GO BURGER OR GO HOME
September 11, 2014
THE HUNGER JAMES OFFICIAL RATING:
Forgive me followers, for I have sinned. It has been one month since my last post. I am sorry, kind of…but not really. Since the end of July, I have been busy eating all of the meat I could find. I have been putting pepperoni on my pizza, chicken in my pasta, and bacon on my everything. It’s been really wonderful.
A week before September began, I asked my friends on Facebook, Twitter, and OkCupid to recommend another challenge that I could partake in. A lot of the suggestions I received were really great: “Only eat macaroni and cheese for a month” or “A different chain restaurant every night” but some of the suggestions were not as appealing: “Only eat kosher” or “Try the paleo diet” or “No dairy.”
To be honest, I actually thought the “No Dairy in September” would be a really good challenge, mostly because of how hard it would be for me. On the first day of September, I quietly decided to test out the challenge before I made it a big spectacle and had people following it. By 11:30am I caved and had a bagel and cream cheese.
A month of no dairy just isn’t in the cards for me.
So, now that we are all caught up, let’s talk about my amazing find last night! My friend, Louis and I were strolling through the Upper East Side looking for a place we could grab a few beers, catch up, and not spend a whole lot of money. It was actually pretty difficult. You know when you go to the mall because you need a pair of red shorts with navy blue anchors on them? You have seen these shorts everywhere – from catalogues to department stores to your best friends’ closet. You are on a mission to find those shorts. But after hours of shopping, you can’t seem to find those shorts ANYWHERE and you feel like you’re going to go crazy. No? Just me? Well, looking for a restaurant in Manhattan is just like that. Every street you turn down, there is an abundance of restaurants of every different cuisine at your disposal – but when you are actually LOOKING for a place to eat, all you seem to find are Duane Reade’s and Laundromats.
My friend and I started on 59th and Lexington, walking north, in search of a place we could both agree on. By the time we reached 77th, I turned to him and said “I NEED TO EAT. TOO MUCH WALKING.” And, as if God was looking down on me at that moment, I looked across the street and saw this really charming restaurant called Go Burger. “We eat there” I demanded.
Walking in, it reminded me of a small, cozy burger joint you would find in the Midwest. I’ve never been to a burger joint in the Midwest, but I watch a lot of TV. We sat at a booth in the back corner of the restaurant and skimmed over the menu.
“They have pigs in a blanket” I exclaimed. “You never see that on a menu!”
“And they have the ketchup and mustard already on the table. How convenient” my friend replied.
The main thing this place specialized in was burgers, a la their name, but there was so much more on the menu. Big salads, chicken sandwiches, and fish tacos.
Yeah, I thought the tacos seemed a little out of place, too, but I am sure they are good. But, being in a burger place, I HAD to order one – and there were so many to choose from: The Smashburger, The Veggie Falafal, and one called The Mac & Cheeseburger.
Yup. A Cheeseburger with fried macaroni and cheese on top of it. #winning
“I’m getting that one!” Louis exclaimed.
“No!! I wanted to get that one. You get something else!” I chimed back.
“I saw it first!” he whined as he slammed down his fist.
Some friends argue about politics. Some argue about religion. But we argue about food. And that’s the best kind of friendship.
Hating ordering the same thing as someone else (and knowing I could get a few bites when he went to the bathroom), I ordered the UltiMELT because I was craving rye bread…and because it came with the special-secret sauce.
We also ordered a plate of Waffle Bites, which were giant waffle fries, topped with melted cheese, sour cream and bacon bits. Ok.. so we ordered a couple plates of them.
The Mac and cheese burger was ginormous, almost as big as my head. The actual macaroni and cheese was good, but not as cheesy as I would have expected or liked. My patty melt was delicious though, with thick slices of crispy bacon, caramelized onions, and slathered with their special Go Sauce (which I found out is just mayonnaise and ketchup mixed together).
I highly recommend this cozy spot on the Upper East Side for great burgers, fries, and milkshakes.
(YES, they had milkshakes.)
