Mini Burger
http://www.yelp.com/biz/mini-burger-new-york
102 Saint Marks Place
New York, NY 10009
THE CONQUEST
There’s a lot of great local restaurants and bars in NYC’s EVILL (East Village) including my very own Idle Hands. Walking through the neighborhood several times a week, I am constantly discovering more and more interesting businesses. Fortunately for my Glorious Pursuit of Delicious Burgers, I seem to be finding a plethora (yes El Jefe, I know what that means) of unique and tasty Hamburgers. My internal Burger-radar is constantly buzzing as I walk through the streets of one of New York’s most diverse neighborhoods. My Burger-sense recently lead me to a a Burger spot where size doesn’t matter.
You’ll find Mini Burger, a tiny little store front on St. Marks Place in between 1st and Ave A. It’s two blocks off the well know stretch of St. Marks made famous once by squatter punks and alternative shops, is now overrun with flashy signs, hip businesses as well as the same old cheap sunglasses and novelty shops that have been there for years. It’s a tiny, no make that Mini, shop with only 2 tables and tiny service counter. The concept is simple, Mini Burgers, Fries and Tots with nothing else needed. Mini Burgers come in doubles, 6 packs or combos and all Burgers come with Lettuce, Tomatoes and Sauce. When it comes to selection of patty, that’s when Mini Burger throws a curve ball with your choice of Beef, Bison, Turkey, Sausage, BLT or Grilled Cheese. The house Burger patty of choice is the Bison which has a lower Calories and Fat content than any other offering. There’s even a single piece of paper taped up on the wall that compares the nutrients of various meats proving the point. It’s a perfect Burger when, like I was, you are on the run and or just need a little snack.
Before I get into the review of said snack-sized Burger, I’d like to applaud the restaurant on the appropriate nature of their name. If you read my recent guest post on EastCoastGambler you know that I get really, really frustrated with restaurants that call Mini Burgers, Sliders. Technically a “Slider” is a form of preparation where a small patty of fresh ground Beef is steam cooked with onions on a flat griddle whereas a Mini Burger is just a smaller sized burger. I mean c’mon Grubstreet, I love you, but the place is called “Mini Burger” and you still refer to it as a slider??!?
THE BURGER
After stepping into the Mini space, it took all of 15 seconds for my to decide upon a 2 pack of Bison Mini Burgers. Not only is it the most promoted item on the menu but I feel that’s a pretty bold move for such a mini operation and I had to oblige.The store front was being minded by one lady who as soon as I ordered, disappeared into the back to make my Mini Burgers. A few moments later she emerged with a Mini paper tray containing, you guessed it, two Mini Bison Burgers. Check the photo below where I purposely included a packet of ketchup (yuck) just to give you a size perspective.
Each Mini Burger came topped with shredded Lettuce, Tomato & Sauce with an option to add your choice of Cheese. Me, as always, went no Tomatoes and added American Cheese. The Mini burns are lightly toasted, remaining soft on the outside but a little crunchy on the inside. The fresh lettuce adds some nice texture to the bite but not really any flavor. As for the Cheese and Sauce, due to such small size, they play a background taste to the spices of the Bison Meat. As for the Bison Meat, Mini Burger adds a few spices that I couldn’t place that give it a peppery taste. The Patty itself was juicy, not fatty and had a really distinct flavor that I definitely enjoyed. I kind of sort of just a little bit wished it was a full size Burger only because I really did like the meat that much.
The finger sized Mini Burgers at the EVILL restaurant of the same name make for a darn tasty snack although I suppose you could also mow down on a a whole bunch not unlike my friends who live in a White Castle.
7 out of 10 ounces
-Rev
THE BURGER COUNTQUEST
355 Burgers
Mar. 22, 2011 – 5:22 PM
Going to In & Out when there’s a lull in the Yankee game.