The Guy's Kitchen

Yesterday a group of us from work went to Hero Burgers for lunch.  I have been a fan of Hero for a while.  And it’s a good thing it’s a bit of a trek to get to the nearest one to my work, because I would most likely eat there way too often if it was as close as say, Craft.  We had a “buy a combo get a free burger” coupon, so we were motivated to go for the walk.

Hero makes their burgers from 100% Canadian range fed, hormone and antibiotic free beef.  I think they are in the top two of burgers in Toronto.  Lick’s being the other on that short list.

The burgers come in 4, 6 and 8 ounces.  You can get just the plain burger, the signature burger or a peameal bacon burger, the signature is cheddar cheese and a really yummy mayo like sauce, and the peameal is cheddar and peameal with the signature sauce.  Then you can add from a very wide assortment of toppings, both gourmet and the regular burger fare.  Everything from sauteed mushrooms, brie, and goat cheese to chipotle bar-b-q sauce, creole mustard and red onions.  Personally I find you don’t want to overdo the toppings, it makes for a really messy meal if you do.  The “gourmet” toppins cost extra, either 59 or 99 cents each.  The “regular” type burger toppings are free.

One of the best things about a Hero burger, is that the hamburger patty does not get lost in the bun.  In fact it tends to overhand the edges just a bit.  The meat is juicy and tastes like a burger is supposed to.  You don’t get that kind of cardboardy taste of a frozen patty, and it’s beefy, no filler in these burgers.  If you do add one or more of the gourmet toppings you can actually taste it on the burger.  I have been to places that charge extra for “special” toppings and then when you get the burger you cannot even tell if it is on there or not.  Of course with these big beefy patties you don’t have to worry about overpower the burger taste.  Even if you pile on the brie, sauteed mushrooms and chipotle bar-b-q sauce you still know you are biting into a hamburger.

The fries are really good, bringing back my memories of really good English fish and chips.  Though I will say that Craft Burger quite possibly has very slightly better fries.

I had a signature burger and fries for lunch and then took my free burger home and had it for dinner.  Even cold it is still a really good burger!

Hero Certified Burgers is still in the top two burgers places that I have been to in Toronto.

Tonight I went to the Burger Shoppe on Queen Street East.  I have been on the lookout for a really good burger in Toronto as I posted on my blog here, so a friend suggested we go and check out the Burger Shoppe.

It is just a little joint, four tables for two and a few stools along the windows.  The burger toppings range from the your typical lettuce, tomato and onion to goat cheese, grilled pineapple rings, blue cheese and caramelized onions.  I tried the goat cheese burger and the poutine.  The burgers are served on soft egg buns, and mine was cooked excellently.  Just the slightest hint of pink the burger was juicy and that great beefy taste that you usually  only get from a freshly homemade patty.  The grass fed fresh beef makes a difference.  I would have prefered a little more goat cheese.  The poutine was good.  The cheese curds melty and gooey, the fries still crispy and the gravy  is a rich brown colour that brings to mind Sunday roast beef dinners.  My friend had the sweet potato fries and these are a personal favourite of mine.  I have made fries with sweet potatoes for a while now and I love seeing them pop up on menus.

Burger Shoppe is a casual place to get a really good hamburger, the prices seem to be about the same for the higher end burger joints in the city.  The two of us had a burger, order of fries and a bottled water each, and with taxes the bill was $28.  It’s more expensive than the golden arches, but you really do get what you paid for.  I will go back to the Burger Shoppe for sure, and I will try out the Ossington location as well.