Yard House's burger in Hallandale was a pleasant surprise

Heading to Yard House at the posh Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach I wasn’t planning to do a review—in fact I wasn’t even planning to eat a burger.

The place looks like a high-end mix between a pub, a bar and a restaurant; it includes elements of all three: a huge selection of beers, deep leather booths, dark wood tables, outside seating and a massive open kitchen.

The menu cover the entire realm of American cuisine, from pizza and sandwiches to anything seafood.

As far as the burger offerings go, they got my attention. Most burgers go for about $11. Here’s the burger menu:

Avocado Swiss: lettuce, tomato, red onion and roasted garlic aioli.
Classic Cheese: lettuce, tomato, red onion, roasted garlic aïoli and choice of cheese.
BBQ Bacon Cheddar: applewood smoked bacon, rum bbq sauce and roasted garlic aioli.
Hawaiian: fresh chopped pineapple, pepper jack, aloha sauce and roasted garlic aioli.
Pepper Jack: roasted green chiles, roasted garlic aïoli and pepper jack.
Turkey Burger: house made, roasted roma tomatoes, mozzarella and roasted garlic aioli.
Pepper Crusted Gorgonzola: marsala sautéed crimini mushrooms, caramelized onions and baby spinach.
Béarnaise: classic béarnaise sauce and fried onions.
Surf & Turf: maine lobster sautéed in garlic butter, grilled asparagus, Swiss cheese and tomato béarnaise.

I had the Pepper Crusted Gorgonzola burger

Let’s start with the meat. The patty looked to be eight or nine ounces even though the menu didn’t specify. Flavor wise it was great: really smoky, juicy but not rare and good chunky grounding.

Everything else was not extremely tasty but served to add layers of flavor.

If the menu didn’t say the cheese was gorgonzola I would have thought it was brie; it was very creamy and rich. The crimini mushrooms tasted more like a roasted green pepper and the caramelized onions I could not taste at all.

The potato bun did not stand out but was in tune with the rest of the burger.

Overall the burger was very good and beats out burgers I’ve tried at some of the so-called gourmet burger joints. The patty was the main character in this act and that’s very important. The other ingredients were a fitting supporting cast.

Here's what other people are saying about Yard House:

Urbanspoon:

Frank B. - Fun place in the Gables to hang out, drink beer and eat. Their Bernaise Burger is the bomb.

Zagat:

David D. - Great location, often crowded and noisy indoors but worth the wait. Extensive menu with something for everyone. Good burgers, sandwiches, and main dishes as well. Try the vodka spiked Brazilian Lemonade for a refreshing drink.

Yelp!:

Patricia K. - This place is NOT GOOD. Its a nice place to go watch a game, but the food here is embarrassing- specially the salads and burgers, which are usually the only eatable things at bars. The service is lacking, and I recommend you don't bother with the truffle fries!! (worst truffle fries ever) TVs, onion rings, and beer are the only things that I would go to Yard House for.

Megan W. - My bf and I split the lunch sized Mac and Cheese and the Bernaise Burger. The food was very good and reasonably priced.

Sergio F. - My BBQ burger was actually well done as requested while retaining some juicyness. The included BBQ sauce was thinner than most other places but at the same time sweeter and spicier than Ive had lately. Big WIN on the sauce!

Miller’s Ale House in North Miami Beach didn't deliver on its promise

My experience at Duffy’s Sports Grill had been positive, so I decided to check out Miller’s Ale House, a sports bar in North Miami Beach, to see what they had to offer in the burger realm.

Miller’s Ale House is arguably one of the biggest sports bar chains in the country. While most locations are in Florida, others are also spread out in Georgia, Illinois, New York and Pennsylvania.

I’ve been to two so far, the NMB one and another one in Orlando. Both looked exactly the same: a larger version of Flannigan’s—with its wooden walls and all-American feel—minus the fishing artifacts plus more TV screens.

The burger menu was extremely uninspired and claimed all burgers weighted 8 ounces, which I soon found out it wasn’t even close to that. Here are NMB Ale House’s burgers:

Basic Burger: half pound (8 ounces) of fresh broiled sirloin.

