Bruni Burgers

Posted by Adam Kuban, May 24, 2006 at 9:11 AM

New York Times restaurant critic Frank Bruni drives across the country, sampling fast food along the way in an attempt to find the best of the lot.

Until I hit an In-N-Out Burger in Torrance, Calif., on the eighth day of my trek, all of my fast food was consumed, as fast food often is, in the car, which smelled worse and worse as the trip went on and on. Like an obtuse houseguest or a Supreme Court justice, the scent of a White Castle slider lingers.

My sample period ultimately spanned 9 days, 15 states, 3,650 miles and 42 visits to 35 different restaurants (I hit some more than once). It bequeathed crucial knowledge and invaluable lessons.

Mr. Bruni offers a 10 Favorites list, but, among hot dogs, onion rings, tater tots, and other foods for other blogs, there is only one burger:

Cheddar burger from Culver’s (Rockwall, Tex.): The thin patty had real beef taste, a delectable char and an expansive circumference, draping over the buttered and toasted bun. The Wisconsin cheese was sharp and properly melted.

Mr. Bruni also discovers a few things most burger lovers take as a rule: flame-cooking matters, buns matter, produce matters.

He likes In-N-Out, but only so much, saying the produce on the Animal-Style "obscured the thin patty."

He's not into Tommy's because of its "pasty, forgettable chili," which the joint pours over its famous burgers.

Life in the Fast-Food Lane [New York Times]

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