The Pinesburger is the specialty at this charming little roadside tavern about three miles north of Ithaca on Route 89 (also known as Taughannock Boulevard).
The Pinesburger comes on Ithaca Bakery French bread—the same stuff that the famous Hot Truck French bread pizzas are served on (and what seems to be the ubiquitous bread choice for sandwiches in the area). It's topped with lettuce, tomato, cheese, and your choice of Thousand Island or mayo. I went for Thousand Island, as it seemed to be the thing to do.
The French bread, though, is a little too thick for the sandwichin's—at least on a standard single-patty Pinesburger. I'm guessing the Double Pinesburger might have just the right beef-to-bun ratio.
My Pinesburger came out a couple shades north of the medium-rare I had ordered but was acceptably juicy nonetheless. The burgers are grilled here, and there's just enough charred flavor to tip you to the heat source but not so much that it's all you taste. Patties are ground medium-coarse and are packed moderately tight.
Sides
You know I'm not a fries guy, so I went with onion rings. They were OK, not spectacular, just good enough for mindless chompin'. I'd skip them in favor of the deep-fried corn nuggets, a side you don't often see but one that "The Hamburgirl" and I order almost every time we spot them on a menu.
And I think the appropriate beer pairing for the Pinesburger here at this establishment that serves "legal beverages" is a Genny—they've got regular, light, and cream.
The 4 Pinesburger Challenge
I first heard about Glenwood Pines when I polled the folks on Serious Eats about food options in and around Ithaca. And while visiting with the girlfriend, we hung out with some frat brothers who notified us that the place is known locally as "The Pines." They seemed to like it, which I took as a good sign, and they told us about the Pinesburger Challenge: Eat four Pinesburgers in an hour or less, and you get a free T-shirt and your name on the Pinesburger Challenge Wall of Fame. One or two of the brothers had actually finished. I would expect no less.
Glenwood Pines (aka "The Pines")
1213 Taughannock Boulevard, Ithaca NY 14850 (map)
607-273-3709 glenwoodpines.com
The Glenwood Pines is indeed one of the great burger places. Probably not as much frou frou fancy burger as you might find at DB Bistro Moderne, but certainly superior in quality and ambience to places like In-n-out, Steak-n-shake, or the Shake Shack.
I personally don't like the Pinesburger -- which is a mess and has the wrong meat to bun ratio. I go for the Tully Burger instead. 4 oz burger instead of a 6 oz burger, but on a much smaller bun. But, the fries are great and most everything is homemade. They usuall have some pretty great homemade desserts -- rice pudding, carrot cake, pies, etc.
The Pinesburger challenge doesn't seem to be much of a challenge. Way too many Polaroids on the wall of people meeting the "challenge". However, I was just in Ithaca last month and saw another feat -- someone ate 4 Pinesburgers in 7 minutes, which seemed a bit more impressive (and a new world record)!! Think the person got a larger 8.5x11" picture closer to the front door for his accomplishment.
@cgorange: What exactly IS a Tully Burger? I had one at the Louie's Lunch truck on North Campus. It just seems to be a sort of shorthand for a burger with mayo, tomato, lettuce, and onion. Is there anything more to it? I was told it was sort of an Ithaca thing.
I think we need a larger inquiry to the source of the "Tully Burger" term. If you do a google search for the term "Tully Burger" -- this conversation is in the top 3 hits. Also on the front page -- Louie's Lunch, a place in Odessa, NY, the Italian Carry-Out (also in Ithaca), and Rogan's Corner (also in Ithaca) -- so definitely a local thing. Not exactly sure what makes a Tully Burger a Tully Burger, but the menu at the Pines says a Tully is a Cheesburger on a Sesame Seed roll with Lettuce, Mayo, Tomatoes and Onion.
OMG, Prairie, seriously? Someone who actively likes Genny? I've always known it as "the local beer that high school football players drink because it's weak, cheap and available in vast quantities." And yet it commands enthusiasm... that's awesome. I'm not even being sarcastic. That's awesome.
@justjoan: it's certainly not a great beer. but, being a microbrew geek, i'm pretty enthusiastic about it at a regional level. it's not quite a micro, but definitely a small brewery.
Honestly, I'm not able to get enough objective distance from it to see it as a "real" beer. It's too much a part of what (and where) made me, you know? And while things like maple syrup and heirloom apples and even bullhead (euch) are easy to defend as regional delicacies, Genny's a tougher sell. And yet, you're both right, it is indeed the regional beer of choice, and it's not (quite) terrible. So it's a strange, but very cool thing to see on such a great food blog! *g*
And deep-fried corn nuggets sound positively addictive. I need to find those somewhere.
