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Burger Club

elyse

By elyse
in New York: Dining

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bloviatrix

bloviatrix

Posted
Posted

Elyse, have you ever been called gamine before?

"Some people see a sheet of seaweed and want to be wrapped in it. I want to see it around a piece of fish."-- William Grimes

"People are bastard-coated bastards, with bastard filling." - Dr. Cox on Scrubs

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alacarte

alacarte

Posted
Posted

What does "prelapsarian" mean?"

The club is only four months old, and yet its members swear allegiance to the classic standards of a prelapsarian burger-eating age.

Did anyone buy the hard copy? Any pix run with that?

I'm disappointed by the article too -- mostly because the reporter makes us sound like a bunch of cavilling, neurotic "middle-aged, white-collar" burger geeks. Also because he never tried the burger!

I'm mildly disappointed that eGullet isn't mentioned, but not entirely surprised. That's the reporter's perogative to identify us that way. It makes the Times look better -- no whiff of commercial taint on their part, and the reporter doesn't "reveal his source" as much -- it looks like we are a hard-to-find story, not something anyone would find easily on the Internet.

P.S., if you run a Google search with the phrases "Burger Club" and New York, eGullet comes up first, with or without quotes. So if someone wants to join us based on the NY Times article, they can still find us.

I wonder what Blue Smoke thinks of the article? I know any PR is good PR -- but the reporter didn't bother to find out our opinion of the Blue Smoke burger. The only reaction recorded at all is Elyse sending her burger back -- which is representative of Elyse :biggrin: but not necessarily representative of Blue Smoke in general.

Spice & Ice and more
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alacarte

alacarte

Posted
Posted

A follow-up thought -- if my memory serves, the reporter (Alan Feuer) is a metro reporter, not a food reporter. I'm accustomed to seeing his byline on stories about happenings at City Hall. So we shouldn't be surprised that this isn't a particularly food-centric story. This is -deliberately- a story about a bunch of people who live in the city doing something of general interest, not a food story.

Media analysis over. We return you to your regularly-scheduled Burger Club thread.

Spice & Ice and more
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picaman

picaman

Posted
Posted (edited)
Did anyone buy the hard copy? Any pix run with that?

There is a picture of the Blue Smoke burger, looking quite resplendent, nicely cooked and in perfect proportion nestled in its bun. Quite juicy, and tasty looking as well.

Oh yeah, just noticed that our elyse is there as well, holding the burger. Almost escaped my notice :laugh::laugh:

The caption reads:

"Elyse [last name], the founder of the Burger Club, with what she called her favorite hamburger in New York City, at the Blue Smoke Restaurant. She is also fond of the burgers at the Parker-Meridian (sic) hotel."

Nice mention of Blue Smoke there--I'd imagine they'd be happy with that.

:smile:

Jamie

Edited by picaman (log)

See! Antony, that revels long o' nights,

Is notwithstanding up.

Julius Caesar, Act II, Scene ii

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Blondie

Blondie

Posted
Posted (edited)

For the record, Elyse looks lovely in the photo :smile:

Another great BC outing and my favorite burger thusfar. Blue Smoke rolled out the red carpet with the mini shakes, birthday cake and menu greeting, but really delivered where it counted - on the plate.

Edited by Blondie (log)

Sometimes When You Are Right, You Can Still Be Wrong. ~De La Vega

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elyse

elyse

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted (edited)
I wonder what Blue Smoke thinks of the article? I know any PR is good PR -- but the reporter didn't bother to find out our opinion of the Blue Smoke burger. The only reaction recorded at all is Elyse sending her burger back -- which is representative of Elyse  :biggrin:  but not necessarily representative of Blue Smoke in general.

I also stressed to Suzanne (the photographer) to tell Alan that My second burger was PERFECT. Hmph. Sorry Blue Smoke!

Edited by elyse (log)
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claire797

claire797

Posted
Posted
Damn them-- they didn't mention egullet!!! :mad:

I'm writing to the Times to complain. Picaman, pm me with your last name, please.

It's a good thing they didn't mention eGullet. That's just what Elyse needs is a bunch of gamine-loving, New York freak shows stalking her.

