Burgerville

[Coop]

My sons and I were really looking forward to eating at Burgerville and comparing it to our road trip fav. In and Out. Of course geography would make this impossible to do side by side. We had our first (and last) Burgerville experience in Centrallia. How dissapointing. The palce was filthy, the tables were covered in garbage. The gentleman who served us could not have been any less interested. It took him about 10 minutes to get us our drinks and ring in our order. While making my hazelnut shake he took the opportunity to have a nice little visit with one of his female co-workers. The most dissapointing thing though was the Tillimook Cheddar and Pepper Bacon burger. The meat and cheese were greasy and flavourless. All of our burgers had thick slices of white and green cardboard like tomato slices. The fries were obviously frozen Mcains type. We could have gotten a better meal at Burger King.

The next day we had a fantastic burgers at the In and Out in Stockton.

[trillium]

Burgervilles tend to vary a lot from place to place, even in the same general location (like Pdx...). Sorry to hear you got a dud.

regards,

trillium

[girl chow]

Oh, how unfortunate for you. I'm a big fan of Burgerville and I have yet to have a bad meal there in the 20 or so years I've been eating there (I have family in Mossyrock/Yelm/Chehalis, so Burgerville is always on our to do list when we go visit). I do recall the place being a pit on more than one visit, but I'm willing to overlook a few dirty tables that if a restaurant does well in other areas (bugs are another matter, however). What a bummer of an experience you had!

I'd say give 'em another shot. The good thing is that it's not much of a financial investment if you are disappointed. Hey, you should also call the manager and let him/her know when you were in and what craptacular service you had. That is very lame, even for a fast food joint.

My favorite at Burgerville are the marionberry shakes (served when marionberries are in season). And I'm a big fan of Tillamook cheddar burgers. Considering how few fast food places bother to use anything beyond processed cheese, it's a nice extra step.

For me, a Burgerville burger is all about *the sauce.* It's a really excellent special sauce, sort of a cross between tartar and Thousand Island and ?? I'm not sure. It's addictive.

What I like especially is their effort to feature local produce and seasonal ingredients. There aren't many fast food places that support local purveyors.

[girl chow]

I forgot to add that you have excellent taste in restaurants. In N Out is another burger favorite. I understand why that chain doesn't want to expand beyond California (and Nevada?), but I sure wish they'd open a restaurant or two here. They really make great burgers. And those fries are sooooo good. I last visited an In n Out in San Francisco last September -- the one on the Pier. A good time was had by all.

[Really Nice!]

...In N Out is another burger favorite...

...They really make great burgers. And those fries are sooooo good....

In and Out burgers are great, especially when ordered as double animal style and well done fries.

[Schielke]

I have been to the Centrailia Burgerville and had a great experience. I thought it was clean and the service was just fine. The burger was fantastic and so was the marionberry shake. The only thing I did not enjoy was their onion rings.

Be sure to report this to the manager because something is obviously wrong.

Ben

[ExtraMSG]

Trillium is correct. It's unfortunate, but true. I think it's true of In and Out, too, but less so. I've been to some In and Outs where the fries were limp, eg, which almost turned me off to InO forever. Then I went to another and the fries were nice and crispy. I still think InO is overrated, but I can see why people like it.

(I really like BK's and McD's fries *way* better than InO's. InOs are totally bland and take a *lot* of salt to give them any flavor. Note that I do not eat ketchup, so I just eat fries plain, primarily. That vegetable oil yuck is always there as an aftertaste, too, and often the fresh potato nature of the fries leaves a graininess or something in the middle. I'm not sure what that is, but I don't like it. But again, I can see why others may like it. But for me, it's as much a novelty place as Burgerville is.)

For me, Burgerville really is just a decent fast food place with more local character and better than average specials, such as their seasonal milkshakes and Walla Walla onion rings. I think their fries are their worst thing. They're consistently limp. Their halibut fish and chips is easily the best fish I've had at fast food ever, I think. If only you could get decent chips.

