Joe's Burger

The argument over the "best burger" seems to be an endless debate for the ages.  Some of the more well known contenders nation wide are probably In 'N Out and Shake Shack.  Every city has its own local battle.  In LA, there's Father's Office, Golden State, Umami Burger, etc.  You can find me in the In 'N Out and Father's Office camp.  In Portland, I'm sure a battle is raging, but I'm not so "in-the-know" and I have no desire to hike all over the city trying different burgers.  I've tried Little Big Burger, which was just ok, but not worth a revisit.  Although I do pass it by on my way to workout and I cannot deny that the aroma wafting from it's doors is intoxicating, especially AFTER my workout.

More recently, I've tried Joe's Burgers, which is located at Bridgeport Village in Tigard.  Imagine the Irvine Spectrum, a highly commercialized and relatively new and shiny outdoor shopping complex in the heart of the suburbs.  There's a large movie theater & IMAX, Crate & Barrel, The Container Store, Banana Republic, etc.  It feels like a little bit of home away from home, so Dumpling Man and I find ourselves there A LOT.  Now Joe's Burger is not a restaurant or even a food cart.  It's a food kiosk, surrounded by other food kiosks like Wetzel's Pretzels, The Sweet Factory, a bakery selling overpriced gourmet cupcakes, and Portland's Kogi wannabe, Koi Fusion.  Despite being just a kiosk, it serves a burger that has come the closest to replicating In 'N Out's deliciousness.

Fries
These were delicious and fried to a golden crisp.  They really remind me of McDonald's french fries, having that perfect artificial fried potato taste very much lacking from In 'N Out's fries.

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Little Big Burger

Since moving to Portland, I've had the strangest cravings for an In 'N Out burger.  It's only strange because I never crave In 'N Out.  I probably eat In 'N Out on only one occasion, on my way to Las Vegas.  I think I'm probably craving it because I know I can't have it.  In an attempt to find a delicious burger, we stopped at Little Big Burger after walking to the restaurant we actually wanted to eat at and found it closed.

The menu is simple enough, very In 'N Out-esque

Rootbeer Float tillamook vanilla ice cream, barq's rootbeer
I'm not a huge fan of rootbeer but I like ice cream, so I agreed to trying this out.  It tasted like a rootbeer float.  Enough said.

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Burgerville

Not all my posts can be about amazing 3 star Michelin restaurants.  Well, at least, some of my readers prefer it that way.  Something about pretentiousness and the like.  So to all of you, I dedicate this entry.

Burgerville is something like the In N' Out of the Pacific Northwest.  I'm not quite sure if that's the truth, but I've been told something along those lines.  The burgers are supposed to be "pretty good."  Zhu Zhu Hamster said Burgerville has a notorious reputation around the GI department at her work (if ya know what I mean).  We were originally planning to eat at a very popular brunch place, but the wait was out the door.  I was in the mood for a burger and Burgerville was just a few blocks away.  Hey, why not?  I got a stomache of steel!

All over Burgerville, you see signs extolling the freshness of their ingredients.  Pictures of local farmers and their fresh bounty abound.  Mr. X and his wife make the best cheese that goes into the cheeseburgers.  Brother Y and Brother Z grow the finest produce that goes into the burgers and salads.  Everything is local and sustainable.  It's really like subliminal brainwashing.  I think it makes your food taste better, seeing how "fresh" and "local" all the ingredients are, while you sit and eat your food. 

Tillamook Cheeseburger
It looks like a hot mess, but it really wasn't so bad.  The bun was so soft and fluffy.  The patty was pretty meaty.  The sauce was reminiscent of In N' Out and their thousand island dressing.  The cheese was barely noticeable.  The lettuce and tomatoes were whatevers.   If only some more care and love went into assembling the burger, then I think it would have been a better success.

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The Golden State

Many argue over what is considered "The Best Burger in LA."  Is it Father's Office, Umami, 25 Degrees, Golden State, or some other new bumping burger joint?  While I do enjoy a good burger, I can't quite understand the craze.  As a result, I haven't joined the burger bandwagon to truly see for myself whose burger reigns supreme in LA.  I thought Exile Kiss did a good job chronicling her burger adventure through LA.  She concludes that Father's Office, Rustic Canyon, and Golden State have the best burgers.  While I do agree Fathers Office is amazing, I may have to disagree about Golden State (I haven't been to Rustic Canyon).

Persian Cucumber Salad sliced persian cucumbers, lemon vinaigrette
The cucumbers were fresh and crunchy.  They were tossed in a really simple and light vinagrette with a medley of arrugula.  Nothing too spectacular but the refreshing nature of the dish helped cut the grease through the meal.


French Fries
Crispy.  Golden.  Fried.   The ketchup here is very special.  Sorry no picture!  It is a curry ketchup that has all the tomato-ey goodness of ketchup, but the kicked up spiciness of curry.  It really is something, and I scooped up as much as I could.  I even slathered it all over my burger.

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Kalbi Burger

To my lucky readers, we have another guest blogger!  Care Bear has so willingly offered her authorship for today's post about the very popular Kalbi Burger.

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Well hello everyone!  Let me introduce myself, I’m sometimes referred to as Care Bear but don’t let the name fool you, I could still be a lethal assassin like Nikta, my new TV show interest. Anyhoo, today I am honored to be a guest writer for Overworked’s blog (aka BO per WonTuan).

The target of the week: Kalbi Burger.

The top secret mission: To gather intel on this new Asian infused burger joint and to annihilate some burgers while we’re at it.

The elite undercover burger tasting agents (and yes, everyone will be bears): Overworked Bear, Hates Asian Food Bear, Panda and Little Bear, Bowtie Bear, Buff bear, Hawaiian bears consisting of Luau and Macadamia Nut Bear. Luau brought Farm Bear. And then there’s me and Token Bear. 

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