Thursday, June 09, 2016

Burger Joint Singapore


When Burger Joint declared that they were 'no frills', it was indeed so. It's not really meant to be a place to hang out for any longer than you need to eat a burger. It was crowded and noisy. Sat at the bar which gave an illusion of space. The air-conditioning sucked. Ventilation was non-existent. Greasy smells hung in the stale air. Was so tickled by the 'napkins' in the pull-out trays. They were literally thin rectangles of toilet paper!

As far as NYC-style burgers go, these were all right. Probably five degrees better than Shake Shack and In-N-Out. (I'm clearly not a fan of either.) Like most casual burger joints, your orders come in a brown paper bag. No baskets and no plates. At least there were disposable forks and spoons, but I preferred to use my spork.

I've always torn apart my burger since I was a kid, eating it in a strange deconstructed manner, with a fork. Not about to change that habit now. Yup, I bring along a spock to eat chwee kueh and burgers in hipster venues, or at restaurants where seafood is dumped onto tables in plastic bags.

My cheeseburger matched its surprisingly reasonable S$13.50 pricing. Done medium-rare, the meat was fine, although a tad under-seasoned. Of course buns weren't the toasted brioche which I prefer. Still okay though. I foresee easy late-night takeouts. Burgers at S$25 or S$30 at fancy joints just don't do it for me. Burgers aren't supposed to be gourmet anyway. Didn't bother with the fries here. There were bottles of mustard and ketchup. NO CHILLI SAUCE LEH.

Beer selection was fortunately good, as were the choices of bourbon and rye. Had a Tiny Rebel 'Cwtch Welsh Red Ale' which turned out to be a really good appetizer. The only reason why I lingered a little longer in this stuffy cramped windowless room was to quickly chug a second pint of Tiny Rebel's 'Power of Grayskull' Black IPA.

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