[mamster]

I find In and Out better than Burgerville for basic burgers and fries. Laurie and I also ate at that Centralia Burgerville recently and it was fine, but the Tillamook cheddar burger, I agree, really wasn't any better than a quarter pounder or the like. The fish and chips at BV are way better than any fish sandwich at the big chains, though, and at one point they did sweet potato fries as a promo, and those were great.

[ExtraMSG]

I think the sweet potato fries are a winter seasonal item. My wife likes them. I prefer the Walla Walla onion rings, really good for fast food, and decent for anywhere, imo.

[Coop]

I can feel the love you all have for Burgerville, so I will try them on our next road trip. The really dissapointing thing for me was the burger. It just seemed bland and the thick slice of carboard tomato just made it awful. The very traits Extra MSG hates about the IN n Out fries are what I love.

[trillium]

Uh, not love on my part...just saying not all of them are that bad...but it is a fast food joint!

regards,

trillium

[duckduck]

My favorite at Burgerville is the small cheeseburgers! I can't believe they took the bbq bacon cheeseburgers off the menu! Those were the best! The odd thing is that I love their fries with ketchup (evil thing MSG, I know) and a little mustard. I don't even like mustard. It just works well with their fries. I don't know why. I agree on the fry thing. It's all a matter of your personal taste. You can't please everybody. I've sat with a friend at Mickey D's and picked the opposite fries. I go for the wimpy ones and she would go for the ones that were overdone in my opinion. We've gone to Wendy's and she requested that they fry them twice! Completely ruined them as far as I was concerned.

[elswinger]

I've only eaten at Burgerville and In&Out once each, about four years ago when returning from the Rose Bowl. I thought In&Out was very good, what McDonalds used to be when I was a kid, and Burgerville was good also, but nowhere worth the raves my travelling partner said it would be. I didn't think it was that much different than Kidd Valley in Seattle.

Persoanlly I like the L.A. (and now Redmond) chain Fatburger better. Their portions are Red Robin size, but cheaper, and they have steak fries too. I just wish one was in Ballard.

[ExtraMSG]

Is Fatburger the one with the big, thick, greasy, limp fries? If so, I think I had them and decided never to go back.

[Schielke]

Fatburger is good in a pinch in my opinion, but I woud much rather go with I&O

[SteveW]

There's an article about the Burgerville chain in Wednesday's NY Times. Here's the link to the article http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/28/dining/28TABL.html. The writer mentions their seasonal menus of local ingredients, with things like Walla Walla onion rings, sweet potato fries starting in November, blackberry milkshakes in August, local strawberries in May for their shortcake, cheesecake with Rogue River artisanal blue cheese, Huckleberry milkshakes & so on. Their burgers are Oregon Country Beef from free-range cattle. It all sounds very very interesting in the article, but several people on this thread have expressed negative comments about the food at Burgerville.

-Steve

[nightscotsman]

Fatburger beats In-n-Out in my book. Especially since you can add cheese, bacon, chili or a fried egg to any sandwich. Haven't had the fries at FB, though.

But then Sonic does have that "Pancake on a Stick"...

[ExtraMSG]

There's an article about the Burgerville chain in Wednesday's NY Times. Here's the link to the article http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/28/dining/28TABL.html. The writer mentions their seasonal menus of local ingredients, with things like Walla Walla onion rings, sweet potato fries starting in November, blackberry milkshakes in August, local strawberries in May for their shortcake, cheesecake with Rogue River artisanal blue cheese, Huckleberry milkshakes & so on. Their burgers are Oregon Country Beef from free-range cattle. It all sounds very very interesting in the article, but several people on this thread have expressed negative comments about the food at Burgerville.

-Steve

It's still just fast food. And it's still a chain. You're not going to get truly great food, especially consistently, under these circumstances, usually. But for what it is....