@Prairie Genesee is now owned and brewed by one of the big three. I can't recall which. My buddy worked there for a while. They actually got free cases of beer as bonuses for being safe on the job. Being from Rochester I get nostalgic for one once in a while but its a pretty poor brew.
@bobbob: I'm not so sure about that? Genesee is brewed by High Falls which, as far as I know, is not owned or partially owned by AB, Miller, or InBev. I may be wrong but I can't find any info saying differently.
Hi, Adam! Yup, a Tullyburger is simply a cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato, raw onion, and mayonnaise. Check out my Ithaca's Best Burger feature from last summer for more about Ithaca's regional burgers, including the appalling but delicious Bo-Burger.
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11 Comments:
The Glenwood Pines is indeed one of the great burger places. Probably not as much frou frou fancy burger as you might find at DB Bistro Moderne, but certainly superior in quality and ambience to places like In-n-out, Steak-n-shake, or the Shake Shack.
I personally don't like the Pinesburger -- which is a mess and has the wrong meat to bun ratio. I go for the Tully Burger instead. 4 oz burger instead of a 6 oz burger, but on a much smaller bun. But, the fries are great and most everything is homemade. They usuall have some pretty great homemade desserts -- rice pudding, carrot cake, pies, etc.
The Pinesburger challenge doesn't seem to be much of a challenge. Way too many Polaroids on the wall of people meeting the "challenge". However, I was just in Ithaca last month and saw another feat -- someone ate 4 Pinesburgers in 7 minutes, which seemed a bit more impressive (and a new world record)!! Think the person got a larger 8.5x11" picture closer to the front door for his accomplishment.
cgorange at 1:51PM on 07/09/08
@cgorange: What exactly IS a Tully Burger? I had one at the Louie's Lunch truck on North Campus. It just seems to be a sort of shorthand for a burger with mayo, tomato, lettuce, and onion. Is there anything more to it? I was told it was sort of an Ithaca thing.
Adam Kuban at 2:04PM on 07/09/08
@AKBurgerMaster: mmmm yummy. that bread looks pretty airy. but i can't stop staring at the genesee. its not too early for a beer.
Prairie at 3:21PM on 07/09/08
I think we need a larger inquiry to the source of the "Tully Burger" term. If you do a google search for the term "Tully Burger" -- this conversation is in the top 3 hits. Also on the front page -- Louie's Lunch, a place in Odessa, NY, the Italian Carry-Out (also in Ithaca), and Rogan's Corner (also in Ithaca) -- so definitely a local thing. Not exactly sure what makes a Tully Burger a Tully Burger, but the menu at the Pines says a Tully is a Cheesburger on a Sesame Seed roll with Lettuce, Mayo, Tomatoes and Onion.
I now need to track down this Tully guy.
cgorange at 5:34PM on 07/09/08
OMG, Prairie, seriously? Someone who actively likes Genny? I've always known it as "the local beer that high school football players drink because it's weak, cheap and available in vast quantities." And yet it commands enthusiasm... that's awesome. I'm not even being sarcastic. That's awesome.
justjoan at 5:53PM on 07/09/08
@justjoan: I felt I needed to get it b/c it seemed like the regional beer of choice. I always hear of it as an Upstate New York thing.
Adam Kuban at 6:18PM on 07/09/08
@justjoan: it's certainly not a great beer. but, being a microbrew geek, i'm pretty enthusiastic about it at a regional level. it's not quite a micro, but definitely a small brewery.
Prairie at 6:24PM on 07/09/08
Honestly, I'm not able to get enough objective distance from it to see it as a "real" beer. It's too much a part of what (and where) made me, you know? And while things like maple syrup and heirloom apples and even bullhead (euch) are easy to defend as regional delicacies, Genny's a tougher sell. And yet, you're both right, it is indeed the regional beer of choice, and it's not (quite) terrible. So it's a strange, but very cool thing to see on such a great food blog! *g*
And deep-fried corn nuggets sound positively addictive. I need to find those somewhere.
justjoan at 10:14PM on 07/09/08
@Prairie Genesee is now owned and brewed by one of the big three. I can't recall which. My buddy worked there for a while. They actually got free cases of beer as bonuses for being safe on the job. Being from Rochester I get nostalgic for one once in a while but its a pretty poor brew.
bobbob at 1:37PM on 07/10/08
@bobbob: I'm not so sure about that? Genesee is brewed by High Falls which, as far as I know, is not owned or partially owned by AB, Miller, or InBev. I may be wrong but I can't find any info saying differently.
I am curious now.
Prairie at 8:22PM on 07/10/08
Hi, Adam! Yup, a Tullyburger is simply a cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato, raw onion, and mayonnaise. Check out my Ithaca's Best Burger feature from last summer for more about Ithaca's regional burgers, including the appalling but delicious Bo-Burger.
Mark
14850Dining at 10:41AM on 10/13/08