Friday, July 31, 2009

Burger Porn...

saw this on the hamburger today blog and had to post it. now this is the most indulgent... unfortunately, i don't live anywhere near chicago, but hell... next time i'm there i have a place i wanna go for lunch!
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Kuma's Corner: A Chicago Burger Even Upton Sinclair Would Love

Serious Eats contributor Daniel Zemans checks in with a piece of intel on the Windy City burger scene. Daniel also blogs about Chicagoland pizza with his friends on the Chicago Pizza Club blog. The Mgmt.

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Kuma’s Corner

2900 W. Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL 60618 (map); 773-604-8769; kumascorner.com
Cooking Method: Grilled
Short Order: The creative burgers are so good that this heavy metal bar is often overrun with a decidedly non-metal crowd
Want Fries With That? Absolutely! The waffle fries are cooked to perfection and the housemade chips are even better
Price: $10 to $13
Notes: In the summer, outdoor seating is available in back, but the extra grill space devoted to the additional tables means no orders to go during those months


Chicago has been the center of America’s beef world since the Union Stock Yards opened on Christmas Day, 1865. The city's status as the hub of the growing national railroad network and proximity to Midwestern cattle farms ensured that as the country and its demand for meat grew, so too did Union Stock Yards. By 1900, the Stock Yards was 475 acres and had 130 miles of railroad track and 50 miles of roads, and the city’s meatpacking industry employed more than 25,000 people and produced over 80 percent of the meat eaten in the United States.


By the late 1950s, technological advances eliminated the need for a large centralized slaughterhouse and part of Chicago's place as the epicenter of the meat industry withered away. But while the cattle may have stopped pouring in and out of Chicago, the cattle futures market remained at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, thereby retaining the city's importance in the beef-eating world and beef’s importance in the city’s self image. Given that history, it should come as no surprise that the hamburger is well represented in Chicago.

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In the middle of 2005, Matt Cain opened Kuma’s Corner in Avondale, a working-class neighborhood on the northwest side that has consistently been a first American home for immigrants and has recently become a landing place for hipsters. After a couple of different radical menu overhauls, Kuma’s found and mastered its niche by 2007: a metal bar that sells some incredible and creative hamburgers. While the heavily tatted and pierced staff surely scared off some more straight-laced prospective diners in the early days, Kuma’s has evolved into a culinary destination for burger-lovers of all stripes—so much so that it is common for people to wait well over an hour to get seated.


Kuma’s offers 22 different burgers, 20 of which are named after heavy metal bands. The other two burgers are the eponymous Kuma Burger and a rotating monthly special typically named after a popular current news story (one of which was mentioned on AHT). I have not yet had every burger on Kuma's menu, but it is high on my to do list. One thing that has slowed me down is that the Kuma Burger is so good, it’s hard for me to not order it.

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The Kuma Burger features 10 ounces of coarsely ground beef—like every burger at Kuma’s—and is topped with cheddar cheese, bacon and a fried egg. Between the juice from the meat and the egg yolk, there seems to be danger of making an inedible mess after a couple of bites. But the pretzel roll on which every burger at Kuma's is served is capable of absorbing an astounding amount of liquid.


There are places where so much is made of the toppings that the actual burger is an afterthought. That is not the case at Kuma’s at all; my rare burger was cooked perfectly. There was a nice crisp layer on the outside and the center was warm, soft meat. Combined with the crisp and chewy bacon, melted cheese, and molten egg, every bite had an incredible melding of flavors and textures. And because there is so much meat, there was no danger of the burger being overwhelmed by the toppings, something that has held true on every Kuma’s burger I’ve tried, from the Iron Maiden (avocado, cherry peppers, pepper jack, chipotle mayo) to the High On Fire (Sriracha, prosciutto, roasted red pepper, grilled pineapple, sweet chili paste).

