We’re now 12 burgers into the search for Edmonton’s best burger, and I’ve had quite a mixed bag when it comes to the results. I’d say I’ve had a few train wrecks, and a couple above average, but for the most part, the burgers have been nothing special.
Certainly nothing I would consider outstanding to date.
There’s still a long way to go to crown an Edmonton burger champion, and some of the heavy hitters are yet to come, including The Next Act Pub, The Burg, The Burger Joint, and Delux, just to name a few.
I’m also learning that Edmontonian’s love their burgers as much as I do, and I’ve been overwhelmed with the support I’ve gotten for the burger posts, as well as flooded with great suggestions of new places to try.
Heck, the Yeg Burger Odyssey has even inspired a drinking game!
#YEGBurgerOdysseyDrinkingGame A shot every time u read beefy! MT @baconhound The latest in the #YEG Burger Odyssey http://t.co/4wuM3hrLv7
— Maki Blazevski (@MakiBca) February 19, 2014
You guys are the best!
When I published my first post on the Yeg Burger Odyssey, I expected some local chefs and burger purveyors to take exception with my suggestion that Edmonton didn’t seem to have that one truly amazing burger, and I thought I might get a few defensive emails.
You know how many I ended up getting? Zilch. Nada. Diddly squat.
Not a single argument.
On the contrary, what I got was messages of agreement, some from chefs, some from other bloggers, and lots from you, the burger-loving home cooks. It seems I wasn’t the only one yearning for a home-grown, 5-star burger. Some of you even contacted me anxious to take a crack at building Edmonton’s best burger yourselves!
Have I mentioned I love you guys?
I’ll definitely make that happen asap, but in the meantime let’s recap some of the highlights (and unfortunate lowlights) so far:
- There’s been a lot of boring, old white sesame seed buns and, frankly, I’m sick of them. At this point I’d take just about anything over another one of those terrible abominations.
- Despite Maki’s tweet, if you really wanted to get wasted reading Edmonton burger posts, you should drink every time you read the word “dry”. It’s been a running theme for a lot of the burgers, and too many of the buns.
- As far as toppings are concerned, there hasn’t been what I would consider an abundance of creativity, and frankly a restaurant has yet to blow my skirt up (let’s call it a kilt so it’s less awkward) with creative toppings, or even knocked my socks off with obscene amounts of cheese. There’s been a lot of pretty tame, and pretty safe burgers (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing if executed right).
- It’s obvious that the perfect burger is not the same for everybody. I love a drip-down-your-arm burger, oozing with cheesy goodness with lot’s of beefy flavour (drink, Maki!) from the patty and not too dry (everybody drink!), while that is my wife’s nightmare burger. She likes hers neat and tidy with maximum flavour coming from minimal toppings.
- The type of burger I’m craving depends on what I’m feeling at that moment. There are times I’m craving a thin patty, double cheese burger on a white bun, and another time I might be craving a thick steakhouse burger with gourmet toppings. For that reason I’ve been doing my best to match up similar style burgers against each other.
One thing I can tell you for sure from doing these Edmonton burger posts is that Edmontonian’s have a deep seeded hunger for an iconic burger stand to call their own; some place to be proud of and show off to their visiting friends and family. Some place doing things the right way, at a fair price.
There’s an opportunity for someone to build that here, and I can’t wait to find out who’s up to the challenge.
So what do you think, Edmonton? Have you tried any of the burgers I have? What did you think? Share your own experiences below in the comment section!
I eagerly await your future burger posts!!! I recently had an amazing, super messy, moist and delicious burger at Soda Jerks. There are 2 locations, we tried the St Albert one. Make sure to try the pretzel bun, it was chewy and super fresh.
I’m glad to hear it! Soda Jerks in on the list, and I’m planning on getting over there pretty soon. Now I’m looking forward to it!
Thanks for the comments, April!
Phil
Mr. Baconhound,
I’ve been living and eating in Edmonton for neary four years now and I have had more than my fair share of burgers from all around the city. In all that time, I have yet to find a reliable source for that elusive, perfect burger. There have been (very few) fleeting glimpses of perfection and extreme disappointments (in sad abundance). I figured I might as well share my personal favourites with you.
I believe in crowning a winner of this Burger Odyssey of yours there should be a clear cut winner. The one burger experience in Edmonton that is a significant cut above all the competition is unfortunately not found in a restaurant. Not yet anyways. I believe that winner is the Mosh Burger pop up event hosted by Phil Marokus and Mike Hunka. I don’t think any other burger in the city comes close. I believe it would perform exceptionally well when cross-examined and rated using your criteria. A freshly ground blend of prime, locally sourced beef served on an unbelievably fresh, airy bun with nothing more than some thinly sliced onions and a fat slab of cheese. Seared and seasoned precisely on a flat top and cooked to a brilliant medium-rare. The Mosh Burger leaves no competition standing. I would argue that it is one of the best burgers in the country. On top of all that, it’s served alongside a healthy portion of some of the best fries one could hope for. I long for a day where it is regularly available to the public to satiate the most insatiable of cravings within this city. If ever given the opportunity to attend one of these rare events I suggest you, or anyone reading this, go out of your way to make it.
