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Shake Shack is super yummy non-haute burgers. It's like fast food burgers on speed. I feel like no one has the right to degrade OR elevate them. They are what they are, but they serve a purpose and are MIGHTY satisfying, much more so than McDonald's ( ok, I've never had a McDonald's burger)....

I just got back from Corton. The website asks guests to refrain from using flash photography and cell phones. I accept that gladly. You quote Drew here as saying,

"No, we're not going to stop people from taking photos," Nieporent said. "We'd just like people to be considerate of the other people in the restaurant.""

So why, when I entered, was I told that no photography was permitted. I asked nicely and was told, "no". The host asked the chef and reiterated that it was not permissible. I explained that I would not use a flash. I explained that I would not use the photos online nor for any commercial purposes. Still, my request was refused. I feel lied to based on the website only saying that "flash photography" was not permitted and also the quote here from Drew. So Drew, why is this?

The food at Corton was good but, just like Momofuku Ko, I won't be back. I see no reason to reward restaurants who don't consider my desire for a permanent memory, valid. They can make any policies they like but I still get to chose where I dine. I also chose to deal with people who advertise honestly. Drew said that, "we're not going to stop people" but that is just what they did. That to me is deceptive.

In the interest of full disclosure, the host did comp a round of drinks for us because of this. Still, it, (please, please, pardon the pun, leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

just finished my burger at bill's and boy was it disappointing- the burger as dry as the majority of my fries- I had to constantly quench my thirst with their fine "cold ass" which was delightfully light.
and what's up with the over crowded kitchen?

"My waiter refused?" How does that work?

"Can I order it juicy?"
"Yeah, but I won't put the order in for you."

Seriously? That kind of stuff sets me off, big time.

Ed, when I had dinner there this weekend, I was already instructed by Nick Solares to order the burger juicy. However, my waiter refused my request to cook the burger that way, and I ended up with a dried-out patty. When I then ordered the Sunset and Vine, I insisted that the burger be cooked juicy this time. The waiter eventually relented, and the resulting burger was properly cooked. That's the difference between Shake Shack and Bill's Bar and Burger: Shake Shack does it right without it being requested.

I agree. Bill's is good but totally over rated. This noise comes from the unstoppable PR machine that is Josh Ozersky and his mini me, Nick Solares, as they shill incessantly for their buddies over at Pat Lafrieda. Not that there is anything wrong with that. But we shouldn't pretend it's anything else. And I also agree that the smashed burger method is getting way too many accolades, also artificially by those with the influence and means to make their voices heard. Bruni was correct in his opion that smashed burgers need to eaten as doubles, because otherwise there is too much bread etc in each bite, since the patty becomes so thin. Last time I checked burgers were about beef. Give me a big, plump, tender, crispy crusted juicy burger cooked BLOODY RARE please. Can't do rare with the smashed burgers.

nice, all those look great. didn't Bruni come out and say he thought the shackburger was better as a double? i'm with you Ed, it's better regular.

The pastrami burger that Lexalpha mentioned has been refined to perfection in the Salt Lake City area, where one-off restaurants and local chains started by Greek immigrants have made it their signature specialty. No hamburger aficionado has truly lived until he/she has experienced a Crown Burger.

What about the "cheese skirt" burger? There are several places doing this, one notable is the Squeeze Inn in Sacramento:
http://www.eatingtheroad.wordpress.com/2009/10/14/squeeze-inn/

oops
Twitter: @christellar

Now that was by far one of my favorite burger posts I've seen! Way to get them all in one blog.

@everyone: Thanks for the kudos! This was a lot of fun to put together, and I'm glad you enjoyed it. I'm sorry if it made you hungry, but dems da breaks!

@KingT: What would you say makes a '30s-style burger? Given what I've read about burger history, I'd guess it would either be a slider (since White Castle all but revolutionized burgerdom in the late '20s and up to WWII) or a slider-style burger (a little larger but cooked in a similar fashion).

@shanella: I'm only responsible for the first photo; the rest are Flickr Creative Commons–licensed or used with permission of the photographer. I know that any of Nick Solares's or Robyn Lee's are dSLRs (Nikon D300 and Canon 20D, respectively). For any of the others that link to Flickr, you can click through and look to see if the photographer has EXIF data for the photo. That should tell you camera make/model.