5 Napkin Burger

Yesterday, a guest of the hotel who we had invited to the trade show on Monday, had an invitation to try out the new 5 Napkin Burger. I promptly piped up and invited myself. I never shy away from a good burger.

We had a reservation so getting a table was easy. Service was prompt and attentive without being too overbearing. I started out with a water and iced tea. (Side note: Ever since Easter, I’ve only had 1 Diet Coke! I just don’t find myself craving the sweetness anymore.)

To start, we were told that we just had to try the cornmeal crusted onion rings. I don’t normally order onion rings unless David is with me, but I took them up on the suggestion.

And I am so glad that I did. They were light without being too greasy and the cornmeal definitely added a sweetness to it that breadcrumbs don’t. I dipped it in the 5N sauce and it was very good. Probably the best onion rings I’ve had.

For my entrée, I kept it simple and ordered the 5 Napkin Original: 10 oz. fresh ground chuck, gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, rosemary aioli on a soft white roll. I substituted my roll for whole grain.

That is one thick burger. I ordered it medium and it came out slightly more pink in the middle, but that was fine for me since I lean towards the medium rare side anyway. That glob on the top was the aioli, so I had to smear some of that off. I rarely get a burger that doesn’t have lettuce and raw onion and I was afraid this would get messy. I cut it in half and luckily, it stayed in one piece…until it went into my mouth.

The burger was delicious. It definitely tasted like the ground chuck I would get at a steakhouse; not a regular burger patty. The rosemary aioli gave it a nice herby flavor. And I’m glad I went with the whole wheat bun. Having half was perfect for my lunch and I ended up having the last half at dinner.

For my side (which are a la carte), I originally asked for sweet potato fries, but ended up getting the steamed broccoli instead. I figured, if I’m having a rich burger, I would like to keep the sides healthy. Or so I thought. I received the broccoli and I first noticed that it was sprinkled with cheese. No big deal, it wasn’t a whole lot. But when I picked up the first piece, I saw that it was swimming in butter. I was really disappointed. I like my steamed broccoli to be crisp and flavored by seasonings, not butter. I only had a few pieces.

Hmm…See the little butter bath?

Since this was an invitation to come and try the restaurant, our bill came back comped but I was surprised to see it was for $42! And they also charged me twice for iced tea. If I was paying, I would have said something. Although the quality of the burgers is good, $42 for two people at lunch seems pretty steep. Probably once in a while would I go there to eat. I will say though that the service was speedy; we were out in about 45 minutes. So it’s a reasonable place to go while on lunch break.

Even though our meal was complimentary, these opinions are that of my own.

5 Napkin Burger is located at 105 Huntington Ave in the Prudential Center.

Tagged as: burger, lunch, review