Vancouver, BC, and Western Canada Burger Club

[Daddy-A]

Just received this from Calvin at Burgers Etc.

Well ... all I can say is THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for all your votes.

CTV called this morning and we have been voted the "Best Burger" !!  The camera guy came this afternoon (right in the middle of our Friday lunch rush) to film their segment which will air on CTV (Channel 9) tonight between 6 - 7 pm.  It's usually at the end of the news broadcast, so maybe 6:30 - 7:00 ??

Anybody see the piece?

A.

[~cayenne~]

Just received this from Calvin at Burgers Etc.

Well ... all I can say is THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for all your votes.

CTV called this morning and we have been voted the "Best Burger" !!  The camera guy came this afternoon (right in the middle of our Friday lunch rush) to film their segment which will air on CTV (Channel 9) tonight between 6 - 7 pm.  It's usually at the end of the news broadcast, so maybe 6:30 - 7:00 ??

Anybody see the piece?

A.

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darnit, no!

I had to rush out before 7:00 and tried to make it back before the end of the 11:00 p.m. segment, they usually repeated the burger highlight again at about 11:55 p.m. No such luck last night though, they aired stuff similar to Global/Squire's Satellite Debris at that time. I was so looking forward to seeing the winner. Did you see the Feenies and Diva entree's on Thursday night. Foie gras and all! Big $'s.

[quattroporte]

I saw the piece on the CTV News last night. The majority of the segment was on what they said was BC's Biggest Burger. The Witch Pub in Maple Ridge makes this 8 pound monstrosity. If you can eat it in under one hour, you get the burger for free and they give you $100. Ling? Are you listening??

Anyways, they listed the "Best Burgers" at the end, with Burger Etc. coming in at #1, Vera's came in at #2, and Moderne Burger came in #3. I think White Spot and Red Robin tied for #4.

[fud]

I saw the piece on the CTV News last night.  The majority of the segment was on what they said was BC's Biggest Burger.  The Witch Pub in Maple Ridge makes this 8 pound monstrosity.  If you can eat it in under one hour, you get the burger for free and they give you $100.  Ling?  Are you listening??

Anyways, they listed the "Best Burgers" at the end, with Burger Etc. coming in at #1, Vera's came in at #2, and Moderne Burger came in #3.  I think White Spot and Red Robin tied for #4.

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I've read about the Witch Burger. Some of us were planning a trip out to MR to check it out. There was a review of the burger about a year back and the reviewer and his friend could barely get through half. Knowing what's in it might make you even less likely to try it

That would be a wonderful outing!

You know. I actually quite enjoy the White Spot burgers so I'm not surprised they made #4 along with RR.

I'm game for Burgers Etc so whenever it gets organized let me know! I've never been and I'm guessing it will now be very busy

[scout]

It's a bit of work, but if anyone wanted to catch the piece last night, you can get it from CTV's website. The giant burger story starts at about 51 minutes into the show and the burger poll results are around the 54 minute mark.

http://www.ctv9.ca/streamnews.jsp?id=/news...eaming_news.htm

[samasutra]

Just received this from Calvin at Burgers Etc.

Well ... all I can say is THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for all your votes.

CTV called this morning and we have been voted the "Best Burger" !!  The camera guy came this afternoon (right in the middle of our Friday lunch rush) to film their segment which will air on CTV (Channel 9) tonight between 6 - 7 pm.  It's usually at the end of the news broadcast, so maybe 6:30 - 7:00 ??

Anybody see the piece?

A.

Yes, saw it on the news last night and have decided have to try this burger though a smaller version then what was shown on the news. Who in the hell could ever handle a hamburger that big. Sure looked scrumptious though. Caught last part so was not sure if Burger Etc. was in Burnaby or Maple Ridge?

Samasutra

[Daddy-A]

Caught last part so was not sure if Burger Etc. was in Burnaby or Maple Ridge?

Samasutra

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Burnaby ... Hastings & Gilmore.

A.