Cheese Burger: choice of Swiss, American, cheddar or provolone

British Burger: topped with swiss cheese and bacon strips.

Bistro Burger: stacked high with cheddar cheese, bacon, sliced pickle, an onion ring and bistro sauce served on a toasted ciabatta bun.

Turkey Burger: no description other than “seasoned to perfection.”

I had the Bistro Burger

Let’s start with the bread. On paper, a ciabatta bun seemed like a creative and unusual option that could have added a layer of garlicky flavor to the burger, but in practice it was a total failure. The bun was tough and quite dry.

The patty was tiny, closer to 6 ounces than 8 ounces. Although it did have some nice charbroiled flavor the execution was totally off—the meat was cooked “well done” making it very dry.

The high points were the bacon and the bistro sauce.

The bacon was good because there was a lot of it and it was perfectly cooked; not too crispy that when you take a bite it breaks in pieces and not too raw. The bistro sauce tasted like a mix between Argentine chimichurri and ranch dressing--it was the star of the burger.

Conceptually, the Bistro Burger seemed like a good idea, but NMB Ale House completely failed to deliver on their promise. I’m sad to say it was by far the worst burger I’ve had since I started the blog.

This is what others are saying about NMB Ale House:

Reviews on Yelp!:

Ivonne Marie C.- I ate at the North Miami Ale House for the second time in my life last night. It was not bad, it was not great. Our waitress was nice, very friendly, perhaps overly friendly. I ordered the zinger tacos, which is a new menu item. They were good. I should have thought that I'm not a big fan of buffalo sauce, but hey, my hubs is and I saved one for him, which he had after his burger and he loved it. Thought it was better than the burger itself. It had medium sauce, and according to him it was the right mix of spicy and mild to not cause your stomach to explode. He had their main burger, can't remember the name right now, the ones that comes w/the onion ring. It was alright, I've tasted better - but don't take it from me, I'm not a burger person.

David G.- I was looking for some good, cheap bar food after kayaking all day at Oleta State Park. I really didn't expect too much... maybe a good burger. It's funny how bad this place was

Reviews on Urbanspoon:

Ric Stolz-I've had a couple burgers and some salads here. The salads were surprisingly fresh. The burgers were ok. My sweet potato fries were cool-ish, but otherwise good. The service is lacking - it always takes forever to put in your order. Getting it takes even longer. Getting your check is a hassle. And the staff is always trying to up-sell you - "NO! For the tenth time, I don't want a shot."

Mixed emotions about BGR burger joint in Coral Gables

I wanted to try Fatburger in Coral Gables, but when I got there, it turns out the place had been replaced for a different burger joint, BGR The Burger Joint.

BGR is a chain of burger restaurants, with three locations in Miami and several more spread throughout nine states.

Once inside, the place’s décor was somewhat confusing. Eighties rock band posters lined the walls, yet everything else—from the tables to the floors—looked more like a hybrid between a McDonalds and an Art Deco diner.

The burger joint is self serving; you order your food at the counter, get your soft drink, plastic silverware and ketchup, and once the order is ready they bring it to your table and never come back again.

The burger offerings were quite gourmet, which was surprising given the look of the place. It’s definitely not cheap, with burgers ranging from $8 to $15, and one 9-pound monster burger for $80. Here’s the burger menu:

The Burger: This burger doesn’t have a description, all it says is “this is the one that put us on the map.” Served on a fresh, buttery-toasted brioche bun.

Veggie Burger: House-made recipe including brown rice, black beans, oats and molasses. Served on a fresh, buttery-toasted brioche bun. Specify lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, mojo sauce.

Turkey Burger: Freshly ground and blended with portobello mushrooms and a hint of gorgonzola cheese, then cooked sous vide (very low and slow). Served on a fresh, buttery-toasted brioche bun.

The Cuban: Burger topped with slow roasted pork, ham, sweet pickles, dijon mustard and swiss cheese. Served on our brioche bun and grill pressed.

