mmm, bacon.

Everyone knows that the rules of BURGER CLUB clearly state: the more bacon the better.

Burger Club: The Novella.

Ye Old Corner Bistro and the Little Burger that could….

and Did.

Once upon a time there was a burger. A moist-juicy-pretty-basic-burger. It lived in a wonderful little restaurant in the village, packed to the brim with hungry and thirsty villagers and travelers alike. Everyone was in the highest spirits, laughing and talking and sharing the news of the day. The warm room was the perfect place for the villagers to grab a pint of ale... (Light or dark) for a mere $2.50, and to hope for a serenade from the surly but kind bartender. He was quite fond of doling out a rousing chorus of new moon for the lucky patron or patroness who happened to tickle his fancy.

One cold October night the heavy wooden doors of the establishment swung open and in entered seven lovely ladies each lovelier than the next. They had traveled far and wide and on various questionable public transportation devices to meet the famed “Corner Bistro Burger.” But before their quest could be completed they were required to pass two tests to show their dedication and worthiness for the burgers council. The first test was the perilous long line challenge! Yes indeed, the line stretched throughout the entire restaurant and nearly to the street! What a challenge, and on an empty stomach at that! Caitlin and Adriene were the first to assemble and found that a nice cold mug of ale helped weather the wait, and kept them in good spirits. Soon after, the rest of the group arrived, just as Caitlin and Adriene reached the top of the queue. What luck! The task was completed in a mere fifteen minutes, and the group was one step closer to their meeting with the elusive burger.

“That was easy enough!” they all exclaimed as they approached their table. Quickly, they were silenced when they saw what the second challenge held in store…. The tiny booth cramming task! Gasp! Seven people to fit into a booth only meant to hold four! How ever would they succeed!? With the successful utilization of table corners, condiment consolidation and chair commandeering, the seven lovely (and trim) ladies wedged themselves in the booth and were delighted! The burger summit was nearly in order! They ordered quite quickly and easily as burgers and fries were the only real option for these girls. Within moments the burger (times seven) rounded the corner. In a fury of rearranging plates, ketchup doling and burger assembly the girls prepared to feast. The first bites were taken one by one to document and appreciate each girl’s reaction carefully.

Bites of hamburgers, cheeseburgers and the majority (bacon burgers) were executed with ease. The remarkable bacon cheese burger was a lovely creation. As stated before, the simple burger, lightly seasoned by its patroness with salt and pepper and topped fully with ketchup lettuce, tomato and American cheese was the perfect marriage of flavors. The simple seasoning of the burger brought out the wonderful beefy flavor and supreme juiciness. The cheese added that creamy layer of goodness to complement the savory burger and the lettuce and tomato kept the sandwich light and fresh. I thought at first that the burger lacked a bit of the seasoning and inventiveness that the Stand brought to the table, but the burger refused to be insulted. It stepped up to the plate with its crowning achievement. DEEP. FRIED. BACON. All other bacon burgers the world over stepped aside and bowed down to greatness. The bacon was salty and crisp--uniformly cooked until both the meat and fat portions of the cut were a satisfying, crispy golden-brown. The burger’s companions did not fail to impress as well. Satisfying fast food style fries delivered all the guilty pleasures necessary without the unsatisfying and overly cheap and greasy feeling. Again, Stand had mastered the variety and originality category with several different side options to please all, but Corner Bistro was indeed the master of the classics. Classic, well done, fries and burgers. In a matter of minutes the assembly of the burgers was complete and the seven women headed back into the cold night, satisfied, comforted, inspired and ready to face the new experiences that awaited them…..at MARK!

-contribution by Caitlin

A Burger a Day Keeps the Doctor Away.

Not that personal details are really important when it comes to the Burger Club (really the taste and quality of the beef are where it's at), but a recent trip to the Doctor has rekindled my devotion and sparked a true need for my burger-y ladies.

It was a numb spot on my leg that prompted my primary care physician to run several blood tests, but another shocking bit of news that prompted her to call me at work this week.

IRON DEFICIENCY.

That's right. I am not eating enough red meat! Of course she said that I could get it from spinach and beans too, but that's a story for another blog all together. So I say to you all: help me bring my iron levels up and bring on the burgers!

E.C. also stands for E. Coli.

Dear burger-loving friends:

E.C. are not just my initials. As the New York Times recently wrote, they are also E. Coli, a health threat that can live in our hamburger meat.

Does this mean we should all stop eating our hamburgers? No, but it does mean that we should be safe about it. Just days after their original article went to print, NYT followed up with a piece about Costco and Tyson's reaction to the news.

Like vegetarianism, the choice is yours. I'll still be loading up my buns, but that doesn't mean that I won't continue to order my meat medium-well and leave the pink somewhere else.

Long Time, No Burger

It's been a while, Burger Fans, and I'm exhibiting symptoms of burger withdrawal. So appease me (and fill this sad empty basket!) How do you like yours done?

Back to the Big City -- Stand

Burger Club's second adventure took us to Stand - recently reviewed by New York Magazine as having one of the city's best burgers - a review the restaurant lived up to. Eight meat-loving ladies sat down (after the hostess grumbled a bit about giving us a table - even though we had a reservation...whatever) and promptly ordered a variety of juicy beef burgers and one of every version of fries/onion rings they had.

