef and in the past pork burgers just don’t cut it for me. I didn’t want to risk it even though the allure of the ground up swine was extremely strong.

With my six options all jostling for attention the choice was difficult. I decided on two, feeling they would give me the best of all worlds in experiencing the 5 tastes at once. First up was the Manly. Beer-cheddar cheese, smoked-salt onion strings, bacon lardons piled high on a freshly ground beef patty sandwiched on a fresh brioche bun slipped in front of me blocking the SoCal sun with it’s towering height. Atop the bun was a branded U. Very nice touch. The sandwich was medium rare and juicy as hell. Bacon lardon’s dumped into my mouth on the first bite satiating my angst for turning down the triple pork burger. In fact this solidified the idea that pig on burgers belongs as an add on not as the star. The chewy salty lardons complimented every other component to the burger including the beef patty.

Burger two was chosen to keep things simple and taste the meat without two many other distractions. It was also chosen to compete with the now favored LaFrieda mix of aged beef we get back home at the Lobster Joint. The truffle burger had a house made truffle cheese and a truffle glaze. That’s DOUBLE TRUFFLE. sorry. How could I let that pun go.

The idea here was that the truffle taste would replace the aged beef taste. It didn’t replace but it succeeded in distracting. The truffle made the burger luxurious but didn’t overpower the meats taste. I could still taste the ground sirloin in all it’s glorious fat dripping succulence which is good. The abscence of lettuce, tomato and ketchup made it all that much more distinct and allowed me to relish in the simplicity of a perfected item.

To accompany these beauties and test the full Umami experience, I added some fries and onion rings to the order. Both were ok but nothing to get crazy over. The fries were standard and salted well. The onion rings were crunchy but tasted of used oil.

It’s tough to keep oil tasty when you use it all day long. I’m also partial to a breaded onion ring instead of a flour dipped ring. The flour holds the oil more and brings less taste and crunch. A breaded ring will give you better texture, flavor and crunch any day. That said the rings dipped in one, or all, of Umami’s side sauces can make it a vehicle for flavor in which I prefer a flour dipped ring to the breaded.

That was all washed down with some water and a Mexican coke. Rare for me but it seemed fitting. In the end, before I had the valet bring my rented hyundai around to the front of the tiny, unpretentious-short-of-this-service, shop, I noticed my plate was trying to tell me something about Umami burger. This was either a sign from above or the best damn branding idea I have ever seen.

Either way, I actually did love Umami Burger and I like to see that they are expanding to more locations. I never did quite recognize that elusive fifth taste but it really didn’t matter. Quite frankly, I am happy with the original 4 tastes.

This post is just going to be a quick little burger review. I read in Time Out New York about this new little burger joint called Fresh & Fast. They say it’s the NY version of the west coast In and Out Burger. I had to go see what all the buzz was about. When you go in it’s small and there is not many places to sit and eat. The menu is small with only a choice of Hamburger, Cheeseburger or a Double Cheeseburger. I went for the Double with fries. The Burger comes with L,T,O and a special sauce. My first bit had juices and sauce running down my hands. It was really tasty. So tasty that I went back and got another cheeseburger. I am not the one to compare these burgers to In and Out Burgers but the do compare to another burger joint right around the corner, Shack Shack. Both have soft greasy buns and are delicious. Both are fresh but Shack Shack has a line that can loop around Madison Square Park. Fresh & Fast is just that…fresh and fast.

I don’t have much to say today. I think this pic of last nights dinner says it all. I like stand. I go there a lot. When I read the menu I noticed this burger was NEW. Somehow in the description I missed the TWO pattie part.

BOLD BURGER: brioche, two 7oz, beef patties, applewood smoked bacon, sauteed onions, american and cheddar, pickle, tomato, chipotle sauce, fried egg. Now tell be that isn’t a Huckleberry?!

Stand
88 University Place
New York, NY 10003-4566
(212) 488-5900
www.standburger.com

Burger Fuel, Auckland NZ from Anthony Anello on Vimeo.

Apparently on Sunday’s Auckland New Zealand shuts down. I walked around the city for a while and everything was closed. I went to go and check out a couple different places to grab lunch and they were closed. However, on my travels I passed by a Burger Fuel. This is a local fast food chain in New Zealand. I had to try it out. Without hesitation I ordered 2 burgers. These were not your average burgers. Burger one is called the Burger fuel (I figured I should get the burger named after the joint) 1/3 pound ground beef, free range egg, beetroot, salad, relish, aioli. Burger two was on the special list and in the family tradition; you have to try the special. Burger two is called the Santa Boars. Char-grilled strips of wild boar, Crispy pork crackling, whole cranberry sauce, apple puree, fresh handmade salad, sweet potato relish and natural aioli. Lets see the video for the results…

It’s been a while since I had a fast food burger. I can’t even remember the last one I ate. In Hong Kong I only had a couple hours to go out and see the city before I had to be back on the ship. With not much knowledge of Hong Kong I ventured into the city to wonder around. Being in a huge city with multicultures made me feel like I was at home in New York with a Chinese spin to it. I was impressed with the city but like I said I only have a couple hours.

Our port leaves us in a mall and as soon as you walk off the ship, to the left there was my fast food burger joint called Freshness Burger. They looked pretty good and had to give it a try. Freshness Burger is a Japanese Fast food chain with over 250 stores. This burger came with the works and waffle fries to boot. Big plus there! They also have these lounge chairs to sit in and eat. Kind of like a loungey coffee shop. I was fulfilled but next time in Hong Kong I need to have more time and I have to hit a Chinese restaurant.

