8/19/18: Cracker Barrell's Maple Jam and Bacon Burger

I have been at Cracker Barrell many times over my life. Over my time, I do not recall having a burger. I would tend to get the country fried steak. This time, I had their Maple Jam and Bacon  Burger.

Toppings were Colby cheese, Maple bacon, and a maple onion jam. I loved the cheese, but the maple bacon and maple onion jam were much. The bacon was a bit overdone and looked like it shrunk from a normal size. Maple onion jam was a conglomerate of flavors that countered each other, and made the flavor to be overwhelming. I ended up scrapping off some of the jam.

The patty was charred well and seasoned decently. No issues.

The bun wasn't special, but it wasn't horrible. It presented the patty and toppings properly.

I was not blown away by this burger. It seems the main attraction of the toppings were the detriment to the burger itself. Will try another CB burger, but not that one again.

Toppings: 3
Patty: 6
Bun: 4

OVERALL: 4

-Nick
Nicknick@rateaburger

8-9-18 Dead Dog Saloon's Cluckin Chuck

Dead Dog Saloon at Murrels Inlet in South Carolina was a wonderful restaurant that we accidentally found. It has previously been featured on The Travel Channel. I love my dog, Bailey, dearly and I was nervous about what kind of restaurant would have this name. The decor of the restaurant is the most original design of probably any restaurant I have eaten. There are hundreds of pictures in memory of dogs; some with pictures of their owners with them.

I ordered the Cluckin Chuck. It is a beef patty topped with a fried egg, cheddar cheese, bacon, and arugula on a potato bun.

My patty was cooked to perfection. It was juicy and full of flavor. You could taste the beef's freshness. It was a patty you wanted to have on every burger you were going to eat.

The bun was soft. Potato buns are so much sweeter than plain white bread buns. It paired with the burger nicely.

The toppings were a nice pairing. The arugula was a bit bitter, but that is typical. There was enough cheese to make you feel like you were eating a cheeseburger. The egg was fried over easy and spilled it's golden yolk over the entire patty. The bacon was crisp and not burnt. Prefect for a sandwich.

Bun: 5
Patty: 9
Toppings: 7

OVERALL: 7

-Kristina
Kristina@rateaburger.com

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8/6/2018: BugerFi's Bacon Cheeseburger

We make a trip back to Bugerfi, but this time to the North Myrtle Beach location. Today I decided to try their bacon cheeseburger.

Burgerfi buns are one of my favorites. It is always soft and sweet. I love that they brand their buns. You can almost taste the blackened bread.

The patties were juicy but thin. They were salty and yummy. I would compare the patties to Five Guys, but made with better ingredients.

Today, I was disappointed in the toppings. There was not enough cheese and the bacon was overdone. I added mayonnaise and ketchup to the burger. This helped with the lack of cheese and the borderline burnt bacon.

Bun: 7
Patty: 6
Toppings: 5

OVERALL: 6

-Kristina
Kristina@rateaburger.com

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8/4/18: Fuddrucker's Three Cheese Burger

We made it to Myrtle Beach! We gather every 3 years over to North Myrtle Beach and we first meet at the "World's Best Hamburgers" Fuddruckers! The menu here is a lot like Five Guys with the pick and choose toppings, but Fuddruckers has specialty burgers and I will review the Three Cheese Burger.

The toppings were just swiss, cheddar, and provolone cheese. All three cheeses make for a lovely layer that graciously coats the patty. All three types of cheese compliment each other in its flavors and makes for a nice presentation.

The patty was well-seasoned. It had a juicy, flavorful taste that pairs well with its toppings.

The bun is house made and super soft. Unlike other soft buns that just collapse, this bun keeps form and doesn't overwelm the burger.

It was a tall task to call yourself the World's Best Hamburger when there are so many other hamburgers out there. This could very well be the best.

Toppings: 9
Patty: 8
Bun: 10

OVERALL: 9

-Nick
nick@rateaburger.com

8/4/2018 Fuddrucker's Hangover Burger

I love vacation. When you travel, you need to look and see if there is a Fuddruckers restaurant where you are staying. We love Fuddruckers because they make your burger to order and then have a topping bar.

Today I had the hangover burger. It comes with smokehouse bacon, cheddar cheese, and a fried egg.

The buns are made fresh in their bakery daily. The sesame seeds bun was a delicious soft bun. You could smell and feel how fresh the buns were.

If you have read my other blogs you know toppings are a huge make or break for my burgers.  Fuddruckers does toppings correctly. The egg was cooked to a perfect over easy and added a nice richness to the burger. The bacon was excellent. It was not overly crispy. The cheese was the right amount of cheese. I added mayonnaise, lettuce, and a tomato. There were easily a dozen more toppings you could have added in addition to these.