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When I visited Kuma's Corner in late May, my plan was, as it always is when I go, to finally try the Goblin Cock, which is basically a bacon cheddar burger with a fully dressed quarter-pound Chicago-style hot dog on top. But once again, I was distracted, that time by the monthly special, the Swine Flu. That burger featured fried tortilla strips, chorizo hash, roasted green chiles, pico de gallo, fresh cilantro, and a cream sauce. It was not my favorite burger that I've had at Kuma's, but the competition in that category is fierce. Other than the fried tortilla strips not retaining any crunch at all, the Swine Flu was an excellent burger. While it did not earn a permanent place on the menu, I do hope that chorizo hash will reappear on another burger there soon.


Even though Kuma's Corner has exploded in popularity over the last couple of years, it remains very much a neighborhood bar. There are regulars who know each other and everyone who works there, and Cain has been noticeably generous in hosting fundraisers for small local causes. The combination of good people, incredible burgers, and an impressive beer list that's dominated by craft brews has been a winning one for Kuma's. There have been rumors of Kuma's expanding to other cities, but so far it has not happened. Cain rejected the Venetian's overtures regarding an expansion into Las Vegas, but he has expressed willingness to branch out into cities like Milwaukee, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh. I would advise residents of those cities to start a letter-writing campaign immediately.

Friday, July 17, 2009

NPR Segment on In-N-Out Burger

Check out the piece on In-N-Out Burger. the author of a new book on the In-N-Out phenomenon is interviewed. Find link here.

Also a piece from "grubstreet":

Those who checked into All Things Considered on NPR yesterday were treated to a breakdown of all things In-N'-Out when Stacy Perman, author of In-N-Out Burger: A Behind-the-Counter Look at the Fast-Food Chain That Breaks the Rules, took to the airwaves for an interview.

In addition to illuminating founder Harry Snyder's "keep it simple" philosophy that has saved us from In-N-Out burgers in bread bowls, Perman details one of our favorite ways to do a double-double: Animal Style from the sorta secret menu.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

GrubStreet: Article on LA's best burgers

this stuff is always subjective and i don't agree with some of the inclusions, some of those excluded, and frankly haven't tried them all... that said, an interesting article/slideshow worth giving a look...

The Burger Register: L.A.'s Twenty-Five Most Notable Burgers

The Burger Register: L.A.'s Twenty-Five Most Notable Burgers


Throw all the raw vegetables, juice bars, and ionized Whole Foods water you want at L.A., it still holds its own as a burger town, as any In-N-Out fanatic will proudly let you know. Even the New York Times recently squashed any East Coast-West Coast "beef" (sorry!) when it highlighted L.A.'s storming of the nouveau burger scene, calling Comme Ça's creation nothing short of "genius." Many of today's best chefs in L.A., from Tim Goodell to Govind Armstrong, have ditched artful plates and the evolution of California cuisine for sloppy, sinful slabs of sirloin, Angus, and rib-eye.

We whipped around the city for a tour of L.A.'s twenty-five most relevant, beloved, and delicious hamburgers. Some are legends, some are spring chickens, but each one has carved out a niche in our burgerland. When you're done drooling, check out Grub Street's Burger Registers for New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Boston.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Recipe: Mediterranean Pasta Palad

hopefully i'll have some time soon to fill in more detail (amounts, etc.), but thought i'd post at least this much...

i made a cold mediterranean pasta salad today, and it turned out pretty good. i'm sure i'll tweak it a bit, but all in all happy with it...


the ingredients (in no particular order):

israeli style couscous
orzo
baby garbanzo beans
red quinoa

saffron
curry powder
minced garlic and ginger
white pepper
salt

halved cherry tomatoes
greek feta cheese
red basil (chiffonade)
roasted green bell pepper (chopped)

vinegarette:

olive oil
dijon
white balsamic vinegar
rice vinegar
honey
green onions (chopped)

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Gourmet Magazine: Best Burgers Menu

Nice feature from Gourmet Magazine Online with an interesting slide show (with reciepes) of "unusual" but tasty-looking burger ideas. Find the slideshow here.
Personally... i'm a big lamb burger guy these days, but i have been wanting to try a burger with a fried egg for some time. Crab burger looks good too (i'll pass on the poppy seed bun, though).