[fud]

It's a bit of work, but if anyone wanted to catch the piece last night, you can get it from CTV's website.  The giant burger story starts at about 51 minutes into the show and the burger poll results are around the 54 minute mark.

http://www.ctv9.ca/streamnews.jsp?id=/news...eaming_news.htm

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Cool thanks! The burger for some reason doesn't look as big as I thought..don't get me wrong it is indeed ridiculous.

mmmm burger...

[Pez]

Hi, fellow burger lovers.

If everyone is game, let's have a Burger Club meet on Sunday, April 30th at 6pm at Burgers Etc. They close at 7:30pm, but won't kick us out if we go later than that. Their address is 4091 Hastings Street, Burnaby, BC. They suggest reservations since they are busy Sunday, so please PM to give me an approximate count. Thanks.

Also, in looking back at the Burger Club history, I came across this burger evaluation sheet which I thought was cool.

http://www.thestagingarea.com/burger.pdf

See you then,

Cheers,

T

[Daddy-A]

Count Daddy-A in for 2.

A.

[makanmakan]

No can do for us as we'll be in Mexico, feasting on fish tacos and cervacas!

We did try to go to Burgers Etc. today as I haven't been yet, but they're closed at 2 on Mondays. Sigh...next time.

Have a fun burger club night, y'all!

[Foodie in Vancouver]

We will be in Palm Desert feasting on Costco wine bargins! But in honor of burger club I promise to go by the In 'n Out for a burger that day. (Don't think we can manage wine with that burger!) Have fun.

[KitchenHelp]

Hey Pez, count me in on for one looking forward to it

Hi, fellow burger lovers.

If everyone is game, let's have a Burger Club meet on Sunday, April 30th at 6pm at Burgers Etc. They close at 7:30pm, but won't kick us out if we go later than that. Their address is 4091 Hastings Street, Burnaby, BC. They suggest reservations since they are busy Sunday, so please PM to give me an approximate count. Thanks.

Also, in looking back at the Burger Club history, I came across this burger evaluation sheet which I thought was cool.

http://www.thestagingarea.com/burger.pdf

See you then,

Cheers,

T

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[lauraf]

Maybe this has been addressed upthread - if so, sorry! - but I noticed on the eGullet Burger Evaluation Form that you note the different degrees of doneness ranging from Blue Rare to Well Done. Is this a universal eGullet form, or specific to our forum? I thought we are restricted to a minimum cooking treatment of medium/medium-well burgers in BC restaurants . . .

[samasutra]

No can do for us as we'll be in Mexico, feasting on fish tacos and cervacas! 

We did try to go to Burgers Etc. today as I haven't been yet, but they're closed at 2 on Mondays.  Sigh...next time. 

Have a fun burger club night, y'all!

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I have been to the IN anda Out in Palm Springs. Not a bad hamburger but I did think it was over rated. My best friend is from California and went on and on about the in and out chain. I guess she grew up with them and they are a tradition in her family.

Samasutra

[Pez]

Count Daddy-A in for 2.

A.

←

See you there.

Cheers,

T

[thoughtbox]

Maybe this has been addressed upthread - if so, sorry! - but I noticed on the eGullet Burger Evaluation Form that you note the different degrees of doneness ranging from Blue Rare to Well Done.  Is this a universal eGullet form, or specific to our forum?  I thought we are restricted to a minimum cooking treatment of medium/medium-well burgers in BC restaurants . . .

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Very interesting indeed. I get various responses from restaurants when I request my burgers to be cooked to medium or medium rare. Most refuse to do it, stating some sort of food regulation. I remember when I used to work in the industry, I would site the same piece of information. However, I have been doing some on-line research, and I can not find any sort of regulation in existence. I figure if this is the burger club forum then perhaps somebody with some real expertise could comment? Anybody?

[eatvancouver]

I've heard the same thing. Today at Moderne Burger, for instance.

But, of course, many restaurants in the area serve less than totally cooked meat, including ground beef - Feenie's comes to mind - so surely it can't be applicable to all restaurants.