So if my last LA post was the LA I love to mock, this is the LA I love to miss. I was in Hollywood refusing to valet my car on my way to meet my friend Marc and Jonell for some dinner. Both NY transplants, I had no doubt that the place Mark suggested would have a touch of east coast to its vibe and certainly not have that pretentiousness I experienced the other night.

Mark is a casting director and Jonell is a writer. That explains why they both live in LA but ironically, when I sent out a note letting them both know I would be in town, both responded that they weren’t.

All of us flew in that day or the day before but we still got it together to meet. We met at 8oz Burger Bar on Melrose. Marc had just come back from Somoa and Fiji and Jonell literally just landed from NY. When I walked into the joint I immediately saw Marc at the bar. We had not seen each other for a while and the reunion included a few bromance hugs. We shared a beer and caught each other up on our work, play and travels while waiting for Jonell to arrive. Both of us tend to travel a lot for both work and share a mutual love for photography, so the conversation is never dull.

When Jonell arrived we moved from the bar to a table and got to work. The restaurant had a system as most gourmet burger places do. They had an 8oz or a 6oz patty as your first choice along with a turkey burger, salmon burger and veggie burger option. From there you could choose one of their specially crafted burgers or build your own. Along the top of the menu was a list of your standard burger spot side dishes. One stood out and I had to throw it on the order. The deviled eggs pictured above acted as a quick appetizer before our beef arrived.

The burgers quickly hit the table. I couldn’t help myself and I wound up ordering two. I did restrain myself from two 8oz ‘s by opting for a 6oz. On the right is the bacon gouda burger and on the left the burger bar standard 8oz. At any burger tasting I always have to have a standard burger (ketchup, lettuce, tomato). That is the standard on which I judge all burgers.

Peeking over at Jo’s burger I realized she had a giant piece of fried cheese on her bun. I had to show it off. Doesn’t that look awesome?

We munched and continued to catch up as the burgers, chips and fries slowly disappeared along side our beverages. Marc was only home for 5 days and had lots of people he needed to see. Thanks for putting me at the top of the list homeboy. After he split, Jonell and I chilled a bit longer until she decided the time zone change was too much for her and I realized my 6am flight to San Jose was only 7 hours away. Jonell and I WILL get into a deep conversation if we are left alone, that is one of the things I really like about her. But, tonight we had to cut that back a touch for the better of both our Wed mornings.

As I sped home on the empty, broad, LA streets I couldn’t help reminiscing about the food and friends that I had enjoyed that evening. It’s nice to have friends all over the place. A quick meal and a good conversation is really all I need to keep me going.

This is probably the most real time post I have done to date. I just landed in San Jose California. I was hungry. I went straight to In ‘N Out and wacked down this Double-Double, Fries and a Coke. Yes a coke! I don’t even drink that stuff. Super indulgence. Since I am still on NY time it’s almost 2am and I am tired. So, I just put a full fast food meal in me and now I am going to sleep. Bit it was goooooood. mmmmm. zzzzzzz.

Max – Sweden from Anthony Anello on Vimeo.

I have been to Stockholm Sweden a bunch of time and some of my friends raved about this local burger joint called Max. Now I am a huge burger fan. A good burger is definitely in my top 3 meals to eat. Some say I am a burger connoisseur because I eat so many. Check out this video and you’ll see what I thought about the Max burger…

I recently saw a movie called Food Inc. It’s about what we know about the food we buy in our supermarkets and serve to our families. It is really eye opening. I suggest watching it, it has opened my eyes WIDE, and will buy organic as much as possible. The organic meat in particular tastes better, gives you more energy, and is better for you. Other products may be tougher for me to buy organic because of my diabetes and I need to count carbs in my diet to keep my diabetes under control. When I left the movie there was a gentlemen selling a back pocket size book called Clean Plates N.Y.C. It is a guide to the healthiest tastiest Restaurants in Manhattan.

The next day I wanted to pick out something from the book that was in the neighborhood. My cousin and I decided to check out Better Burger. They make antibiotic free burgers. It was pretty good along with the air-baked fries but it felt like it needed more ketchup than usual. My cousin got a veggie burger and the chili. He felt that the meal was great but lacked flavor but was full and satisfied for under $10. I think will hit up this healthy burger again in the future.

Last night my buddies, Ross and Urbanos, met me at the Black Iron Burger Shop in the East Village. Ross, Matt and I decided to do a guy night, grab some burgers and catch up on all things work, play and potential. We all worked together back in the Digitas days. Matt is now at Scholastic and Ross is at Modem Media. Our meetings are always packed full of information and I usually leave with my brain and stomach satiated. The first time I was in this place, just grabbing their card, it was dead. This time it was packed to the gills. The menu was very simply, a few burgers a patty melt and a couple of side options. The burger leaned on the fast food side, not particularly my style. We ordered 3 black iron burgers, some fries and baked beans. Of everything, I have to say, the beans were the best. The burger was a little greasy and overcooked. It was definitely a sloppy burger. Considering the crowd and the quality, I don’t think I will be back anytime soon. A glimpse of positivity was the cute and helpful Australian waitress who was quick and correct with our order.

Black Iron Burger Shop
540 E 5th St, NYC
(212) 677-6067
blackironburger.com