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Down Memory Lane at The Half King

Posted by Adam Kuban, March 25, 2009 at 10:00 AM

"[You] have sort of a unified bite experience from bread to meat."

Photographs by Robyn Lee

It all started with an email exchange that began a few months ago:

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AHT,
Had a fantastic burger at the Half King yesterday. You are right in the nabe and should stop in.
—BHG

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BHG,
Will have to re-check it out. I've always enjoyed it (used to go with coworkers in my old job when I worked on 26th and 11th). Just never had sufficient lighting to shoot the damn burger there. Thanks for the nudge!

Chars,
Adam

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Hey,
Still waiting for you to hop down to the Half King for one awesome burger, great fries, and an addictive chipotle dipping sauce.
—BHG

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Well, AHT editor Robyn Lee and I finally went over there for lunch yesterday to do a quick scope-out.

I haven't given much thought to the Half King lately. Sure, I'd been there a number of times when I worked on 26th and Eleventh, mostly after work with colleagues, on the way to the train. I'd had only a couple burgers there, though, but plenty of beer.

When it opened in 2000, it garnered easy buzz, partially due to the fact that journalist and author Sebastian Junger (The Perfect Storm) was a partner there, as he remains to this day.

The Half King is a homey, European-style pub with a well-edited beer list. The strong ales and pilsners there have resulted in many a rough morning. Which perhaps explains my delay in following BHG's advice. I think Half King, I think hangover.

But Robyn and I were there for the burgers—at lunchtime—and, if I watched myself, I figured I'd be fine.

The signature Half King burger is a sirloin burger. Yeah, I know. Sirloin, with its lower fat content, usually doesn't bode well in terms of juiciness. And the patty here (which seemed to be about eight ounces), was only moderately juicy.

Yes, the bottom bun in the picture above has clearly soaked up some fat, but it's a lot less than you'd expect for a pub-style burger of this thickness.

As you can see, the grind is moderately coarse, which makes for a tender bite, and the bun, though its exterior looks a little fancy-pants, has a soft, squishy interior that almost matches the tenderness of the beef. What I'm trying to say is this: At one point, Adam Perry Lang (Daisy May's BBQ) described his perfect burger to me. The bun and the beef would be of the same consistency, so you'd have sort of a unified bite experience from bread to meat.

Intriguing idea, I thought.

The burger at Half King comes close to that.

And the sirloin is beefy and flavorful, to boot. The burger Robyn and I split was cooked to medium-rare, as ordered, so plus plus on that. Despite the limited moisture, this is a good burger, and I'm glad BHG nudged us to go.

What we weren't happy with were the "burger shots." As is the case with mini burgers, it's hard to cook these things to anything but well-done. Avoid.

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Tags: AHT reviews, Chelsea, Manhattan, NYC, pub burgers, reviews, The Half King