Post # 11 Corey's Catsup and Mustard

Corey's Catsup and Mustard
623 Main Street
Manchester, CT 06040
catsupandmustard.com

My wife and I sat steely-eyed across from one another at a table at Corey’s Catsup and Mustard, a Triple D featured burger joint outside of Hartford. We had placed our order thirty minutes earlier and Alicia was getting antsy. Having a long drive back to Boston, she wanted to get home to our kids. I wanted to get home, too, but only after eating the delicious burger I knew would soon arrive.

As her frustration mounted, I tried channeling a Zen state, but Zen states are hard to channel when your wife is exclaiming, “I haven’t seen our waitress in ten minutes" and “That table being served ordered after us."

Om...Om...Um...?

Triple D approved: Corey's C&M

I knew my burger would be delicious because I'd eaten at Corey’s once before (alone at the bar, I might add) and my cheeseburger was amazing. This was before Happy Burger began featuring regional fare (posts # 7 and # 9) so instead of writing about the experience, I filed it away.

Since that time, the excellence of that Corey’s burger has nagged at me to where it has taken on mythical proportions in my mind. I had ordered something called The Rodeo, topped with fried shoestring onions, BBQ sauce, cheddar cheese, bacon, ranch dressing and served on a sesame seed bun. The combination of flavors and textures made for a truly burgasmic eating experience; but was The Rodeo as perfect in reality as it was in my memory?

The evocative Rodeo Burger

Sidekick Scott was out of town, so here I sat across from a woman who is gluten free, anxious to get home to the kids and not a burger enthusiast to begin with. As my wife's patience neared it's peak... “Another minute and I'm having it packed to go!"...I focused hard on Zen and the Art of Marital Stability.

“Are you positive this place was on Triple D?!?"

Om...Om...Om...

"It's cold in here!"

Om...Om...Om...

When our food finally arrived, Alicia took a first bite, and asked, “Is your burger hot? My bun-less sliders are room temperature. Which means they're freezing.”

OOOMMM...OOOMMM...OOOMMM...

I tried to imagine that my burger was hot. I tried to visualize it being cooked to perfection as the first had been. I tried envisioning myself sitting alone at the bar. But even in a Zen state I couldn't pretend that my wife wasn't right. The six ounce, 80/20 Angus patty was barely warm. Worse, it had been flat griddled to an unsatisfactory medium-well instead of "on the way to medium" as ordered. The fact that Corey's beef is trucked in twice daily from a local source (a tidbit gleaned from a hostess during our ample wait) was only a sad footnote.

Still, even tepid and overcooked, The Rodeo rivaled many we've featured in Happy Burger. The combination of fresh, seasoned meat, salty bacon and sweet BBQ sauce made for a lively tap dance on my taste buds. The mellow yellow gooey deliciousness of the cheese was complimented by the tangy ranch dressing. The bun's thin crusty outer shell and crispy shoestring onions contrasted nicely with the bun's doughy soft interior. No doubt the combination of textures and flavors had been tinkered with meticulously by talented chefs until they thought the perfect amalgamation had been reached.

And it had. Only this time the execution was off.

On the road home to the kids two things were readily apparent: a recipe is only as good as its implementation, and, while a good wife is right an annoyingly high percentage of the time, a good husband is one who learns ways to deal with it.

Om...Om...Om...

The score below reflects the average of both Corey’s experiences. 

Score: 8.75 out of 10 napkins

(Since this writing I've visited Corey's  a third time, again alone, and I am still in search of that elusive burger. It was better than the last burger but worse than the first. A 9.1 on its own.)

Post # 10 Mr. Bartley's Burger Cottage, Cambridge, MA

Mr. Bartley's Burger Cottage
1246 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
mr.bartley.com

Had it really been twenty-five years since I'd eaten at Bartley's? Considering my fond memories, I should have been back decades ago. What's not to like about a historic, fast-paced burger joint in the heart of Harvard Square...one that's always packed and offers a carnival atmosphere...with a wait staff barking food orders to cooks over customers' heads...oodles of accumulated memorabilia lining every inch of wall space...locals, students, tourists and burger buffs cheek to jowl at wooden tables chatting between bites...and everybody happily a part of the same scene that Bob Dylan, Jackie O., Johnny Cash and countless others have enjoyed since Joe and Joan Bartley opened their little establishment in 1960?

  

Vivid memories for sure, but I 'd forgotten about the line to get in, which upon arrival seemed to have only grown with time. Scott and I took our places at the end and quickly learned a reason: it was parents' weekend at Harvard, and most of them were ahead of us with their prodigy.

