I used to love brioche buns with burgers, but now its pretzel rolls for me. They stand up better to a nice juicy burger.
Krispy Kremes?
Chris, we just had a couple…split each of them into two sliders and I ate mine on kaiser rolls (which absorb the juices better than bog-standard hamburger buns, IMO) with some sliced tomatoes, raw red onions and a little mature cheddar. I am not sure that burgers like Bryan’s need that level of accompaniment (you wouldn’t do that with a steak) but my goodness they were good.
Ate them alongside a blindingly good bottle of 2001 Henri Bonneau CdP. The wine smelled like the burgers and vice versa.
Hope you’re well.
Cheers
Peter
+1
Hey All,
Thanks for everyone recommendations. Ended up going with Baltazar brioche dinner rolls which were pretty killer, nice size and handled the juices just fine. Still have a pound left of my blend so I am definitely going to try the pretzel rolls when I cook up the remaining pound.
Here are a couple pics, one with caramelized onions, the other with grilled ramps we picked ourselves earlier in the day. Love the ramp burger…
Never mind having trouble uploading, will figure it out later.
Sounds tasty Peter! We should catch up soon.
Overall I thought the burgers were great but not over the top ridiculous amazing like everything else I have gotten from Flannerys. I think because the meat comes ground hurts it a bit. Next time I am going to have him just ship me the cuts and grind the meat myself(like I usually do when making burgers). I bet that will take it over the top. Got to say though, the build a burger program is one of the coolest ideas ever!
Awesome pics, mmm, ramp burger.
I am thinking of purchasing a mix from Bryan. What were the percentages of your blend? Unless, this is confidential! I am glad you chose Balthazar, they know what they are doing there especially if you ever had the Minetta Taverns black label burger. Also, have you tried LaFrieda’s retail blends from Fresh Direct?
Hey William,
Here are the two blends we tried:
Two blends were
25 Wagyu chuck
25 choice short
25 fillet tip
25 rip cap fat
25 prime sirloin
25 choice short rip
25 brisket
25 wagyu fat
The top was the one I preferred, had a bit more beefy funk and the rip cap fat seems to really give the burger extra flavor. The second blend was great but the wagyu fat may have been a bit too subtle for our liking.
Minetta is the standard, glorious stuff. Their beef comes into the restaurant ground as I understand it but it comes pre ground in a certain way that they just throw it on the flat top, no need for molding or messing with the beef.
I have not tried Lafrieda’s retail blends or Fresh directs although a blind tasting of the three would probably been fun. Maybe on the next trip upstate…
A blend that my friend discovered and is our go to when we grind is below. Great blend that is not expensive.
“The Blue Label Burger Blend”
delete
my mix:
all prime
25% hanger
25% short ribs
25% chuck
25% cap fat blend
Thanks Chris and Jordan. I also prefer more “beefy funk” in my burger. Thanks again for the blend information. I was thinking of going with the following:
25 Wagyu chuck
25 prime skirt
25 prime brisket
25 dry aged steak ends
Minetta Tavern’s Black Label Burger uses a combination of ribeye (dry aged), skirt and brisket. All of the meat is prime. Here is an excellent article discussing the secrets of the burger. I agree it is the standard. I love its funk and earthy flavor. I have not had Minetta Tavern’s Minetta Burger but everyone says once you go with the Black Label Burger you can not go back.
Also, Lafrieda actually sells its retail ground product through Fresh Direct. Fresh Direct also sells meat from other purveyors as well. I wish I could go to Pat directly and be like I want a pound with x x x. I would be in heaven haha