Da Best Burger

Yes, I blinked again too when I saw the name of the place: Paul's Da Burger Joint. The heat must have gotten to my head - it's been over 100 degrees in New York for the past two days and tolls have been taken on all of us. Is there a noun and an article in that title? Or are those couple of stray letters just a typo gone too far? A most importantly, does it really matter?

The answer, definitively, is no. Not when your burgers taste this good.

The decor is kitchy, the music is spot on, and the cooks are short order. Paul's is certainly not short on P-E-R-S-O-N-A-L-I-T-Y. Luckily, they have the chops to back it up. The burger menu goes on for days: regular burgers, cheese burgers, Texas burgers, pizza burgers, mushroom burgers, and Philly cheese steak burgers. I personally went with the English burger - ground beef, lettuce and tomato on an English muffin (if you have never tried this bun option, please get off your computer and do so immediately).

Now, let me preface this by saying that I recently had dental surgery, am not able to bite into things with my front teeth, and was not expecting to particularly enjoy this burger. Boy was I wrong. Even cut up and eaten with a fork and knife I could taste that flavor that you rarely get in the city: char grilled meat. That's right, while most patty's are clearly made on a full metal surface, this one tasted as if it had been cooked over an open flame.

And what's more - steak fries! - another rare find in this urban jungle.

Cue Meg Ryan 's When Harry Met Sally deli scene...you know the one I'm talking about.

Top it off with a root beer, milkshake, or soda float and you have the perfect meal for a hot hot summer evening in New York City.