Hamburger:
4.6, $12
Clementine was a surprise entry for #LeBurgerWeek 2016; they didn't have a burger on the menu but the “Southern Affair” took the Judges Choice Award. Four months later the understated “Hamburger” appeared on the lineup and was as near to perfection as any juicy stack we’ve feasted on. Nineteen Burger Clubbers voted to make
Clementine #1.
 |
| Le Burger Week 2016 |
The underground restaurant opened at 125 Princess in May 2016. "
We wanted a brunch space first and foremost, a place in the Exchange" said Chef Chris Gama. "
The big draw to this location was the beautiful beams and exposed stone walls. We worked with Dutch East Design and they did an excellent job highlighting the existing features." Clementine is a partnership between Chef Adam Donnelly and his wife Carolina Konrad, sister Raya Konrad and Chris Gama.
 |
| Photo: Adelina Wong (packmeto.com) |
The subterranean location is reminiscent of a Quebec City cellar pub. The space felt roomy with a high timbered ceiling and open kitchen - lighting up one end of the dining room like a window into burger heaven. A variety of wooden surfaces and rich wall treatments present plenty of eye candy. There were sparkling bottles of water on the tables and an “Eat this it’ll help” neon sign near the kitchen. Stephanie exclaimed“
Super cute restaurant!” and Brenda echoed “V
ery much enjoyed the ambience.”
The burgers arrived quickly, served fully assembled and unaccompanied. They were beautiful to look at. The hand formed patty is an 85:15 mix of beef chuck and bacon, simply seasoned with salt and pepper, coarsely ground in-house and lightly handled giving it a fluffy texture. It’s a thick 5-6 oz. round prepared to perfection – cooked through and very juicy.
The pillowy soft sized-just-right Japanese milk dough bun was baked in-house and then grilled. Chris described how “
a portion of the flour is pre-cooked limiting the amount of gluten that forms during mixing and providing a more tender crumb. We add dill and top it off with crushed dill pickle potato chips.” The stack was an easy bite and held together to the end. Many restaurants outsource their buns and when I asked Chris about it he said “
The decision to bake in house was easy, we do all our baking in house!”
The made-from-scratch zucchini refrigerator pickles provided vinegary tang and crunchy texture to the sandwich. The patty was nestled on a bed of shredded iceberg lettuce and pimento cheese sauce. The sauce was fairly bold, and if your sandwich received a large dollop in the kitchen, it could dominate the otherwise well balanced flavours. Between the juicy patty and pickles it was drippy, but it's a well known fact that messy burgers taste better. To coin a phrase from Breakfast Connoisseurs, there was slurge.
- Russ: A return to my happy place. The bite and flavour were both perfect, if a bit unconventional. The homemade bun was the ideal consistency and complimented the lightly packed bacon and beef patty. I will be back.
- Les: Super simple construction with minimal additions. No tower of added this-and-that to impress, just a real burger with lettuce, sauce and zucchini pickle. The patty was thick, juicy and tasty with the added bacon infused. Sauce made it drippy (which is always good) and the bun held together!
- Brett: I usually prefer a crispy patty but this was soft and quite flavourful. Liked the tangy sauce. I love green relish and the sweet zucchini pickles satisfied that with a crunch. Bun was soft, tasty and held up well.
In the spirit of sharing, one of your table friends should order the Potato Home Fries ($5). The tasty morsels are buttery soft on the inside with a light crispy crust giving a pleasing texture. Artistically drizzled salsa negra and lime mayo add the flavour punch.
They don’t take reservations and Clementine is a popular destination. Most of us got there around 11:30 and were seated in two areas. There were lots of smiling and efficient service and kitchen staff and we were served quickly. I asked the kitchen folks if they’d like to pose for a photo and heard “
No posing, only action shots!” It was the lunch rush and they were busy. By the time our group left at about 12:20 there were a number of people in line to be seated.
At $12, the unaccompanied burger seemed a little pricey, but it’s created from fresh, quality ingredients (as are all their menu items). The designed space is beautiful, staff are plentiful and well trained so I guess you get what you pay for. Andrew commented “
For $12, it would be nice if a side was included, but this won't stop me from coming back.”
What happens when you combine restaurant experience, fine arts, world travels and a smoker? You make Burger Club's Top 5! Miss Browns, the little hot pressed bruncherie, opened at 288 William Ave near the Red River College campus just over two years ago. It’s a popular spot and Burger Club needed to schedule lunch between studying students and a large catering order.
Miss browns is bright and cheery with a big communal table, line of two-seaters and a window counter to accommodate any social situation. It’s an open kitchen and co-owner Jenny assembled and plated the stacks while husband Steve worked the smoker and sliced brisket for the sliders. There was steady takeout action over the lunch hour and enthusiastic servers Taylor and Laura took great care of our group.
