The Best Burger: Father's Office
Shake Shack may have won the popular vote for "best burger" at this year's First Annual Burger Bash, but only because most attendees at the South Beach Food and Wine Festival simply don't know what they're talking about. Maybe they all came to see Rachael Ray. In any event, the best burger at the Burger Bash, and possibly the best burger in the U.S. (no, it's not Le Tub) is the Father's Office burger, from Father's Office in Santa Monica. Father's Office is not in Miami but be assured that the Baron cornered chef/owner Sang Yoon and urged him to open a South Beach branch. Chef Yoon promised he was looking into it. There are rumors that Shake Shack is coming to South Beach, so Chef Yoon had better get in gear on this. In the meantime, here's why the Father's Office burger is the best:
The meat: In addition to the traditional chuck, the Father's Office burger incorporates trimings from 28-day dry aged New York strip steaks, lending a superior flavor. If you like the kobe sliders at Prime 112 or the Morton's sirloin burger, you will love this. Rich, complex, beefy flavor that transcends the typical burger experience.
The cheese: Chef Yoon throws in a bit of Maytag blue and offsets the strong flavor with melted Gruyere of the sort you would typically find capping a crock of French onion soup. Much better than cheddar or Swiss in this context. You're not eating American cheese, are you? You do know that American cheese isn't actually cheese, right?
The condiment: Chef Yoon has been compared to the Soup Nazi for his refusal to allow substiutions or to permit the use of ketchup or mustard on his burgers. Don't worry, you don't need it. Instead, the Father's Office burger is topped with an onion compote that includes bits of Wisconsin dry-aged bacon. The compote also apparently makes use of bacon fat, but don't let that scare you. It's not like you're eating trans-fat here, so live a little.
The greens: Topping off the proceedings is a bit of organic baby arugla. Brilliant.
The bun: Well it's not a bun, per se, but rather a demibaguette toasted with butter and garlic. A traditional bun would not suffice, and given the heft of the Father's Office burger, the sturdier construction of the demibaguette seems more appropriate from an engineering perspective.
The end result: A burger of bold and sublime flavors. A very, very rich burger, but more satisfying than the DB Burger with its stuffing of black truffles, foie gras, and braised short rib. More complex than a kobe style burger. More intense than the burger at Joe's Stone Crab (which is actually quite excellent--go to Joe's Take Away and try one). Certainly not traditional, but still quite clearly a burger, and yet also a gourmet experience worth repeating as frequently as possible. Memo to Chef Yoon--the Baron has some recommedations on where to site the South Beach branch.
Shake Shack may have won the popular vote for "best burger" at this year's First Annual Burger Bash, but only because most attendees at the South Beach Food and Wine Festival simply don't know what they're talking about. Maybe they all came to see Rachael Ray. In any event, the best burger at the Burger Bash, and possibly the best burger in the U.S. (no, it's not Le Tub) is the Father's Office burger, from Father's Office in Santa Monica. Father's Office is not in Miami but be assured that the Baron cornered chef/owner Sang Yoon and urged him to open a South Beach branch. Chef Yoon promised he was looking into it. There are rumors that Shake Shack is coming to South Beach, so Chef Yoon had better get in gear on this. In the meantime, here's why the Father's Office burger is the best:
The meat: In addition to the traditional chuck, the Father's Office burger incorporates trimings from 28-day dry aged New York strip steaks, lending a superior flavor. If you like the kobe sliders at Prime 112 or the Morton's sirloin burger, you will love this. Rich, complex, beefy flavor that transcends the typical burger experience.
The cheese: Chef Yoon throws in a bit of Maytag blue and offsets the strong flavor with melted Gruyere of the sort you would typically find capping a crock of French onion soup. Much better than cheddar or Swiss in this context. You're not eating American cheese, are you? You do know that American cheese isn't actually cheese, right?
The condiment: Chef Yoon has been compared to the Soup Nazi for his refusal to allow substiutions or to permit the use of ketchup or mustard on his burgers. Don't worry, you don't need it. Instead, the Father's Office burger is topped with an onion compote that includes bits of Wisconsin dry-aged bacon. The compote also apparently makes use of bacon fat, but don't let that scare you. It's not like you're eating trans-fat here, so live a little.
The greens: Topping off the proceedings is a bit of organic baby arugla. Brilliant.
The bun: Well it's not a bun, per se, but rather a demibaguette toasted with butter and garlic. A traditional bun would not suffice, and given the heft of the Father's Office burger, the sturdier construction of the demibaguette seems more appropriate from an engineering perspective.
The end result: A burger of bold and sublime flavors. A very, very rich burger, but more satisfying than the DB Burger with its stuffing of black truffles, foie gras, and braised short rib. More complex than a kobe style burger. More intense than the burger at Joe's Stone Crab (which is actually quite excellent--go to Joe's Take Away and try one). Certainly not traditional, but still quite clearly a burger, and yet also a gourmet experience worth repeating as frequently as possible. Memo to Chef Yoon--the Baron has some recommedations on where to site the South Beach branch.
posted by TheBaronOnTaste at 10:03 PM
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