Quick! Find the incorrect grammar!!

A waitress hoofed down to the end of the line and gave us menus. We read the list of burgers, named after politicians, celebrities, local sports legends and tid bits of pop culture: The Putin, The Jimmy Fallon, The Tom Brady, the Hash Tag...twenty-two burgers in all. Joe Bartley sat on a stool several yards up, keeping warm in a blue parka while taking orders from patrons as they shuffled by. Wife Joan, looking both cooler and hotter in her own blue parka, played hostess, collecting the orders from Joe and timing their placement with the grill staff to when she had a table available.
       

The Bartleys run a well-oiled machine, and with fifty-four years experience it's no wonder. One would think they'd be ensconced in some Florida beach community by now, counting their money and sipping Mai Tai's; but what got them here keeps them here, and what keeps them here, what keeps us all here (even twenty-five years later) are the burgers.

Scott's People's Republic of Cambridge Burger

Beacuse of Bartley's volume, (on this Saturday alone they'll go through about 300 pounds of beef) Joe has the luxury of having the meat flown in daily from a source in Montana. The Certified Angus arrives pre-ground in bulk, and seven ounce patties are pressed by machine on premises. Years ago, Joe would shower the meat with Accent before cooking; nowadays, he adds only a bit of kosher salt, relying instead on the meat's freshness for the burger's flavor.

These burgers do, in fact, have a very meaty, fresh taste to them. Scott's People's Republic of Cambridge Burger, topped with slaw and Russian dressing and served on a La Ronga Bakery roll, was big and beefy and cooked perfectly to a bright pink medium rare. My Joe Biden Burger, with bacon, American cheese and BBQ sauce, was cooked to an equally perfect, pale pink "on the way to medium." Again, no surprise, as Joe and Joan's son, Bill, has worked the grill since he was fourteen, some forty years ago. Needless to say, the dude's got the hang of it.

After a selfie with Joan on the way out, I found Joe in his car in the parking space directly in front of the restaurant. The line had thinned to a point where he was able to take a lunch break: Chinese from a neighboring restaurant, which he ate with a plastic fork from a Styrofoam container. I asked about the many burger joints that have popped up in the Square in recent years. He said he'd been curious about them, and sent his staff out to test the burgers. The results confirmed his hunch. The burgers were okay, but the meat wasn't fresh like his.

Score: 8.50 out of 10 napkins

Post # 9 The Menemsha Galley

The Menemsha Galley

515 North Road

Menemsha, MA 02552

menemshagalley@aol.com

In the introduction to Happy Burger we gave a shout out to The Menemsha Galley as a place that serves consistently awesome burgers summer after summer. I’m happy to report the tradition continues.

Tucked away at the tip of picturesque Menemsha Harbor on Martha's Vineyard, The Galley is primarily known for its killer lobster rolls, clam chowder and fresh swordfish sandwiches. That's logical considering a sea-to-table distance of about 100 yards, and a co-owner (Barbie Fenner) who is a CIA trained chef. I'm unable to comment on Barbie’s seafood though, as throughout my fifteen year love affair with The Galley I’ve ordered nothing but burgers. 

The Galley's sign , with burgers listed a distant third

In a recent post (see post # 5) I suggested that one's mood at the time of eating can influence a review, and no doubt that's the case here. In an effort at full disclosure, I admit to having been in a great mood every time I ate at The Galley. And why not? I’m on vacation, I’m with family or good friends, and I’m sitting in a postcard setting eating a burger.

The view from The Galley's back porch eating area

I visited The Galley three times this past summer (once with sidekick Scott, once with my wife Alicia, and once with Alicia, our twins, my parents, my brother, my two sisters, a brother-in-law, a baker's half-dozen of nieces and nephews, and a dog.) All three times I was in a great mood, but good mood or not, there's no denying the place serves a scrumptious burger. Made from 80/20 Certified Angus, the patty is smaller than others we’ve tried, but no less delicious. On each of the three occasions I topped it with cheese, lettuce, tomato and Barbie’s homemade Jack Daniels sauce. The cheese was always melted thoroughly over the patty, the lettuce and tomato crisp and cool, the griddled, sesame seed bun crunchy-fresh, and Barbie’s smokey-sweet, oniony JD sauce complex enough to add mouth appeal without overwhelming the other flavors.

A Galley cheeseburger with Jack Daniels sauce

Scott was equally impressed with his burger on our visit, and no doubt Alicia would have been too if she'd ordered one. Since our cleanse (see post #3) she's gone gluten-free, and settled for a roll-less lobster roll. It sounds lame, but she loved it.

