The latest video from This Must Be the Place—"a series of short films that explore the idea of home"—features Prime Burger, a burger joint/diner in Midtown Manhattan that opened in 1938 and has barely changed since the 1960s. Depending on who you talk to, it's either past its prime (according to Nick Solares) or one of New York's great burgers (according to Ed Levine). After watching this beautifully shot video by Lost & Found Films, featuring interviews with employees who've work there from just three years to 59 years, we can all hopefully agree it's a New York icon worth keeping around whether or not you like burgers.
If you were wondering who was first in line at the new Steak 'n Shake in New York City to take advantage of their free year of burgers giveaway, there's a nice piece in The New Yorker, "Bright Lights, Cheap Burgers," following the state of the line from the day before opening—the line started to form at 4:30 p.m.—until the next day's opening at 10 a.m. At the front of the line were four students from King's College, followed by two ultra-marathon runners.
The tourist hell of Midtown has a new eatery that's actual worth heading to. Here's a look at NYC's new Steak 'n Shake with behind-the-scenes photos showing how the burgers are made.
Midwest burger chain Steak 'n Shake is opening its first location, called Steak 'n Shake Signature, in New York City this Thursday, January 12, at 1695 Broadway (at 53rd Street, next to the Ed Sullivan Theater; map). Different from most Steak 'n Shakes, the Signature version is smaller, features counter-service instead of table service, and is open from 10 a.m. to midnight instead of 24 hours a day. Menu prices are the same as elsewhere. New additions to the New York menu (viewable here) are a six-ounce Signature Steakburger made with organic beef and beer and wine.
Who knew that the Roberta's folks—justifiably renowned for their pizza, their way with pork, and the tasting menus that are so popular there are currently 400 people on its wait list—served a killer burger that would render me speechless?
When we first wrote about FoodParc, the midtown casual dining destination conceived and executed by Ed Schonfeld last September, we casually mentioned that the burger at 3Bs was "perhaps one of the top 5 under $10 in New York right now," I think we were understating. After having sampled that original burger a few more times—the one made with the Pat LaFrieda blend that features hanger steak, crisp fried onion rings, melted American cheese, lettuce, tomato, red onion, and a special Thousand Island-esque sauce on a potato roll—I'm confident in saying that it's one of the top 5 burgers in the city for any price (don't ask me to name the other four).
After announcing the location a year ago, Shake Shack is finally opening their first Brooklyn location in the Fulton Mall tomorrow, December 20, at 409 Fulton Street (map). There will be a ribbon cutting ceremony at 11 a.m with Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz.
Brinkley's burger is fantastic. Coming in at around seven to eight ounces, it's of the familiar hand-packed soft-ball shape that you see in other pub-style grilled/broiled burger joints like, say, Corner Bistro. But unlike that institution's flavorless softballs, Brinkley's monstrous burger is almost insanely juicy with a gushing pink center and considerably crusty exterior.