If unable to sample the elusive Mosh Burger, I would suggest taking your Odyssey to Rodeo Burger. It doesn’t come close to Mosh Burger, but in terms of the “fast food” type burger I think it’s one of the heavyweights in Edmonton.
If the Burger Odyssey journeys down to Calgary, I would highlyrecommend the burger at Model Milk. A great restaurant with amazing food, but every time I go I did it impossible to order anything else.
Thanks for listening and thanks for the entertaining blog!
Happy eating,
Warren Johnston
Thanks for the great comments, Warren!
I never made it to any of the Mosh burger pop-ups as they were always on nights I was working. I heard one of the guys has now moved to NYC, so we may have seen the last Mosh pop-up in Edmonton. I hope my info is wrong there. What kind of buns were they using, do you know?
Rodeo is on the list to try, as is Model Milk for next time I get to Calgary to sample a couple burgers there. I had a few in Austin last week and plan to post a recap of those too. So many burgers….
Thanks again for reading and commenting.
Phil
HAHA! Awesome Phil. But “beefy” sounds a bit more fun to scream out loud than “dry” which sounds somewhat awkward 🙂 But after a couple of shots, it won’t matter what you are screaming! Here’s to more #yegburgerodyssey posts!
There are several reasons why you might “fail” into identifying a “best” burger. Yes, notice all the double quotes, as that is reason #1:
1) “Best” is something relative. As we delved in the comments section in a previous post, what you consider is a good burger is not necessarily mine. But, then again, this is your blog, so you can write what you believe is the “best”.
2) That brings reason #2: while you are vocal (again, this is your blog), the majority of the community might have different thoughts of what is “best” – just as you wrote. Unfortunately, a lot of people just follow trends and don’t necessarily have opinions on their own. Likewise, a lot of people simply don’t care. As long as it follows the basics, that is good enough for them. Who are we to challenge what they want? And, once again, related to this, it brings reason #3:
3) Restaurateurs are on the business of making money and they will try to cater what the majority wants, not what the vocal minority wants (such as foodies, Yelpers, bloggers and so on). If they had to decide whether to put a fancy burger that only a handful would order vs a burger that 90% of their clientele would order, which one do you believe makes more financial sense for the restaurant?
After re-reading some comments in previous posts, I found some ironic details: For one, rather than looking for what is readily available, there seems to be an infatuation for what is not. Mosh Pop-up, the alley burger, some burger in a restaurant in the US or even Calgary. Specially in the case of the first two, if they are so successful being a pop-up type restaurant, how come it has to stick with a pop-up model and not a brick-and-mortar?
To put things into perspective, this week, the folks in Best in Chow will be filming an episode of Burger Wars here in Edmonton with The Next Act Pub as one of the participants. Depending on when the episode will be aired and barring the fact some people just want to be on TV, would you be willing to accept what people vote for as THE best burger in town?
I’ll just leave this here: The Burger Joint. You can thank me later. 🙂
Another St. Albert burger place is Jack’s Burger Shack, I am still looking for the ultimate burger but I will certainly go back to Jack’s. Maybe a St. Albert showdown is in order.
Heard “The Hat” downtown is suppose to have the best wonton soup and burger. Never been there myself. Best burger I ever had was in red hills, mississippi at a rundown gas station. They had a couple of ladies working in the back making burgers and they were the best burgers I ever tasted. Sadly the gas station is shutdown because it was really a hole in the ground.
Hey Ernie!
I’ve had a couple suggestions for The Hat, so I guess I’ll have to get over there. Thanks for the input!
Phil
It’s simple, it’s quick, it’s cheap and it’s a cut above burgers I’ve had elsewhere. A Whopper with cheese. DAMN GOOD!
Also hat tip to earls in the Park for a simple cheeseburger with a big beefy taste, a tart mouth watering mustard tang, and fresh lettuce topping. So good…
PS – for $2.60 u can buy a Whopper junior with cheese and it’s quite filling and can substitute for a full lunch in itself at times in a pinch if you have an office job and can’t burn calories easy yet you crave a tasty juicy burger.
PSS – the BK on Calgary Trail is standard for fresh and fast and tasty Whoppas.
Lastly, those Buddy Burgers with cheese that the Dub has rolled out recently are pretty decent and some of the nicest almost bakery tasting buns from a fast food joint that you can get.
I just found this! Thanks Warren, I am the guy from Mosh Burger who moved to NYC. We use buns from popular bakery, they are a great company! We may be planning a pop up in the summer when I come back to visit! great blog Phil, it’s great to see someone leading the charge and hopefully it will bring some good stuff to the Edmonton area!!
Thanks Phil!
Keep me in the loop for any potential pop-ups and I’ll be sure to make it this time.
Phil