The Greek: Fresh ground leg of lamb, seasoned with cumin, mint and garlic. Topped with tzatziki sauce and feta cheese. Served on a fresh, buttery-toasted brioche bun.

Ahi Tuna: Sushi-grade tuna topped with grilled pineapple, pickled ginger, a touch of teriyaki sauce, and our mojo sauce. Served on a fresh, buttery-toasted brioche bun.

The Wellington: Roasted mushrooms, caramelized onions, garlic with a touch of mustard seed and blue cheese all atop our burger. Served on a fresh, buttery-toasted brioche bun with our mojo sauce.

The Southwestern: A 9oz burger infused with southwestern influences, like chipotles, poblanos, onion and chilis. Topped with pepper jack and served atop our black bean salsa. Served on a fresh, buttery-toasted brioche bun with our mojo sauce.

The Lobster (seasonal): Lump claw and knuckle meat pulled from Maine Lobsters, served on our slider buns with a special dressing and crisp cold lettuce.

The 9 Pounder: Actual weight including bun and condiments is 15.4 pounds. Two heads of lettuce, eight tomatoes, three red onions, four whole pickles and a river of our mojo. Comes with a bottle of Maalox. If one person can eat it in one sitting it’s free. Feeds approx 10-15.

I had the Wellington and the Greek

The Wellington

The patty had a really smoky flavor and a chunky grounding, which I really liked. The main stars of the burger were the combination between the mustard seed and the blue cheese; the two flavors are very strong by themselves but when meshed together made for a great sauce. Then there were the roasted mushrooms and black truffles. This fungi duo added great texture and an earthy flavor to complement the patty and the sauce.

If anybody told you they would put all these ingredients together, I’m sure you would probably say it wouldn’t work, but it did. It was the Picasso of burgers.

The only issue I had with the burger was that I ordered it cooked medium-well and it was done medium-rare. The red juices dripping into the bun were kind of a turn off.

The Greek burger was a major disappointment.

In the menu it said that the burger had been featured on Food Network’s “Throwdown with Bobby Flay,” and had actually beaten the grilling master.

The flavor profile was just too mild, nothing stood out except the mountain of feta cheese on top of the patty. It was so-not memorable than I even forgot to shoot photos of it.

Overall, I can’t really make my mind on whether I liked BGR The Burger Joint or not. I think it’s expensive for what it offers, but it also makes me want to go back and try other burgers.

This is what other bloggers are saying about BGR The Burger Joint:

Fatgirl Hedonist on the Greek burger:

The bun was a freshly baked, soft brioche topped sesame seeds. The seasoning on the burger was amazing and the meat was tender and insanely flavorful. The tzatziki sauce was also fresh and and very creamy and played perfectly with the feta cheese and super fine cucumbers.

Food for Thought on the Cuban burger:

My initial foray into BGR-ville was the "Cuban." Before getting to the toppings, let's focus on the burger itself. On the plus side, it's cooked to order and to requested degree of doneness - and my requested medium was in fact delivered. But texturally, this burger was unusually dense and monolithic, despite being cooked only to medium temperature. It felt like a solid block of meat, more meatloaf than burger, with no tenderness to it. And while I liked the idea of a Cuban burger, the toppings turned the thing into a salt lick. I usually have a pretty high threshold for aggressive seasoning, but between the salty pork, the salty ham, and the salty cheese, I was in the market for hypertension medication before I finished it. A light, fluffy brioche bun was rendered irrelevant by being pressed, Cuban sandwich style.

Heavy Burger in Aventura rocks

Hidden a few blocks from Aventura Mall is Heavy Burger, a rock-themed burger joint located in the posh city of Aventura near North Miami Beach.

From outside, Heavy Burger looks like a big red tent, that’s because the burger restaurant has a covered patio area, but there’s much more to it.

Once you step inside, the place is a cross between the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and a Wild West saloon: electric guitars, posters and different rock and roll memorabilia line up the walls; there are red leather couches; a bar; and the worn out wooden floor completes the whole décor.