Another thing to love about The Galley is the pricing, which is very reasonable considering we're talking about Martha's Vineyard here, and are surrounded by a quintessentially Vineyard-esque view when eating.

Next time you’re driving up-island, after you've stopped in on Geoffrey at Chilmark pottery, bought a jar of homemade honey at Our Honey, downed a drinkable yogurt at Mermaid Farm and procured tomatoes and corn at Beetlebung for dinner, cut over to North Road and take it to the very end. On the right you'll find The Menemsha Galley. Stroll to the take-out window, place an order for a cheeseburger with Barbie's JD sauce, find a seat out back overlooking the harbor, and hope it takes a long, long time 'til your burger arrives. It doesn't get much better.

                                          Three generations of Leubas enjoying their annual pilgrimage to The Galley

Score: 8.75 napkins out of 10.

Post #8 JM Curley, Boston, MA

JM Curley
21 Temple Place
Boston, MA 02111
jmcurleyboston.com

The facade of JM Curley, in the Downtown Crossing section of Boston, looks like a setting from a Ben Afleck mob movie. It is austere and eerie, to a point where being gunned down on the sidewalk seems entirely plausible. Inside, the vibe is less dodgy, but only slightly. On the afternoon I was there, Jay Z was in a foul mood on the box and PBR was served in cans. A handful of urban denizens lingered at scattered tables and a miasma of the previous night's debauchery clung to everything. 

A storefront you wouldn't want to linger in front of.

I sat at the bar nursing a beer while waiting for Scott. He was a half hour late and I wondered if he had tired of being fodder for Happy Burger. I hoped not, as his unexpected antics make these posts easy to write. I called his cell and hung up when I got his voice mail. Just as I was about to order, he barged through the door wearing a fake cop's hat with attached dreadlocks.

"No worries, mon...I'm here!"

Okay, it was Halloween, but I didn't expect it; and just like that two paragraphs were written.

Similar to Happy Burger, JM Curley doesn't take itself too seriously. Reading the house rules on a chalk board above the bar had told me so:

NO COVETING THY NEIGHBOR'S DRINK

NO SHRIEKING OR BELLOWING

NO GROPING OR GRAB ASSING

NO FOUL LANGUAGE

Scott took a seat at the bar, pointed to the chalk board, and bellowed: "WHAT'S WITH THE FUCKING SIGN?" He then eyed my beer thirstily while waiting for his own to arrive. 

The girl behind the bar wore a powder blue mini dress with bobby socks and patent leather shoes. A clip in her hair kept her locks pulled to the side. An identical outfit was worn by one of the waitresses, and later we'd learn they were dressed as the Grady twins from the movie The Shining. Rastafarian Peace Officer Scott took an immediate shine to the bartender. After receiving his beer, he tipped his cop's hat her way and asked if she had a thing for men in uniform. I braced for a grab assing.

Curley's is a casual place, but our research had shown them to be serious about their house burger, which is topped with griddled onions, cheddar, Pop's Russian dressing and pickles. A 5 ounce version is served at lunch, a 9 ouncer at dinner. Either way, the research proved correct as ounce for ounce these burgers are delicious. At the risk of ruining the suspense, the lunch burgers we ate during our first visit rivaled any we've had. The burger was so good, we ordered a second after finishing the first, and we haven't stopped thinking about either.

Curley's amazingly delicious house burger

Discussing the merits of the first burger, Nicole the bartender said it was the combination of homemade Russian dressing and homemade pickles that set it apart from others. Scott thought the generously salted and peppered patty was the key. I liked the burger's unpretentious, simple construction. Served on the incomparable Piantedosi roll, it arrived on a tin plate with a big glob of spicy slaw next to it. The burger itself carried some heat, but like the slaw it wasn't over-spiced. It just had an unexpected bite to it. Like Scott.

Nicole asked if we wanted the second burger "Filthy Andy" style, which meant topped with slaw and fries. Smothering that near perfect burger with French fries seemed silly, but we did add some of the spicy slaw when the plates arrived. After first bite, Scott pounded his fist on the bar and shrieked, "HOLY SHIT, NICOLE, THAT'S A MOTHER FUCKING AWESOME BURGER!" 

The last rule on the chalk board above the bar at JM Curley states, "JUST DON'T BE A DOUCHEBAG." Perhaps they have a liberal definition, because after hearing Scott's praise, Grady twin Nicole poured the three of us a shot on the house. 

