Gourmet Burgers? Sounds Good to Me

Chef Burger

Last Friday Natasha and I made out first culinary foray into the Power & Light District in Downtown Kansas City. At the height of the dinner rush, we headed for Chef Burger at 1350 Walnut to see what the buzz was about.

Chef Burger, one four local restaurants run by Chef Rob Dalzell is an upscale take on fast food, a place specializing in, as its name might suggest, gourmet burgers.

When you enter the place, you get the feeling that Chef Dalzell wanted this to be a no-frills joint where the food, not the décor leaves the mark on diners. This is not to say that it’s lacking in atmosphere, but the burnished steel (every decorator’s favorite trendy material) and mustard yellow trim don’t create much of an impression.

After perusing the menu, which offers items like the Texan, a tex-mex themed burger and Chicago dogs, I settled on the BLFGT (Bacon, Lettuce, Fried Green Tomato) Burger, while Natasha chose the Ahi Tuna burger. We both ordered the Garlic Parsley fires, and though the liquor-infused milkshakes were tempting, we settled for two Boulevards.

We placed out orders at the counter (strangely reminiscent of a Subway restaurant), and then waited while our food was cooked to order in front of us. This let us watch the staff, who were friendly, but inattentive, in action.

Within a reasonable amount of time, we received our food and found a place outside to eat. My burger, served with a pesto-aioli, was fantastic. Natasha’s, which included ginger coleslaw and Sriracha aioli, was tasty as well, though distracted cooking put it well-past the medium doneness she requested.

The fries on the other hand were a disaster. Rather that seasoning them with parsley and garlic powder, as logic would dictate, they were soaked in a garlic-infused oil, rendering them a soggy mess.

All in all, it was worth checking out, and I’m sure we’ll be back to try some of Chef Rob Dalzell’s other creations, but next time we’ll skip the fries.

Scorecard (out of five)

Food: 3
Atmosphere: 4
Service: 2
Menu: 4
Price: 2
Total: 15
Average: 3

http://www.kansascitymenus.com/chefburger/