Pomai of Hawaii-based blog The Tasty Island reviews the recently opened outpost of Californian "build your own burger" chain The Counter in Honolulu's Kahala Mall. The Counter is known for its extensive list of toppings resulting in over 300,000 possible combinations. Pomai points out that this location offers some Hawaii-only choices, like a Loco Moco burger, teriyaki sauce, and kimchi.
Pomai waited one and a half hours (safe to say, he's a patient person) for his 1/3-pound beef patty topped with Gruyere, dill pickles, grilled onions, mixed baby greens, and tomatoes on a honey wheat bun. Even after the wait, he thought the burger was very good, describing the patty as, "Char-grilled and cooked to medium perfection, while being perfectly seasoned. Just a great burger. And juicy!" He also recommends the fries and onion rings. On his next visit though he'd want to make sure the kitchen is appropriately staffed.
gotta agree with you jrmaya17, the BK whopper is a darn good burger. char flavor, fresh crisp veggies, and the ratio of meat to bun to toppings is zen like balance. and the price is right in these hard times.
Glad you pointed out what I pointed out on those menu options that are unique to the Kahala (Hawaii) menu. I'm very curious how that Loco Moco tastes, as IIRC, D.K. Kodama mentioned the brown gravy they pour on it is based on a demi-glace, so it's gotta' be ono (delicious)!
Only thing, if I order the loco moco on my next visit to The Counter, I may end up feeling I'm missing out on yet another opportunity to Build my own Burger. If I do, that better be the BEST Loco Moco ever.
I see Hadley had a favorable impression of The Counter in Santa Monica.
The Kahala looks destined to succeed, with the right type restaurant for the location, demographic and price point. Surely they'll work out the logistics issue, if they haven't already.
@Pomia: Thanks for the review! Since I'm pretty indecisive with dressing burgers, besides that I like em plain, having a gajillion choices at The Counter probably wouldn't do much for me. >_
The Counter burgers are surprisingly good for a chain - I had one in Charlotte last week. The fries and onion strings are very good as well. The salad dressing was superb, although the salad was small-ish and I liked the sweet tea. Our service was excellent and I particularly liked the waitress' suggestion to forego the 2/3 lb. burger and order the 1/3 instead. It was plenty big - in fact, seemed much bigger than 1/3 lb. as advertised.
On Oahu, I would have a difficult decision to make - either Teddy's or Counter. Perhaps the location would determine the choice.
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5 Comments:
I'll stick to the king mr. whopper!
jrmaya17 at 1:11PM on 03/05/09
gotta agree with you jrmaya17, the BK whopper is a darn good burger. char flavor, fresh crisp veggies, and the ratio of meat to bun to toppings is zen like balance. and the price is right in these hard times.
ilikegrind at 2:59PM on 03/05/09
Aloha Robyn,
Glad you pointed out what I pointed out on those menu options that are unique to the Kahala (Hawaii) menu. I'm very curious how that Loco Moco tastes, as IIRC, D.K. Kodama mentioned the brown gravy they pour on it is based on a demi-glace, so it's gotta' be ono (delicious)!
Only thing, if I order the loco moco on my next visit to The Counter, I may end up feeling I'm missing out on yet another opportunity to Build my own Burger. If I do, that better be the BEST Loco Moco ever.
I see Hadley had a favorable impression of The Counter in Santa Monica.
The Kahala looks destined to succeed, with the right type restaurant for the location, demographic and price point. Surely they'll work out the logistics issue, if they haven't already.
Mahalo,
Pomai
Pomai at 6:14PM on 03/05/09
@Pomia: Thanks for the review! Since I'm pretty indecisive with dressing burgers, besides that I like em plain, having a gajillion choices at The Counter probably wouldn't do much for me. >_
Robyn Lee at 2:16PM on 03/06/09
The Counter burgers are surprisingly good for a chain - I had one in Charlotte last week. The fries and onion strings are very good as well. The salad dressing was superb, although the salad was small-ish and I liked the sweet tea. Our service was excellent and I particularly liked the waitress' suggestion to forego the 2/3 lb. burger and order the 1/3 instead. It was plenty big - in fact, seemed much bigger than 1/3 lb. as advertised.
On Oahu, I would have a difficult decision to make - either Teddy's or Counter. Perhaps the location would determine the choice.
Oneiron at 9:58AM on 03/09/09