The Plaza Tavern and Grill

The Plaza Tavern and Grill is an institution in Madison, WI. My parents hung out there when they were in college and my brother and I spent most of our birthdays there as well. The burgers are as unique as the place. I always get the same order from her without fail. Except my brief period of vegetarianism in the 90s. I get a Plaza Cheeseburger and cheese curds and usually a Point beer. This time we were headed to Beer Fest so I skipped the Point and just got a boring old Diet Coke.

The burger, it is a thin patty served on a squishy wheat bun. The kicker on this little piece of heaven is the sauce. It's like a Dilly Dill sauce/ranch/a tinge salty goodness. I of course put pickles on my lightly toasted bun (added crunch) and then I devour this pre-sliced (which I really like btw) burger. Of course cheese curds beat french fries any day of the week so that goes without saying.

This is my favorite burger not because it's necessarily the best quality beef or the best bun, it's really the sauce and the nostolgia. Next time you are in Madison, Wisconsin stop by for a burger, beer and hockey foosball (UW vs MN).

Custom House

I got a coupon thingy from Foodie.com for $5 burgers so we decided to give it a go! Custom House has a great reputation when Shawn McClain opened/ran it (he is known for Spring, Green Zebra and I think another). Anyway he is no longer there so this must be a way to bring in business for lunch or for anytime. The burger normally is $12 a pop so this is a good deal! Comes with fries even and cheese and toppings, not like the $1 burger deals at some bars where cheese is 25 cents, lettuce is 25 cents, etc.

There weren't many people there when we got there, maybe 4 tables but only 1 waitress. This lead to a bit of a wait for the food. We enjoyed the cool looking space and waited and waited. Finally our food arrived. The burger is a lot like the burger your dad would put on the grill, it had a slight char on it which at points was delicious as DK says it's carmalizing something but other bites it was burnt. There was some sort of secret sauce which you know I love. This one was sort of like a steak sauce maybe mixed with ketchup or some other tomato substance. It was fine added something to the burger. The bun was a brioche bun slightly toasted (thank goodness). Fries were pretty good, not too bad. I would say it ranks up higher than some of the others that we have tried...

While I really appreciate the crunch (Crunchaholic here) of the burger the bites that tasted like burn really ruined that crunch. Fine line there I guess.

Overall it was a good $5 burger but was it a $12 burger too? I don't know about that.

B burger

Urban Burger Bar

UBB just opened on Saturday and me and the Dirty Ghirkin were there! There was no red carpet or step and repeat but we still went. This blog is turning me into a nerd. I don't think I have ever gone to an opening of anything before but here I was opening day. I was ready to cut them some slack being their first day and all but there was no need. While they did not have beer yet they did have some good looking milkshakes. Like most burger joints you have an option of building your own or eating one of their hand crafted burgers. I built my own this time, starting with the tall grass burger and adding cheddar, pickled onions, arugula and jalapenos. The burger came out after not too bad of wait. It was a large burger, not the biggest one we have eaten yet but a good size, hand pressed patty cooked perfectly. The bun was pretty standard and not toasted which would have made a world of difference in my book. I did see some burgers come out with toasted buns so not sure if they just forgot to toast mine or if that is something you have to ask for. The bun is my only complaint about this place. The burger was seasoned well which in my book makes a world of difference. The fries were ok, handcut thin fries, chewy but not too chewy. I could have used a little more crunch but I'm a crunchaholic as my mom calls it. A favorite thing of mine though, it came with various dipping sauces!

My partner in crime, the Dirty Ghirkin, ordered by recommendaiton of the waiter, Les Urbains which is a burger with brie, onion jam and dijonaise. While on paper I think it sounds sort of gross it was quite delicious! The sweetness of the jam really added something to the creaminess of the brie. To tell you the truth I didn't taste the dijonaise but I also was only allowed one bite! Since it was the grand opening and we are celebrities in our own heads, the chef, owners and manager all came over to ask us about our time at UBB and the food. I think it was a nice touch. Touchin' Tables as the Dirty Ghirkin calls it. I like it. I would give the UBB an A. Good burger, flavorful and moist (I hate that word, need a new one). My complaint would be an untoasted bun and fries that could use just a second longer in the fryer.

I would definitely come back to UBB and since it's only a couple blocks away makes it all the better!