The music matches the posters on the wall, from Led Zeppelin and The Beatles to Iron Maiden and Judas Priest.

The menu is creative and burgers are named to go along with the heavy metal motif:

Most burgers go for $10, with the most expensive one being the Twisted Burger ($14, see below). All burgers weigh 10 ounces except the Twisted Burger (8 ounces).

Heavy Burger (Classic): Black Angus patty, American cheese, crispy apple wood smoked bacon, Bibb lettuce, sliced tomato, fresh red onion, on a challah roll.

Motley Burger: Black Angus patty, barbecue sauce, cheddar cheese, apple wood smoked bacon, frizzled onion, Bibb lettuce, sliced tomato, fresh red onion on a challah roll.

The Destroyer: Black Angus patty, provolone cheese, roasted red peppers, sautéed mushrooms, garlic aioli, caramelized onion, Bibb lettuce, sliced tomato, served on an onion roll.

The Maiden: Black Angus patty, pepper-jack cheese, cucumber wasabi aioli, sliced avocado, Bibb lettuce, sliced tomato, served on a multi-grain roll

The Young Ron: Black Angus patty, dusted with Cajun spice, cheddar cheese, chili red onion, fresh jalapenos, Bibb lettuce, sliced tomato, served on an onion roll.

The Eruption: Black Angus, patty, crispy prosciutto, roasted red peppers, grilled pineapple, siracha hot chili sauce, Bibb lettuce, sliced tomato, served on a challah roll (very spicy).

The Head-Banger: Black Angus patty, hot wing sauce, blue cheese, crumbles, Bibb lettuce, sliced tomato, fresh jalapeno, served on a challah roll.

Twisted Burger: Kobe patty (wagyu) crispy prosciutto, sautéed mushrooms, caramelized onion, garlic aioli, Bibb lettuce & sliced tomato, served on a challah roll.

The Ball Breaker: Black Angus patty, brushed with chipotle aioli, sliced tomato, frizzled onions, Bibb lettuce, served between two grilled cheese sandwiches.

You can also custom make your own burger choosing from a variety of toppings.

I tried the Motley Burger and the Head-Banger Burger.

Motley Burger

The burger is almost too big to finish, which is a good thing. The flavor was great and there were basically two things that stood out, the barbecue sauce and the frizzled onion. The barbecue sauce had a sweet, spicy and tangy touch and was much lighter than the typical barbecue sauce you can get at a supermarket. The frizzled onion added texture and onion ring flavor to the burger.

The key for the whole burger was that it was well executed.

The grilled patty was cooked the way I wanted it (medium well) and the meat had just the right grinding—not too thick where you feel like you’re eating chorizo and not too thin as if you were having a meatball. The bacon wasn’t too crunchy or underdone.

My only critique is that the lower bun was cut slightly thin and got a little bit soggy.

The Head-Banger Burger

Same highs but some more lows for this one.

The patty was well-done rather than medium well. The blue cheese tasted great, the problem is that there was too much of it in the burger, and after a few bites it was all I could taste.

When you take into consideration ambiance, food and price, Heavy Burger ranks among the best burger joints that I’ve been to. I don’t really count service into consideration, but it’s worth mentioning that the server was very friendly and the restaurant owner came by the table several times.

This is what others are saying about Heavy Burger:

Burger Beast:

“I’d skip the Ball Breaker and eat the Heavy Burger (Classic) and if you’re creative, there’s enough choices to create your own specialty burger. I won’t tell you to run here but maybe a light jog will be in order.”