I was pretty sure she wouldn't get the ax for it.

Score: 9.3 out of 10 napkins.

Post # 7 Shaw's Fish & Lobster Wharf Restaurant

After eating several awesome burgers this summer while travelling, I realize that writing about only Boston burgers is unfair to the other great burgers out there. Therefore, we'll sprinkle in some out-of-town spots where the burgers rival the best we’ve discussed. If these hidden gems are already favorites, you might feel a certain in-the-know pride as we sing their praises, sort of like how I feel when a much loved deep cut comes on my favorite radio station at the bottom of the dial.

Shaw's Fish & Lobster Wharf Restaurant
129 Maine 32
Bristol, ME 04554
207 677 2200

One time years ago I said this about my buddy Scott: “We joke around a lot, but we also talk seriously about our problems. And what I like most about Scott is, when listening to his problems I realize how small mine are.”

I said this at a time when drama followed Scott like a faithful puppy. But his fortunes have turned and we now talk mostly about burgers. Like the one I had at Shaw’s Fish & Lobster Wharf Restaurant, in Bristol, Maine. 

Earlier this summer, as Scott’s new and beautiful and extraordinarily wealthy girlfriend prepared to leave for yet another international vacation without him, she asked which of her two summer homes (the lake house or the coast house) he'd like to hang at while she was gone. He picked the coast house, and asked me along.

The beautiful and extraordinary coast house

We'd been exploring the Booth Bay region all morning when we came upon Shaw’s on Round Pond in Bristol. Shaw’s isn’t much to look at from the outside, but once you climb the side stairs to the back porch you’re treated to a view that’s quintessentially Maine. Lobster boats, skiffs and Boston Whalers undulate in a quiet cove while gulls hover over fishing enterprises along the jagged coast.

The view from Shaw's back porch

As you might expect, Shaw’s Fish & Lobster Wharf Restaurant is a Restaurant on a Wharf that features Fish and Lobster. And that, to me, is a good reason to try their burger, as good seafood shacks often make great burgers. Scott saw it differently, and even when threatened with a second banishment from Happy Burger (see post # 3) he ordered a lobster. Well, he missed out, as this was the best burger I’d had since Happy Burger's inception.

Scott, happily burying his head in yet another clam

The patty is a full 6 ounces of preformed 80/20 chuck. It is char-grilled, and while I usually prefer a flat griddled burger (the escaped juices sear back into the meat to create a more flavorful bark) the bark on this burger was well worth the bite. Curiously, the sesame seed bun is, in fact, flat griddled, and it too is delicious. 

Pardon the half eaten burger. I couldn't wait.

What separates Shaw’s burger from others is the attention to seasonings. Before being cooked the patty is sprinkled liberally with Monterrey steak flavoring. During cooking it is painted (quite literally with a house paintbrush) with melted garlic butter containing four additional seasonings. I asked the chef what they were but he wouldn't budge. Apparently, it's a secret as closely guarded as Col. Sander's. But that's all well and good, as a bit of mystery adds flavor to any relationship.

This is a truly outstanding burger. Coupled with the view from the back porch and a coast house to return to, it's hard to beat.

Score: 9 out of 10 napkins

Post # 6 Lee's Burgers Place, Newton, MA

Lee's Burgers Place
216 Summer Street
Newton, MA 02459
www.leesburgers.com

On our way over to Lee's, Scott and I got lost in Watertown. It was a beautiful day and Scott was driving his son's sweet new jeep with the top down. We didn't Google Map it. We just sniffed our way toward the burgers while discussing various topics of the day...one of which was the irony of a father having to ask his son's permission to borrow a jeep the father paid for. It was a half hour before we found Lee's, and by then Scott didn't want to talk anymore.

The original Lee's Burgers was in Harvard Square, but high rents forced a move to Newton Center. There was also an original Lee, as in, a guy named Lee, who owned it. His wife and a slew of family helped run it, making it a happy place with a Mom and Pop feel. A couple of years after moving to Newton, Lee sold it, and now the only relation involved is a nephew. It's still a happy place though, and still Mom and Pop-ish.

The nephew of the original Lee, cooking burgers

Lee's is funky, as in down-to-earth and laid back as opposed to armpitty or Grand Master Flashy. It's a tiny spot, seating only 14 people, with mint green walls and a very friendly staff. The girl who took our order was young and good looking and the most friendly of all the friendly people there. Having a good looking girl take your order won't make your burger taste better, but it doesn't hurt. As we ate, she came over and commented on the sweet ride we'd pulled up in. Scott thanked her, then thanked her again. When he thanked her a third time I felt compelled to mention he'd needed his son's permission to borrow it. She thought this was funny. He, not so much.