All the burgers come with “a side of house made, crispy, warm potato chips, which I thoroughly enjoyed” wrote Dani. Tom added “The soup was incredible.”
Miss Browns came to our attention during #LeBurgerWeek 2016. Jenny described the experience as crazy – they have a tiny grill and there was a line out the door for six hours!
Rae’s Bistro takes silver! Similar to Clementine, last month’s new number one, Rae’s creates a variety of delectable dishes. You can chow down on a fantastic burger with beet chips and Lousy Beatnik beer while your dining partner has rack of lamb, a glass of wine and raspberry planter for desert.
Rae’s Bistro opened the doors in December after owners Zack Clarke and Matt Swirsky met Chef Mike Ozero in the parking lot and the ideas started flowing. Mike already knew his way around the kitchen at 925 Headmaster Row: “I try to learn something new all the time and research trends and flavors, but my favourite food is burgers. 95% of the time when I go out to eat, I get a burger.”
Everything about the stack was delicious, but the bacon and Bistro Sauce put it over the top. When asked about the bacon Chef Ozero waxed poetic: “Bacon......lovely bacon. When I first met Matt, I said too bad we didn’t get the smoker from the meat shop so we could do bacon; maybe we should buy one. He had a box so we built a smoker. We do a dry rub with brown sugar, curing salt, maple and pepper, rub down a few bellies and let them sit for a time. After smoking a few hours with a wood chip blend, we put the bellies into the oven to bring them up to temperature, chill and slice. It took a few tries but I think we got it down.”
The 6.5 oz. beef patty is good ‘ol medium ground chuck. “We form into balls and drop a big heavy can on them” said Mike. “We let the meat do the talking and season with just salt and pepper. They are cooked on the flat top then the broiler.”
The soups and deserts are really something. Chef Ozero cooked his way across the country since graduating from Red River in 2002 and was at the MTS Centre under Roger Wilton when he passed his Red Seal exam. “I spent a few years at Desert Sinsations as Barbara O'Hara's sous chef. I didn't work on deserts, but you'd be surprised how much you learn from observation. I have a good day cook that is learning soups and surprising me with his creations.”
You can’t beat the service either. None of us went thirsty and the line of local craft beers was impressive. Two servers took great care of us, and it wasn't long before the parade of burgers came out of the kitchen in the sequence they were ordered. Brett commented “Tanika offered to drive us home to Charleswood even though she lives in Selkirk.” Rae’s Bistro is a bit of a trek for some – but totally worth it!
We came for the burger and stayed for the characters. Esther hasn’t burgered for a while and commented “Had a great conversation about visiting grave sites of famous people and where they met their demise. Burger Club is always entertaining.”
The burgers arrived quickly, served fully assembled and unaccompanied. They were beautiful to look at. The hand formed patty is an 85:15 mix of beef chuck and bacon, simply seasoned with salt and pepper, coarsely ground in-house and lightly handled giving it a fluffy texture. It’s a thick 5-6 oz. round prepared to perfection – cooked through and very juicy.
The pillowy soft sized-just-right Japanese milk dough bun was baked in-house and then grilled. Chris described how “a portion of the flour is pre-cooked limiting the amount of gluten that forms during mixing and providing a more tender crumb. We add dill and top it off with crushed dill pickle potato chips.” The stack was an easy bite and held together to the end. Many restaurants outsource their buns and when I asked Chris about it he said “The decision to bake in house was easy, we do all our baking in house!”
The made-from-scratch zucchini refrigerator pickles provided vinegary tang and crunchy texture to the sandwich. The patty was nestled on a bed of shredded iceberg lettuce and pimento cheese sauce. The sauce was fairly bold, and if your sandwich received a large dollop in the kitchen, it could dominate the otherwise well balanced flavours. Between the juicy patty and pickles it was drippy, but it's a well known fact that messy burgers taste better. To coin a phrase from Breakfast Connoisseurs, there was slurge.
In the spirit of sharing, one of your table friends should order the Potato Home Fries ($5). The tasty morsels are buttery soft on the inside with a light crispy crust giving a pleasing texture. Artistically drizzled salsa negra and lime mayo add the flavour punch.
They don’t take reservations and Clementine is a popular destination. Most of us got there around 11:30 and were seated in two areas. There were lots of smiling and efficient service and kitchen staff and we were served quickly. I asked the kitchen folks if they’d like to pose for a photo and heard “No posing, only action shots!” It was the lunch rush and they were busy. By the time our group left at about 12:20 there were a number of people in line to be seated.
At $12, the unaccompanied burger seemed a little pricey, but it’s created from fresh, quality ingredients (as are all their menu items). The designed space is beautiful, staff are plentiful and well trained so I guess you get what you pay for. Andrew commented “For $12, it would be nice if a side was included, but this won't stop me from coming back.”