I ordered the bacon and egg cheeseburger, happily following Burger Club rule #4 - the more bacon the better. I was initially nervous about the egg aspect of the dish that was described as "hard boiled egg mayo" but my burger instinct took over and I went for it. BEST. IDEA. EVER. The saltiness of the bacon, the subtle creamy egg mayo, cheddar cheese and the beefy goodness created a to-die-for combination. The meat was cooked to perfection, causing the burger to weep meaty tears down my chin - and I couldn't have cared less.

As for the non-burger items, the shakes were decent but not amazing. Onion rings and the sweet potato fries with the honey-mustard dip were good enough to make a girl go wild. While we were initially unimpressed by the shoestring fries, Beth discovered that adding them to the burger was a great addition, so that are worth ordering for that purpose alone.

Overall - Burger Club gives Stand our meat-loving support and recommends that all go grab a juicy moo-burger today.


-- Contribution by Rose

And speaking of meat...

Just a little plug for myself (and then back to Burgers!) I wrote a piece about eating pork for the AlefNext Blog. Check it out at http://www.alefnext.com/uncategorized/why-i-eat-the-other-white-meat

Sunny Side Up

Spike's Sunny Side Burger. I see the bacon, but where's the beef?!?!

A Very Burger Club Field Trip -- GOOD STUFF!

As good-will ambassadors, diplomats and explorers on behalf of New York Burger Club, Vanessa and Kathryn made a recent pilgrimage to Washington, D.C. in search of two things: the Obama family and meat. Since the Obamas were on vacay, we had to settle for the latter -- but what a consolation prize. Good Stuff Eatery, started by former Top Chef contestant and current Vanessa-admirer Spike, was unbelievably delicious. in fact, Mrs. Obama is said to frequent the restaurant when in town -- and you know she makes her calories count.

Vanessa had been before, and on her recommendation, had convinced me (Kathryn) to make the journey. i can only speak for myself (preferably in the third person, it would seem), but it was the best burger OF MY LIFE. That's right. I said it. New York better step up its game!!!!

There are 9 different amazing burger concoctions to choose from, such as the Prez Obama Burger: applewood bacon, red onion marmalade, horseradish mayo, and roquefort cheese. This received a rave review from our associates, as did the Colletti's Smokehouse: applewood bacon, sharp vermont cheddar & fried vidalia onion rings with chipotle bbq sauce. Vanessa and Kathryn both went with Spike's Sunny Side: dairy fresh cheese, maple bacon & a farm fresh fried egg on a brioche bun with good stuff sauce. price : "$6.89 + lots'a napkins!" how true. 5 stars.

Beyond having heavenly, presidential burgers, good stuff wins extra points for being spacious and well designed. More importantly, it also has amazing burger accessories - fries and shakes.

Spike's Village Fries come "topped with fresh thyme, rosemary & cracked pepper", and are so yummy that you can't stop eating them even when you're stuffed past capacity. There are about 6 different dipping sauces for said fries, including 4 different kinds of mayo. The shakes are also highly addictive, especially the Milky Way.

This is worth a 4 1/2 hour bus ride each way, a plane ticket, train ticket, submarine ticket. no trip to DC is complete without. Say hi to Michelle for us.

-- Contribution by Kathryn

From the Road...

This Southwest Burger recommendation comes from the sister of a friend of mine back home in Texas.

This month's Texas Monthly published an article on the 50 Best Burgers in the state, #2 is Counter Cafe:

"Medium-Rare, white bun (NOT the wheat option - the bun is a big part of the burgers taste), and we all chose to add the grilled onions and jalapenos, which were fantastic. (other add-on choices are portabella mushrooms and bacon, both of which I think would overpower the beef)." - Lauren

http://www.countercafe.com/

Road trip anyone?

It's Like a Meat Party in Our Mouths

That's why we're all smiling so wide at the prospect of burgers and shakes!

Shake Shack - Madison Square Park

The hour-long wait in line is not enough to deter the devotees of BURGER CLUB, nor does it seem to be a turn off to anyone else in the city of New York (all of whom seem to be congregated in Madison Square Park tonight). This is how the very first meeting of the Burger Club was called to order at dusk on the first Wednesday night in August.

To start at the beginning, these are the rules of BURGER CLUB:

1. The first rule of BURGER CLUB is -- YOU DO NOT ORDER VEGGIE/TURKEY BURGERS AT BURGER CLUB. doing so would result in your immediate expulsion from BURGER CLUB and, in all likelihood, from life in general.

2. The second rule of BURGER CLUB is - no boys allowed. Not even gay ones.

3. The third rule of BURGER CLUB is - membership (and thus attendance) is by invite only. because a lot of burger places are small. please don't bring friends with you. they might steal your fries anyway.

4. The fourth rule of BURGER CLUB is - the more bacon the better

Vowing to only order real beef and never invite members of the male sex to join in the festivities, the ladies solemnly agree to the rules and commence with the eating.

Whether they ordered the Hamburger, Cheeseburger, Shack Burger, or any of the above in double size, the Original Shake Shack does not fail to please. Dripping with grease and ambiance, the outdoor burger joint leaves the ladies begging for more (even though they are already so full that they can barely finish the meals they've ordered).

Was this the perfect first meeting of BURGER CLUB, or have the members already spoiled themselves, thereby ruining their taste for any other burger in the city? We'll find out next month when BURGER CLUB convenes again. Stay tuned.

--Contribution by Emily