If only it were happy hour

The Pub Burger, a photo by jaceman4 on Flickr.

So it's kind of weird to me that the most anticipated blog post I've probably ever had on this blog is going to be about a burger I had at a supermarket. Okay, so it's not exactly a supermarket, but rather, a dining establishment that was attached to a supermarket. Long story short, I was visiting Rochester and my friends decided that we ought to try The Food Bar at Wegman's, and because their burgers were supposed to be pretty good, and I had a burger blog, I should review it. We went, and it was a nice place, the more I think of it the more it actually was designed kind of like a bar than an actual restaurant (given the wine dispensers in the dining area).

Anyways, I'm not a big drinker, actually, I don't drink (alcohol) at all. However, I know that generally speaking happy hours are great places to get burgers, and in all honesty that's really what this burger was, a happy hour burger. Don't get me wrong, the burger was well done, the ingredients were fresh and it was prepared quite well. Served with the slice of tomato, leaf of lettuce, melted cheese, and Thousand Island, there was a certain elegance to the simplicity of the concept. A burger, made well. However, that being said, the burger kind of took that concept to the extreme. Beyond that, you were really paying full menu price for a happy hour burger The meat was well prepared and hearty, the Pub Burger being a 1/2 lb patty, however despite the simplicity of the ingredients it was something of an underwhelming burger in all honesty. The main detraction I had was that the bun was more of a roll than a bun, meaning that it was a bit airier than the typical bun which, while not a huge detraction, was not typical for a burger. Additionally, the heavy char used on the burger and the grilled bun, again, while a nice addition, completely stifled the flavor from the Thousand Island.

Part of what makes going out to eat a treat is partially that you don't have to really work to prep the food or clean up, but another part of it is largely to get what you can't really make at home. While I don't believe necessarily that I can as consistently crank out a burger this well prepared, I believe that I can get close enough. Again, I want to reiterate that this was a well-done burger, but what makes the experience largely not worthwhile is simply that the product is not worth the price. Normally at this point of the review I'd be making some generic comment about the fries, which I cannot do here, because the burger doesn't come with any, and I'd already paid for a full meal for just the burger and a drink. I know it's a nice half-pound patty, but the mark-up was pretty ridiculous in my opinion. While I know this is a blog about the quality of the burger, the price tag does markedly affect the overall perception and dining experience. It's a nifty dining experience, and it's good, for a supermarket, but in all honesty, if you're in that plaza hankering for a burger, you'd probably do better at Cheesecake Factory.