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The Spotted Pig’s Chargrilled Burger & Shoestring Fries

The Spotted Pig is a West Village gastropub whose prices on the menu have me shying away instantly, the cheap bastard that I am. Regardless, Gao Di told me the place has a damn good burger and we decided it was a time for me to own up to the $17 dollar price tag and try it out.

I like the Spotted Pig’s setup, didn’t even realize the place was so big until the host brought us to a cozy little table on the second floor. Our waiter seemed a bit curt at the start, he came to our table and asked, “Did you see our specials?” and immediately walked away. He later turned out to be quite friendly. Anyway. Menu: I can’t imagine paying for roasted almonds or marinated olives. Those are the kinds of things you’re supposed to get for free! Am I being cheap right now, or can we all agree on this right now? One of the specials was a giant pork chop for $30 bucks, the couple next to us got that beauty and my eyes widened.

In the interest of “saving money,” Gao Di and I both went for the Chargrilled Burger & Shoestrings (sticking to the plan!), Gao Di assured me that that would be enough food, and as skeptical as I always am I still wanted an appetizer, but cheapness conquered. This burger is beautiful and delicious. This is amazing juicy beef perfection, topped only with roquefort cheese, between two halves of a brioche bun. YUM. The Girl Who Ate Everything describes the shape of the burger as a puck, and she’s totally on point. Along with the burger is a huge mess of delicious “shoestring” fries seasoned with rosemary and salt. These bastards are hard to eat because they’re so thin when you grab a clump they start pointing in all sorts of directions that your mouth just can’t seem to handle.

Anyway, this burger is easily one of the best burgers I’ve had in NYC. The burger is just so juicy and delicious, the texture makes it so easy to eat. A giant bite into the burger – bun+cheese+beef is so fluent it’s as if you’re just experiencing all the burger has to offer – definitely an effortless chomp chomp. I could not get over how the taste of the roquefort cheese went perfectly with the burger. Cooked perfectly medium-rare, this burger is so good on its own I didn’t even bother dipping it in any ketchup. After choking down the burger and fries, I was sufficiently stuffed.

The Spotted Pig offered a special dessert item of rum raisin ice-cream and this ice cream was super rummy and super raisiny (who would have thought?). The serving is surprisingly large at two decent sized scoops – a nice follow-up to a great burger. $8 bucks on this killer, though.

So, all in all, the Spotted Pig is an awesome experience – my body is yearning for another burger at this exact moment. I recommend you go and get it if you can spare yourself the heartache of $17 dollars for a burger. Honestly, it’s worth it, and I know they’ve got me hooked and I’ll be back again.

After reading The Girl Who Ate Everything’s showdown of their burger vs. their (lunch-only) cubano, I know what I’ll be trying next time (although they upped the price from $15 to $17, arghhh!!!) As good as the burger was, I gotta be chowing down some pork at a place called the Spotted Pig. Next time!

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Williamsburg’s Il Passatore serves Cheeseburger at Brunch

Il Passatore is an awesome little Italian restaurant in Williamsburg that I’ve been coming to for a while as a few friends live a short walk away. I came in yesterday to find that this place serves a hamburger on their brunch menu. I love burgers and wondered if an Italian restaurant would serve up a good one. When I asked the waiter how the burger was he responded, “It is ridiculous.” Il Passatore has never let me down with their other dishes and this response had me sufficiently intrigued.

This 8oz. beef burger is served with the usual fixings of lettuce, tomatoes and red onions with a small side salad and some roasted potatoes. I opted for cheddar cheese. I thought the roasted potatoes were a little uninteresting but they tasted pretty good. The burger, on the other hand, was fantastic. The cheddar was beautifully melted and the burger was cooked to perfection. I love when places actually give you medium-rare when you ask for it, I have had too many experiences asking for medium rare and receiving awkwardly burnt burgers. Il Passatore comes through with a wonderfully cheesy and juicy burger at $11. Definitely a good burger joint, who would’ve guessed it?

Some other recommendations from Il Passatore’s menu: The Cozze in Padella (mussels) are ridiculously good. The order comes with a large pile of mussels in a delicious spicy tomato sauce. My favorite pasta dish here is the Pappardelle Con Sugo Di Coda, pappardelle with oxtail ragu, mmm!) The Lombata Di Maiale (roasted pork loin stuffed with spinach and served with caramelized peaches).

Il Passatore is an amazing restaurant. As burgers go, I still think Dumont’s burger is better (and their fries are sooo good) but Il Passatore’s definitely ranks up there. They’ve got a great burger and their italian food is AMAZING- and an awesomely random find right off the Graham L train stop.

Il Passatore is located at 14 Bushwick Ave (between Devoe St & Metropolitan Ave) in Williamsburg, Brooklyn