A Hamburger Today
Burger Exit Should Exit the Burger Business
"This was the worst burger I can remember eating."
Burger Exit
Online only at Delivery.com to the East Village, New York, NY; 212-358-8180
Cooking Method: Grilled (and then steamed during delivery thanks to poor packaging)
Short Order: This "online only" burger joint sells what might be the worst burger in the city.
Want Fries with That? No, but you don't want the burger either
Price: If they paid you it would be too much
A few days back I posted about the curious (and frankly dubious) "online restaurant" Burger Exit that I happened upon via Delivery.com. It turns out that Burger Exit is one of many "online" restaurants operating out of Cafe Brama at 157 2nd Avenue, the others being a Greek (Go Hellenic), Mexican (Tres Morenas) and an Italian (Macaronada) restaurant, all serviced by a single kitchen. What was it that they said about a Jack of all trades?
Since the consensus in the comments section was that I should try out the burger I gave it a shot last evening, with exceedingly low expectations that turned out to be completely justified.
The cheeseburger showed up within 25 minutes of my order being placed. I knew what to expect as soon as I saw how the burger was packaged—sogginess all around. Rather than the tried and true custom of wrapping the burger in wax paper or placing it in a cardboard container (or both), Burger Exit sends out their burger tightly packaged in plastic container.
The lid was completely steamed over and mottled with droplets of condensed water. The large, chunky fries were golden in color and might have been decent if they weren't in such desperate need of Viagra. The burger was equally limp and its flavors insipid. The cheese tasted like the "Mexican" mix that is commonly sold to Mexican restaurants (like Tres Morenas, for example) for quesadillas. The beef that was previously described to me as a "European twist on the classic American burger, blended with spices and egg" was simply horrendous. It was mealy and pasty with streaks of irregularly cut and flavorless herbs. The spices hardly seemed that European, more Middle Eastern (was than cumin I tasted?). There was some juice in the patty, but I doubt it was derived from the beef itself.
Need I go on about the bun? I don't think so. This was the worst burger I can remember eating. It is an affront to the hamburger, an affront to cooking in general. Fast food burgers are preferable. And there are so many good burgers that one can have delivered via Delivery.com (which seems to be the principle vehicle that allows Cafe Brama's offshoots to exist), such as Blue 9, Stand, and Zaitzeff.
I should note that Delivery.com, who actually chimed in on my previous post, are offering AHT readers 10% off any credit card order at participating restaurants through December 9 by going to this page. I suggest that if you do take them up on the offer, you don't order from Burger Exit.