Scott, the laid back, jeep-drivin' stud

Lee's serves other items, but the focus is burgers, which start at $ 4.99 and include lettuce, tomato, onions and pickles. Other add-ons are extra, but not a lot extra. It's "cheap eats" as Scott likes to say, and a great burger for the money. The patties are six ounces of flame-grilled, pre-formed 100% ground sirloin, served on a perfectly adequate, toasted, sesame seed bun. Restaurants take pride in using sirloin over chuck because of its higher quality; but higher quality means less fat, and fat equals flavor. Lee's compensates by offering a special sauce, a concoction of mayo, mustard, honey and spices that's well known among area burger aficionados. No question the sauce is great, it's even good on the killer onion rings, but Scott and I agreed that Lee's relies on it too heavily for the burger's flavor. Even slathered on, we felt something was missing. Perhaps Mr. Lee took the salt shaker with him when he sold the place. 

Lee's bacon cheeseburger with special sauce

Back in the jeep, Scott summed it up in his own unique way. "I can still taste that delicious ingredient that was missing from my burger," he mused, looking longingly through the restaurant's window.

Knowing exactly what he meant tells me we hang out too much.

Score: 8.25 napkins out of 10.

Post # 5 R.F. O'Sullivan & Son, Somerville, MA

R.F. O’Sullivan & Son

282 Beacon Street

Somerville, MA 02431

www.rf-osullivan.com

When I evaluate a burger, subconscious factors no doubt influence my evaluation. For example, if I drive off to yet another burger joint and my wife yells from the porch, “I thought you were raking leaves today!” my burger will likely taste less delicious than if she’d said, “Have a great adventure, Burgerman!”

Keeping this in mind, I try not to be overly critical in this blog. Burger greatness is a personal assessment. Yet, when a certain restaurant is continually praised by critics, the general public usually falls in line. Which brings us to R. F. O’Sullivan & Son, one of the most press-covered and praised burger joints in the Boston area. So much attention has gone O’Sullivan’s way, people show up these days just to see what all the talking is about. What’s curious about O’Sullivan's is, while there are many backers, there are also detractors, and everybody with an opinion is convinced his is the right one. Including moi.

The stately exterior of R.F. O'Sullivan & Son

On the Sunday Scott and I tried O’Sullivan's, the restaurant had been featured on The Phantom Gourmet that very morning. By the time we arrived, throngs of salivating carnivores were charging the entrance like lemmings toward a cliff. Pulling to the curb, we saw Richard Sullivan, the owner, out front on the sidewalk, smiling. And why wouldn’t he be? Free advertising had once again blessed his little establishment, and the faithful were flocking as if to Mecca.

Before heading inside, I asked Richard about his well known refusal to squash his burgers with a spatula during cooking. He replied, in effect, that squashing is akin to blasphemy. As if to dare people to question this belief, he also defiantly forms his patties the size and shape of softballs.

O'Sullivan's Cheddar and Onion Sauce Burger

I understand the reason for not squashing a burger during cooking. The more you squash, the more juice escapes. But wouldn't it be wise to start with a shape that’s conducive to eating? No doubt O’Sullivan’s burgers are big and juicy. A half pound of beef is used per burger, making it seem like a great value; but bigger isn’t always better, juicy isn’t always delicious, and value rarely equals excellence. For having so much juice, O’Sullivan’s burgers are surprisingly light on flavor. And because the patty is roundish, the burger is impossible to keep together, let alone eat. It’s just a big hunk of meat with condiments sliding from under the top bun while non-seasoned juices drench the bottom bun until it's a soggy mess. Which is exactly what happened to my Cheddar and Onion Sauce Burger. Halfway through, I gave up and ate the remaining shrapnel with a fork.

Plus, the restaurant smelled of fish when we entered.

Okay, I’m being overly critical, but hearing continual praise compels me to speak up. The emperor is wearing no clothes, people!

After finishing our burgers, Scott and I struck up a conversation with the couple sitting next to us. They’d seen The Phantom Gourmet segment earlier that morning and immediately drove up from Westport, MA to be a part of the scene. Sure enough, they had only accolades for the burgers they’d eaten. But wouldn’t they have felt foolish driving all that way for subpar burgers? Could it be that subconscious factors influenced their evaluation?  

As for me, I almost wished I'd stayed home and raked the leaves.

Score: 6.5 out of 10 napkins