The burger was grilled to a perfect medium and seasoned to perfection. There isn't a thing I would change about the burgers cook or seasoning. I used multiple napkins and a knife a fork to devour this burger.

Bun: 8
Burger: 8
Toppings: 10

OVERALL: 9

-Kristina
Kristina@rateaburger.com

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8/3/2018: Cowbells Burger and Whiskey Bar's Sodapop Burger

Vacation time! One of the perks of going on vacation is being able to try new restaurants and burgers. On our way to North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, we stopped in Charlotte, North Carolina for the evening.

I love walking in cities for a day or two. You get to listen to the bustle of the city and watch people go by. There are sometimes street performers preforming or music being played. You see art, architecture, and cultures other than your own. We had heard from others that Cowbells is the place to go for a burger.

I ordered the Sodapop burger. It is a barbecue patty topped with Sriracha grilled prosciutto, crispy onion straws, house pickles, iceberg lettuce, Roma tomato, melted Gruyere cheese, chipotle ketchup, and soy sauce, served on a sesame seed bun. I ordered the burger without the house pickles.

The bun was average. Nothing spectacular, but not bad. It would have been nice if it was toasted or warmed a bit.

The patty was delicious. It was salted beautifully. It was tender. The meat was so juicy. The burger was cooked to a lovely medium. There was a nice charring on the outside of the meat.

The toppings are some of the best I have had. The sriracha grilled prosciutto was so spicy. I could not stop eating it though. It was to the point it made you cough a little and your eyes water a bit. It was just he right amount of heat. The crispy onion straws turned a bit soggy with all of the toppings, but I appreciated the sweetness. It helped lower the heat from the prosciutto.  The rest of the toppings got lost in the heat. I would have liked more cheese to balance the heat.

This is a burger that you need multiple napkins or a fork and knife. It was a delicious cheeseburger. I am sad this restaurant is so far away. It is a burger I wish I could have again.

Bun: 6
Patty: 8
Toppings: 9

OVERALL: 8

-Kristina
Kristina@rateaburger.com

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8/3/18: Cowbell Burger and Whiskey Bar's Jerry Garcia Burger

Kristina and I started our South Carolina journey of burgers in Charlotte with a stop at the Cowbell. This location was modernly dressed with the atmosphere catered to young adults. Check Kristina's review on the Sodapop Burger. Today, we review the Jerry Garcia, the open faced burger.

The toppings were carmelized onions, mushrooms, Swiss, and brown gravy. The onions and mushrooms were a bit much. They both tend to overcome the gravy and didn't overly compliment it. The cheese, due to the rest of the toppings, was just there.

The patty was seasoned well and cooked to my liking. No issues with this one.

The bun...bread was a nice cut of sourdough. A mistake many outlets have with open faced sandwiches is to provide a think slice of what bread they are displaying. This slice was able to hold up the burger and didn't get overly soggy with the toppings. The sourdough itself was a good taste, but didn't take away from the burger.

The Jerry Garcia was a good burger, but not a great burger. The toppings fighting with each other for attention seemed to hinder my rating for this burger.

Toppings: 5
Patty: 8
Bread: 8

OVERALL: 7

-Nick
Nick@rateaburger.com

7/27/18: Guajillo's Mexican Burger

Today it is history for RateABurger: Not only am I reviewing a burger I have had before, but I am reviewing a new ground for these burgers....two different patties.

Guajillo's in Bowling Green, Ohio provides me what they call the Mexican Burger. Let's take a look at it.

The toppings are simple...lettuce, tomato, and cheese. Nothing special about the toppings.

The patty combination is a decent-sized beef patty and a fairly thin chorizo patty. The first time I ate this, it was a thin patty...this time it was crumbles. The crumbles were overcooked (I know I order well done, but these were BURNT) to where I could barely taste the meat and not crunch on the charred parts. The beef patty is a plain beef patty with no additives (seasonings, etc). Just cooked to order.

The bun was a simple bun...borderline one from the store. It fell flat as I grabbed for the burger. It turned into a mushy pancake in the process...it would've been better if they were actually pancakes.

I was disappointed with this round of the burger. The other one I had was similar as mentioned, but the chorizo was cooked better and full of flavor...which I missed in this one.

Toppings: 3
Beef Patty: 5
Chorizo Patty/Crumbles: 2
Bun: 1

OVERALL: 2
-Nick
nick@rateaburger.com

8/3/2018- Guest Review- Purina Moist and Meaty Burger dog food

Our first guest review comes from Bailey, our Yorkie/Cavalier. She tried Purina's Moist and Meaty Burger variety.

This meal comes in 12 pre-packaged pouches that provides Bailey with a decent portion for her. The pieces are a combination of beef and cheddar cheese.

Bailey enjoys this meal. She prefers this dog food over many of the other foods we have provided for her. She gives this two "paws" up!