Comment on Yelp:

Jim O.:

“… I ordered the "Eruption", which is basically an Asian hot burger with pineapple, crisp prosciutto, and siracha hot chili sauce. Now the menu makes a very clear attempt to warn you that this burger is "very hot". I know I have a high tolerance for heat, but it is just siracha, not liquid magma. Despite the gratuitous warning, the burger was delicious. Perfectly cooked, with well balanced and thought out toppings. Managed the avoid the "extreme" burger joint pitfall of having the toppings take over the sandwich, and provided a very satisfactory meal…”

Comment on South Florida Menu Pages:

Burger Master:

“I heard about this place from friends who told me that it is a "Must Try." All I can say is that they are right. The burgers a huge, juicy, and delicious. The bread is fantastic and the choice of toppings are incredible. I went to Heavy Burger with my wife. She ordered the Tuna Steak Burger which was Sushi Grade Tuna on a whole wheat bun which she said tasted like cake. The fries are fresh cut and crispy. The atmosphere is sort of club like with comfortable couches that run on one side of the restaurant. There are many TV's that had sports on all except for one that was playing a concert video of "The Who." The music levels were just right for a conversation without having to yell. I really like the fact that Heavy Burger has a full bar with a great Micro Brew selection. I will definitely be back and will also tell all my friend to try this place before it is too crowded to get in.”

Comment on Zagat:

Dori L.:

“Great decor and music. Service was excellent. Burgers and fries are awesome. Too much food, wish I had an extra stomach to be able to finish it all.”

Comment on UrbanSpoon:

WKG:

“We went for dinner and the burgers were fabulous. They use high quality meat with great flavor. The fries were fresh and hand cut and cooked perfectly. We enjoyed our burgers and fries and will be back again.”

Latin Burger and Taco doesn’t live up to its hype

The Latin Burger food truck.

I had been following Latin Burger and Taco’s every move on Twitter for some months now, and I finally decided to head over to a food truck roundup at the Johnson & Wales campus in Miami and try it out.

This food truck is the brainchild of celebrity chef Ingrid Hoffman, host of the show Simply Delicioso on the Food Network.

Latin Burger and Taco has three burgers on its menu.

The Latin Macho Burger: a mix of chuck, sirloin and chorizo beef with Oaxaca cheese, caramelized onions, jalapenos, and red pepper mayo.

The Machito Burger: same as the Macho Burger minus one patty.

The Burger Beast Burger: named in honor of the food blogger, it's the same as the Macho Burger but replaces one patty with barbecue pulled pork.

The burgers come with a soft taco of your choice, a generous side of fries with adobo seasoning and a soda can, all for $15. You can also get two orders for $25. Machito Burgers are sold separately for $5.

Some say an important element to good food lies in the way it’s presented—it seems like the guys at Latin Burger never heard about this.

The burger looked messy; there was less love put into the making of this meal than in a McDonalds’ combo.

The bun tasted like a potato roll, which gave it a nice flavor, but the lower half got really soggy from the sauce and the meat.

The patty was done on a flat iron top, something I found to be good and bad at the same time. While cooking the burger with this approach seals all the juices inside, the fact that burgers were probably too close together also boiled the meat and made it taste more like a sweet meatball.

The highlight was the combination of the Oaxaca cheese and the caramelized onions. The Mexican cheese was really gooey and formed a sort of paste with the onions, which provided a fitting partner to the patty.

Overall the burger wasn’t bad and showed some originality. The food truck’s motto seemed appealing: gourmet burgers at the price of street food—but both assertions turned out to be false.

This is what others are saying about Latin Burger and Taco:

Burger Beast:

One of the best burgers I’ve had this year. It was devastatingly good. It’s different and in this case, it’s a way good thing.

Comments on Foodtrucktalk.com:

Carlos says: This truck no longer has ties with Ingrid Hoffman but they are still delivering amazingly fresh and tasty food. Highly recommend their Latin Macho as well as my favorite, the Burger Beast. Great fries as well, ask for the guachup dipping sauce. The tacos are not too shabby either!!

J says: Tried them the other day, really not impressed. Other than the burger being a little spicier than normal it really did not stand out against the other food trucks and restaurants around South Florida. Not to mention they take forever even without a line.

Comments on Yelp.com:

George G.: I haven't dived deep enough into the menu to give the 5 star treatment.
But let me tell you something!!!!! The Macho Burger the s@#t!!!! So good, tender juicy, done just right!!! So far this is the best thing I have had from a food truck!!!! My son has had the pulled pork twice and loves it?