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picaman

picaman

Posted
Posted (edited)

Here's the relevant bit of our custom menu, for those who haven't seen it. I thought Blue Smoke was far and away the most welcoming establishment, even considering those entertaining grillmen at Le Parker Meridien. Note that Blue Smoke got the name right and spelled correctly.

i1938.jpg

:smile:

Jamie

Edited by picaman (log)

See! Antony, that revels long o' nights,

Is notwithstanding up.

Julius Caesar, Act II, Scene ii

bio • website

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Mayhaw Man

Mayhaw Man

Posted
Posted

$1.95 EACH for oyster shooters? Oy. Such a value! :wacko:

What kind of oysters are those? Everything else seemed reasonable for New York, but 2 bucks for an oyster is a bit out of hand. I hope that they were good :rolleyes:

Brooks Hamaker, aka "Mayhaw Man"

There's a train everyday, leaving either way...

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joiei

joiei

Posted
Posted

I agree with mayhaw man, $24. for a dozen oysters is a little out there. I once had dinner with a group that ate 9 dozen just for the starter. and that was 5 people

It is good to be a BBQ Judge.  And now it is even gooder to be a Steak Cookoff Association Judge.  Life just got even better.  Woo Hoo!!!

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Suzanne F

Suzanne F

Posted
Posted (edited)

My letter of complaint to the Times:

To the Editor:

Re: Burger Club's Picky Connoisseurs Seek Purity Inside the Bun, Metro Section, January 4, 2004:

While I was thrilled to see our names in your article, I must be picky on two more counts: first, I am merely the technician; Jamie [picaman] is the statistician. Second, the most important name missing was that of the entity that brought us all together in the first place: the website eGullet.com. Without eGullet, we never would have met and discovered our shared passions. 

Suzanne F

FYI: prelasarian: characteristic of or belonging to the time or state before the fall of humankind. (Webster 11) :biggrin:

Don't know about their oysters, but on the way home HWOE and I stopped in at Cajun for Sazeracs, and he had a half-dozen HUGE Bluepoints for about $10. Yeah, they were only bluepoints, but they were pretty good.

Edited by Suzanne F (log)
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Mayhaw Man

Mayhaw Man

Posted
Posted

The current record for bivalves choked down in one sitting at the Acme Oyster House is 50 dozen (this was set at the Covington, LA location). Coincidentally I was in there having a meal (my birthday)as he was working on it. He was remarkably normal sized and it was remarkably disgusting, but fascinating (much like the old "watching a train wreck).

For those of you who have a hard time believing this-call 'em up-985-898-0667

In New York money this feast would have cost him $1200. :wacko:

Brooks Hamaker, aka "Mayhaw Man"

There's a train everyday, leaving either way...

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R Washburn

R Washburn

Posted
Posted
Blue Smoke's burgers were quite good -- I think we still have room to find a better burger somewhere in NYC, but it's going to be tough competition at this point.

Upon reflection, I think I nudged my scores up a bit because the service was attentive and the burgers arrived without much delay -- just as I think I nudged my scores down more than a bit at Landmark because the service sucked so outrageously. Word to any restaurateurs out there: service does matter.

I think that Levine had it right in rating Judson Grill the best high end burger. Bluesmoke is good, but IMHO the Judson Grill burger is in a different league.

Was everyone's burger cooked to order? I usually find that Bluesmoke errs on the side of undercooking.

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elyse

elyse

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
I just got my first call from the NYTIMES article. A very nice woman called to inquire about joining the club. I told her that she could find us on eGullet.

Seriously? My mother's gotten a few calls. None for me, but someone I kind of know from church stopped me on the street today. The pearls confirmed it for her!

Sherri, obviously, you can post my photo! What happened to the ones from Parker Meridian???

Sea monkeys are fine, Al. :hmmm:

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bloviatrix

bloviatrix

Posted
Posted
Elyse, have you ever been called gamine before?

I've been called waif. I've been called sir (my painting days). Not sure how I feel about gamine yet. Am I?

Well, the only other person I've heard described as thus is Audrey Hepburn. That's pretty good company, don't you think?

"Some people see a sheet of seaweed and want to be wrapped in it. I want to see it around a piece of fish."-- William Grimes

"People are bastard-coated bastards, with bastard filling." - Dr. Cox on Scrubs

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