Burgatroyd

After digging into a couple of bistro burgers and sliders on the east side, we decided it was time to cross Burnside and get our food cart on at Burgatroyd.

The recommendation came from a coworker of mine, Joel whose friend runs the cart. After a long Saturday morning of signing up for brewing classes and searching for kombucha bottle brushes in North Portland, we couldn’t help but stop over at the Mississippi food cart pod for a bite.

The pod is located right behind Prost! -- which I hear is an amazing bar for soccer watching fans -- and offers everything from fresh juice and rice bowls to Korean tacos and of course, burgers (All of which you can take into Prost, granted you buy a beer).

Despite the amazing smells emanating from every cart, we had one mission that freakishly hot Saturday early afternoon: Burgers.

Beforehand we looked up their website to see their offerings. Unfortunately what was on the site wasn’t exactly what was available (An updated site would be nice!). We thought we were walking into a burger cart that offered regular burgers with like, a bajillion add on options. While that wasn’t the case, the menu wasn’t disappointing.

But let’s meet the meat before we really dig in:

“Each burger is a ¼ pound of Highland Oak Beef served with housemade sauces and pickles on brioche buns supplied by Fleur de Lis. Price: $6.”

Jason got the Luau Burger: The ¼ pound patty slathered in teriyaki sauce, grilled pineapple, swiss cheese and grilled ham. Opting for the only burger that came without cheese, I went with the summer special.

And now...the rankings:

Bun Quality: Jason (1), Amie (1)
Brioche. Buttery. Grilled on the outside and squishy on the inside. Yum a dum dum.

Meat Quality: Jason (1), Amie (.75)
A near perfect quality, I was just slightly bummed that my patty didn’t fall or break apart. It was composed and patted too much, leaving a patty that seemed pre-made and frozen, not made two minutes before it hit the grill.

Made to Order: Jason (.75), Amie (.5)
While Jason’s burger was perfectly medium rare, especially compared to my slightly more medium meat (My reason for the knock down), Jason had to knock down Burgatroyd too. The culprit? Onions that weren’t listed on the menu of the Luau Burger but still found their way down on the lower bun.

Sauces: Jason (1), Amie (1)
Any place that takes the time to make their own sauces makes its way straight to our hearts. Today there are just too many GMO and HFCS sauces that absolutely ruin...not just the taste, but the entire reasoning behind serving grass fed, organic beef. That’s why we loved Burgatroyd’s sauces and the sweet, sweet lovin’ they put into them.

Quality of Accoutrements: Jason (1), Amie (1)
Despite the fact that Jason’s burger came with unwanted accoutrements, I’ll admit that those rogue onions were awesome. Fresh and crispy without being stringy. The slaw on my burger was just as crispy and swimming in a delicious sauce without going soft. Truly, nothing to complain about in this arena. I’m curious as to where they get such high quality fruits and vegetables. Anyone know?

Add On Options: Jason (1), Amie (1)
Bacon and egg. Ain’t nothing wrong with either of those. That said, it’s hard to want to add bacon to a burger that already has ham, let alone an egg to a lime flavored, slaw-filled, already oozing burger. Next time Burgatroyd, next time.

What It Comes With: Jason (.5), Amie (.5)
Like most food cart burgers, Burgatroyd’s burgers didn’t come with anything. However, french fries are a cheap $3 side dish. That said, while Jason and I usually devour our fries (We shared a large this time), we left the pod without consuming every little crunchy fried delicious morsel. They looked crispy, looked like McDonald fries, but tasted a bit soft, bland and in need of ketchup. Bummer.

Meat Flavor: Jason (.5), Amie (.5)
The meat flavor test is always tricky; it requires taking a bit of the meat away from the song and dance of the accoutrements, bun, add ons and sauces to distinguish how beefily delicious that burger is. While I know the high quality factor of Highland Oak Beef, we were a bit disappointed that the meat didn’t really have a ton of flavor. Beef, sure. But like, BEEF?!?! Unfortunately, not.

Presentation: Jason (1), Amie (1)
Any burger that’s pierced by a skewer or knife is an absolute giant presentation of confidence and just like a cat chasing a laser does, we’ll fall for that ploy every time. It’s just so awesome and commands to eat that burger absolutely as is.

Hit the Spot Factor: Jason (.75), Amie (.75)Despite these burgers being the first thing we munched on all day, we weren't experiencing that total "I hate my life because I just ate the last bite of my burger" moment. Just like Katie Holmes, we simply moved on to better burgers.  

Bonus Pickle? Zero.
Bonus pickles...where are you!?!

Total Score: 7.5

Recommendations: Any day you’re jonesing for a burger, want to sit outside and grab a beer afterwards, definitely hit up Burgatroyd and Prost! (Especially if you love the Timbers but don’t love the traffic associated with NW/SW Portland) All we can say is Joel -- thank you!