[clothier]

There's an article about the Burgerville chain in Wednesday's NY Times. Here's the link to the article http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/28/dining/28TABL.html. The writer mentions their seasonal menus of local ingredients, with things like Walla Walla onion rings, sweet potato fries starting in November, blackberry milkshakes in August, local strawberries in May for their shortcake, cheesecake with Rogue River artisanal blue cheese, Huckleberry milkshakes & so on. Their burgers are Oregon Country Beef from free-range cattle. It all sounds very very interesting in the article, but several people on this thread have expressed negative comments about the food at Burgerville.

-Steve

It's still just fast food. And it's still a chain. You're not going to get truly great food, especially consistently, under these circumstances, usually. But for what it is....

"just fast food"?

that's pretty dismisive, don't you think?

stepping away from the chain part of the discussion, isn't a diner burger still fast food?

and aren't some of them great?

[ExtraMSG]

I don't think most diner burgers are fast food (and I don't know how many are actually great, but that all's pretty subjective). Few diners can produce burgers fast enough to have a drive thru like Burgerville does.

How dismissive the statement is depends on how much you think the fast food genre lacks.

[elswinger]

I guess my definition of fast food is where at least 50% of the diners get their orders to go, and most, but not all, fast food joints have a drive up window.

[trillium]

I think one of the best things at Burgerville is served at breakfast, the egg and bacon/ham/sausage sandwich. The egg is cooked to order, sprinkled with pepper while it cooks and tastes like a real egg (at least at the one we go to) and I always pay the extra 40 cents to have a slice of Tillamook included. I think another dollar gets you the yucky food service hashbrown thingy and yummy glass of odwalla orange juice.

regards,

trillium

[SarahWS]

I have to say that I like Burgerville much much better than any of the other chains in the NW or even In-N-Out. What's great about Burgerville is their wide menu. I can get a very healthy turkey burger, an out-of-this world fresh berry milkshake (or the smoothie so I can actually finish it), grilled chicken burger, good salads (although the dressings could be better), sweet potato fries, the best onion rings, and even a strawberry shortcake. Does any other NW chain (or independent) match their level of quality at that price point? No.

In-N-Out does fries (usually undercooked to the point of rawness), 2 types of burgers, and very standard milkshakes. I do love their burgers, especially the Double-Double Animal Style, but the rest of the food is SO ordinary or just plain bad.

Burgerville on the otherhand offers a variety of good local food at fast food prices. The difference in beef quality between their burger and the other chains is amazing (you can see the filler and crap in the other chains' burgers). They offer local cheeses, Rogue River Blue and Tillamook Cheddar! All their sandwiches have real lettuce, tomato, and sometimes pickle on them. They make huckleberry milkshakes, relying solely on gathered berries.

Unlike any of the other chains, it is possible to eat a wide variety of healthy foods at Burgerville. You have the option of grilled chicken, 2 flavors of Boca burgers, the grilled turkey burger, a turkey sandwich, or 2 different salads. Their seasonal shakes are all available as smoothies. McDonalds is starting to move towards this, but Burgerville has been doing this for the past 5 years.

Yes, it is fast food. But we all need to wake up and realize that slow food is not an option for everyone, especially for every meal. It is an art to sell good, healthy (and non-healthy), local food made for a drivethrough window and sold at the same prices as national chains. I, for one, am proud that Burgerville is showcasing the Northwest's food for those who would never eat at Higgins, Caprial's, clarklewis, or Wildwood. I wonder how many kids have only experienced local NW produce like marionberries, walla walla onions, or sweet potatoes through Burgerville.

I guess my argument is that Americans will eat fast food anyway due to time and financial pressure. Isn't better if they eat Burgerville with healthy choices and NW products than Burger King or McDonald's?

Sarah

Edited April 30, 2004 by SarahWS (log)

[Foodie-Girl]

In-N-Out Double-Double Cheeseburger with onions and a milkshake. Doesn't get much better than that.....

[rockdoggydog]

In-N-Out Double-Double Cheeseburger with onions and a milkshake. Doesn't get much better than that.....

Amen Sister!

rocky