My feeling has always been, if a restaurant is wary about serving their meat less than well-done, maybe I should take that as a sign that they aren't entirely confident about their meat.

[thoughtbox]

My feeling has always been, if a restaurant is wary about serving their meat less than well-done, maybe I should take that as a sign that they aren't entirely confident about their meat.

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I couldn't agree more.

[Chef Metcalf]

My feeling has always been, if a restaurant is wary about serving their meat less than well-done, maybe I should take that as a sign that they aren't entirely confident about their meat.

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I think we've all met some who aren't.

(edited for size...

Edited April 9, 2006 by Chef Metcalf (log)

[Irishgirl]

From what I understand.....it really is not enforced in any way. The health inspectors REQUEST restaurants to cook their ground beef to 160 degrees F, as a safety precaution. (Internal temp)

There are many companies out there that use questionable practices/facilities/conditions for their ground beef....so especially stuff that you get from the supermarket should be cooked medium well to well done.

However...if you are grinding your own beef from a solid piece of say sirloin or chuck and using it right away....have it medium rare! It will taste so much better! If it were illegal to serve rare or raw ground beef, then no restaurants would have beef tartare on their menus.

Now...when are you going to have burger club meeting on a Tuesday or Wednesday?

[taryn]

I have a friend that works at feenies, they have meat ground specially for their burgers.

[eatvancouver]

In an effort to add to the already substantial burger knowledge base, my friend Dan Fishman recently reviewed Moderne Burger for Eatvancouver. Although his obsession with Jack in the Box is somewhat troubling, I think most of his observations are on point.

[11son]

I have been to the IN and Out in Palm Springs. Not a bad hamburger but I did think it was over rated...

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OK, here's the deal with In-N-Out:

1) It's all about the secret menu, which is available on their website.

2) Specifically, one wants to order it animal style. This means 3 things A) They add grilled onions B) They put their special animal style spread on it, and MOST IMPORTANTLY C) They actually cook the burger with mustard, which for some reason is the subtle detail that causes all the magic. And not a mustardy tasting magic either. But seriosuly, this part is key.

3) If you aren't into the spread (which is a more thousand islandy relative of our own triple-o sauce) you can ask them to not do it, or to give you mustard and ketchup instead (my preferred option)

4) For all the carb watchers in the house, In-n-Out were the originators of the protein-style burger (wrapped in lettuce in stead of a bun). They actually architect these extremely well (way, way more effectively than anywhere else I've seen), and it doesn't fall apart too badly at the end (or at least not any more so than a normal burger should). Even if you aren't a carb-counter (I'm not) I recommend this option because the lettuce is a great showcase for the flavour of the burger. I find the bun kind of stifles it. Not that there's anything wrong with their buns. Just my personal preference.

Now all of this sounds a little fussy, but nothing could be farther from the truth. The vast majority of In-n-Out customers order from the secret menu. The staff are all incredibly friendly and helpful, and they encourage you to get creative with your order. Also, they basically always get it right.

If you're a burger fan in the vicinity of an In-n-Out, I wholeheartedly encourage you to try them out, and order-up, custom-style.

~11

[thoughtbox]

From what I understand.....it really is not enforced in any way.  The health inspectors REQUEST restaurants to cook their ground beef to 160 degrees F, as a safety precaution. (Internal temp)

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Thanks. This is some serious burger research. :-)

Is this first hand information that you have?

From what I can tell, it is the Ecoli bacteria that the inspectors are attempting to protect the restaurants and consumers from, and apparently this bacteria will die at 155F. (this is just some online numbers I have found). So it makes sense the inspectors would request the restaurants to comply to a 160F temperature, but it is definetly not a "real rule". Something to protect the restaurants liability, because they do not want to incur the additional cost of obtaining a good quality product, or perhaps their clientele does not want to pay.

In addition to this 160F is not always considered well done. I have seen some sites that state 160F is medium, so I suspect some pink is allowable. But it is usually the "pink" that the restaurants refuse to serve.

I need to call a "food inspector", does anybody know how to contact one?