There are few ways to get me to review a burger joint in my fair city faster than when someone makes a "best-of" list and includes a place I haven't tried, as was the case when The Oregonian released its list of the top 10 classic burgers in the Portland area. And while Dea's In & Out can't hold a candle to that otherIn-N-Out, it's that rare 50-year-old institution that still holds up somewhat.
One of Portland's best food carts, Lardo puts out some of the tastiest (and, it should be noted, saltiest) sandwiches in the city. Having sampled a number of these over the past few months, I had to know if owner Rick Gencarelli's Double Burger, at a mere eight bucks, could qualify as one of Portland's best burger deals. The answer depends on how high your standards have been set.
Veritable Quandary is best known for two things: mega-popular weekend brunches, and crowded weekday power lunches for downtown Portland's movers and shakers. The menu leans heavily toward the upscale: pumpkin mascarpone agnolotti, rabbit pate with roasted brioche, duck confit spring rolls. Probably not the first place you'd think to find a really good burger, but with the kitchen helmed by current chef Annie Cuggino, that's exactly what you'll find here.
Famous burgers may not always live up to the hype, but mountains of praise have to be right sometimes. Here are some of our favorite burgers around the country that are worth the hype.
Stanich's is one of those Portland institutions that must have had one helluva heyday to garner the kind of praise that's been showered on it over the years. With all those accolades, this has to be a pretty awesome burger, right?
Salt. Without it, your precious all-natural grass-fed ground beef is nothing. Nowhere is this more painfully obvious than Dick's Kitchen, a bizarre pastiche of old-school '50s diners, greasy spoons, and upscale sit-down restaurants that works on none of these levels.
"Grilled" is our series of Q&As of burger-related people. It's been a while since we've done these regularly, but we're starting up again by interviewing our contributors so you can get to know the people behind our site. Today we're grilling Adam Lindsley, our Seattle and Portland burger correspondent since last November (but who will focus on Portland from now on since he recently moved there). He's impressively pulled triple-duty at Serious Eats; you can check out his pizza reviews at Slice and his soda taste tests at Serious Eats: Drinks.
Today's AHT reader review comes from Malcolm B. (aka dinnercraft on Serious Eats), who writes about food in Portland, Maine at food blog From Away (@From_Away). Thanks, Malcolm! If anyone else wants to share some burger intel, email us at burger@seriouseats.com or check out our review submission form.
Portlanders sure are proud of their Burgerville, and in some respects that's justifiable. As the slogan goes, it strives to serve food that's "fresh, local, and sustainable" as often as possible. That means that most sides are seasonal, the beef's from Oregon ranches, and almost all the packaging is compostable. But while Burgerville may serve the eco-friendliest fast-food burger, it's a far cry from the tastiest.
