Kat's 9 Lives

The Burger Bash continues on... so many burgers but so little stomach room! lol Actually these were the first few burgers we started out with. As you enter the big tent you see the massive amounts of people and get a wonderful whiff of what is in store for you. We didn't really look at the menu they gave us and just went in blindly without a strategy. Note to self - Map out your conquests! ^_^ First to bat was Bobby Flay. Since NYC we have been a fan of his burger as his burger at the NY Wine and Food Festival he should have won the best burger award. Ms. Lin and I both love that the chefs are there behind the scenes cooking and serving the burgers. This time he presented the Dallas Burger Crunchified. It is a Spice Crusted Burger with Coleslaw, Monterey Jack, Pickles, Potato Chips, and BBQ Sauce. I love that the burger is never fully cooked and juicy in the center. The potato chips add so much texture and crunch to each bite. It was a solid burger, but I still think the one he served in NYC was the best. Still, I will make it a goal to try out Bobby's Burger Palace in CT after all these great burgers from him. The man does know how to make one delicious burger. Can't wait to see what other creations he has.
We moved right down the line. Since we are Burger Bash veterans, we know how to pace ourselves a bit. Luckily there is 2 of us so we usually share except certain chefs or burgers that are really good. Yes, we each had our own burger from Bobby Flay. The next few we shared. O=9 Got to save stomach room for the rest of the burgers! lol Ms. Lin stood in line for Bourbon Steak in Miami, Michael Mina's Signature Beef Burger. It's a burger with Aged Cheddar, Balsamic Grilled Onions, Shredded Baby Romaine Lettuce, Secret Sauce and served with Duck Fat Fries! Need I say more? How can fries fried in duck fat not be awesome? It was delicious and extremely aromatic. At first the burger looked weird with all those strips hanging out but in a good way. Everything was succulent and delectable on that tray. I really wanted to go back for another serving, mainly for the duck fat fries. O=9 Ms. Lin stopped me in my tracks because we still had many burgers to go. =*( So controlling! lol I really liked the spicy ketchup served with the fries. It tasted a lost like mild cocktail sauce but the fries were nicely crisp and wonderfully flavored.
While Ms. Lin was waiting in the other line, I went off to the next station. China Grill Management, a restaurant right here in Miami, was serving Jeff & Zach's Bacon Beach Burger. Their station was funny and trying really hard to use sex appeal to drive burger lovers in. There was a man and woman in skimpy bathing suits passing out the drink that goes with the burger. It was kind of an adverse effect for me, but I still went and grabbed a burger. Their burger has Bacon, American Cheese, McClure's Spicy Pickles, Red Onion, and Special Sauce served in Martin's Potato Roll. I was interested in the drink because it was made with Watermelon and it was refreshing. The bacon was fabulously crunchy and smoky. I liked how tender the burger was as you can see it is medium rare, just the way I like it. All the flavors came together well and it was a tasty burger.
After that we moved onto Chef Morimoto's line, but it was a long long line so I ran off for a quick fix to bring back. O=9 I'm telling you it is all about strategy! lol What caught my eye was Bistro One LR at The Ritz Carlton. They had no line, so perfect! I'm putting in a special picture of their station because they had a mobile assembly line. You can't really tell in the picture but the white bar-like table is actually a moving assembly line, which I thought was funny and brilliant. That is a very efficient idea. They served a Gougère Burger with Tarragon Pickle, Shaved Red Onion, and Frizèe served with Shiitake Pommes Frites. The burger tasted better if you added the small pommes frites to add more texture.
More burgers to come and more food... stay tuned! ^_^