Bulldog Burger, original taste at average price

I had watched Howie "the Bulldog" Kleinberg's reality TV fights and arguments with fellow chefs during season 3 of Bravo's Top Chef, and since he wasn't too shabby in the kitchen (he placed seventh) I thought it would be worth trying his new burger joint, Bulldog Burger.

Located at 15400 Biscayne Blvd. in North Miami, the restaurant sits in a tiny mall near FIU's Biscayne Bay Campus. Once inside, there's a slight disconnection between the old part of the restaurant (what's Bulldog BBQ) and the new part next door (Bulldog Burger).

Bulldog BBQ has a bar, a brick wall, a plasma TV and three tables. Instead of following with the hip sports bar look, Bulldog Burger features a bland, custard-colored paint job, about nine tables, and Kleinberg's chef uniforms from Top Chef and the Food and Wine Festivals framed on the walls.

Enough with the decor, let's get to the food.

Here's the burger menu, all burgers go for $9:

Black Angus: crisp bacon, caramelized onions, cheddar cheese, mesclun, tomato, chipotle mayo.
Morning Glory: fried egg, crispy bacon, hash, cheddar cheese, bustello-red hot eye mayo.
Hot Mess: Bacon Candy, caramelized onion, crispy onion, roasted mushrooms, blue cheese, horseradish mayo.
The Heat: bacon-jalapeno marmalade, fried pickle, jalapeno, pepper jack cheese, house sauce.
Luther V: crisp bacon, caramelized onion, cheddar cheese, hot sauce, "crispy cream" sweet glazed bun.
A Hunk of Burnin’ Love: features bacon, caramelized banana jam, pepper jack cheese,and spicy peanut butter.

I tried "A Hunk of Burnin' Love" and "Hot Mess."

Hot Mess

The best out of the two burgers I had. The combination between the strong flavor of the blue cheese, the sweetness of the candy bacon and the texture of the crispy onion, coupled with a patty that's grilled and juicy  makes for one spectacular bite.

The bun is sweet and the good thing about it is that it doesn't get very soggy even after absorbing the juices of the meat.

My critique is that you get inconsistent bites; if more crumbs of blue cheese are placed on one particular side of the burger, the cheese flavor tends to overpower the other ingredients.

Hunk of Burnin' Love

I hate peanut butter, but I was curious about the combination. The first bite was good. The mix between the salty, grilled flavor of the patty and the sweetness and smooth texture of the peanut butter made for an interesting experience.

It all went downhill from there.

Once I got to my second bite all I could taste was the peanut butter; no bacon, pepper jack cheese or fried banana, the peanut butter was just oozing out of the burger as I held it between my hands. It came a point when I almost had to stop eating it because my mouth was so pasty from the peanut butter.

Overall I would say Bulldog Burger is good, original and you pay less for these gourmet burgers than you would pay for a much less memorable burger at T.G.I Friday's. My girlfriend tried the one called "Morning Glory" and she loved it.

Here's what other bloggers had to say about Bulldog Burger:

Fatgirl Hedonist on "Hunk of Burnin' Love":

The beef itself was good, juicy but not overly greasy. The caramelized banana jam gave it a very funky and almost sweet flavor that went well with the spiciness of the peanut butter. The peanut butter itself was very thick and spicy, but in a way that wasn't overpowering or painful. The flavor of the peanut butter reminded me a lot of a spicy thai peanut dressing/sauce. The bacon unfortunately, was extremely dry and brittle, almost as if it had been sitting out for a while. I'm a huge fan of crispy bacon (or any kind of bacon, for that matter) but this bacon definitely didn't taste fresh. Which is a total shame, as it did the burger an injustice. Over all, the burger was very good, I really did enjoy the creative and adult pb and banana twist on a burger.

South Florida Eats Hamburgers:

The burger was better than average and worth the $9 but a little pricey when you add an order of fries and it comes to $13.