Burger Bonanza

There has been quite the case of "Burger Fever" here in Halifax this past year, with a gourmet burger joint opening (it seems) every other week in various neighborhoods and enthusiasts endlessly comparing the pros and cons of each.

The Coast, in all their awesome genius-ness, decided to get in on the hype by making March 21st to 27th "Burger Week"! A whole week dedicated to eating burgers? Pretty sure this is the best idea ever (next to the hairdryer, of course). They also offered a prize of a Big Green Egg smoker/grill for anyone who visited a minimum of 3 establishments, so the boy and I promptly grabbed our passports, picked our Top 3 and spent the week trying them all out.

We decided to try 3 places we had never visited before, so this was an excuse to not only eat delicious burgers but to visit a few restos I have been meaning to get to for a while! Win-win!

1. Bearly's House of Blues, Burgers and Ribs

All photos by me

This place was PACKED when we arrived and we only got a table within 10 minutes out of sheer luck. Clearly this is a popular place on Friday and Saturday nights. I can see why, since it has a casual laid back vibe and low prices. The Bearly's Burger was one of the $5 ones from The Coast list - that's $5, TAXES IN, y'all. The price was great for the amount of food - this plate was HUGE. And the burger had some great toppings, including onion rings and house-made salsa.

Unfortunately, our service left some things to be desired, but I'm willing to cut them some slack since they were really busy. And the important thing is that the burger was delicious! Next time I hope to catch some of the great blues music they are known for.

2. Tempo Food + Drink
This is a brand new restaurant that I had heard good reviews for, so I was probably anticipating this visit the most. It just looks like such a cool, funky place through those big, open windows on Barrington Street - like a place that has interesting cocktails and takes on food. This burger was one of the most delicious-sounding on the menu, with its smoked ketchup, fried onions, candied bacon (candy and bacon in ONE?!), and tempura pickle! Who could resist all that fat and grease?!

The burger was quite tasty, although all the tempura promptly came off my pickle the minute I bit into it, which was disappointing. The prices here are also a tad higher, so it's not a place I could afford to frequent often (most dishes and drinks are around the $15 mark). The two cocktails I had were good though, particularly the "Chant", aka. lemon vodka, lemon gemello, blueberry liqueur, rhubarb
bitters, sour, pineapple. I think it's really cute that their drinks all have musical names, since I'm a music geek and all.

My favourite thing about this place is the atmosphere - the decor has a real modern, sleek feel to it with a touch of down-to-earth comfort (long cafeteria-esque counter in front of the kitchen, chalkboard special listings). They had a great-looking "lounge" area with candles and comfy chairs that looks like a great place to sit and sip a drink and talk with a friend. Will keep this spot in mind for just such a future visit!

3. Finbar's Irish Pub
This being a suburban pub, we weren't sure what to expect, but we liked it very much! It's just your basic Irish-style pub, not really anything special but the burger we had here was probably the most unique of the 3. This patty was lamb instead of beef and had a delicious sweet Guinness glaze on top, which I really enjoyed. The service here was great - all the waitresses are really friendly and helpful. Ours helped the boy pick out a beer to compliment his burger when he wasn't sure what to have, and he's a bit of a beer snob so if he's impressed with your pick, you have done something right!

Thanks to The Coast for putting on such a delicious promotion - it made our tummies very happy and also got us out to try some new places, which we are always up for! It seemed like this promotion was very popular and well-received, so hopefully this means there will be more. May I suggest something dessert-related?