Celia M.: So on this particular night, I bought a latin macho burger. Now, it's not just any burger, prepare yourself for 2 patties filled with chorizo, chuck & sirloin and oaxaca cheese..I asked for no onions and I'm giving them 4 stars because they were out of their avocadolicious sauce; sad but true. On another note, I ordered a large order of fries & trust me when I say, I left a few because I couldn't breathe anymore. Don't let the burger's size fool you! You will be stuffed!!

LGS S.: FAIL. Can I get a refund and 2.5 hours of my life back? This truck has mediocre food and rude servers. After an eternal wait, one server had the nerve to tell a customer "It's not my fault its taking so long, I can just throw away your food right now." .... Um no, you can't, actually. Been to it twice, disappointed both times by the food and the service.

Duffy's Sports Grill offers one hearty burger

I first found out about Duffy's Sports Grill from my apartment’s balcony, when I heard the music blasting out of the waterfront restaurant like a South Beach nightclub.

The place is located at 3969 N.E. 163rd St. in the Intracoastal Shops, just before the bridge connecting North Miami Beach with the tiny city of Sunny Isles Beach. So I decided to walk over to mainland to check it out.

Duffy’s walls are plastered with football paraphernalia, from helmets to framed jerseys. The sports grill and bar is laid out into what looks like three sections.

First there’s the section for elders and families, with carpeted floors and wheelchair access. Walk two steps down and you have the section for middle-aged couples, where there’s music but it’s only loud enough that you can still have a conversation. Then cross the glass doors and you’ll find a huge wooden deck facing the bay, with its own Tiki bar and live music.

Enough with the ambiance, now let’s get to the burgers.

Duffy’s Sports Grill burger offerings were not the most inspired. Here’s the burger menu:

Rodeo Burger: BBQ sauce, cheddar cheese and tower of onion rings.
Patty Melt: Rye Texas toast, caramelized onions and cheddar
Kobe Beef Burger: Snake River farms, toasted onion brioche.
Grilled Turkey Burger: fresh ground turkey on a whole wheat bun.
Black Bean Veggie-Burger: whole wheat bun, topped with sliced avocado and side of cilantro cream sauce.
Yellow fin Tuna Burger: chopped, seasoned tuna grilled to order, whole wheat bun and side of wasabi mayo.

All burgers go for less than $10 except for the Kobe Beef Burger ($12.99). And you can customize your burger with toppings like sautéed mushrooms, sautéed onions, sliced avocado, pepper-crusted bacon or gorgonzola for 99 cents each.

I had a Rodeo Burger with pepper-crusted bacon.

The first thing I noticed was the amount of food—it was massive: a burger, about 8 onion rings and a large side of fries.

I left three onion rings on the burger and ate the others on the side along with the fries.

The burger was quite good. The bun seemed home-made and had a nice sweetness to it. The patty had good smoky flavor but was a little bit overdone for my taste. What stood out for me was the pepper-crusted bacon; not only it gave it a nice texture to complement the onion rings and the patty, but also added a good spicy punch.

I completed the whole bite with a touch of ranch dressing to cut through the pepper.

Overall Duffy’s Sports Grill left me satisfied. The burger itself wasn't the best I’ve ever had and there weren’t any exotic burgers or anything like that in the menu, but the overall experience was better than Bulldog Burger because the waterfront grill has a nice, relaxed vibe.

This is what other people had to say about Duffy's, via Yelp:

Brian L.:

...There were only two drawbacks during the evening. One of our diners got a hamburger overcooked and with the wrong cheese. But kudos to the server who said she would bring a new one. When that was declined, she said you need to let me do something. Her solution was to remove it from the bill...

Kevin L.:

...This place is amazing. HUGE with tons of t.v.'s! The menu is well rounded and the burgers are great. Prices are in line with portions and desserts are big enough for two. Good food, awesome drink specials (2-4-1) on ALL drinks and decent service will make this a perfect destination during FOOTBALL!!!!! I can't wait...

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.