Umami Show Burger

Umami Show Burger, originally uploaded by ~db~.

My history with Papoo's Hot Dog Show goes way back. But by the time it closed down a few years ago, things had gotten pretty bleak. So it was with great excitement I greeted the news that it was going to be bought by Umami Burger, and they were going to keep true to its spirit, including saving the building and serving a number of amped up hot dogs.

And so I waited, and waited, and waited. And then it happened, and it was so crowded I had to wait some more.

Undeterred, I was back a couple days later and ready to eat. But instead of getting a hot dog, as I had planned, the Show Burger, a menu special available only at this location, caught my eye. It's Umami's standard, hand-ground beef burger patty cooked medium rare, as God intended. It's topped with Hak's BBQ sauce, one of their awesome onion rings, bacon lardons, and beer-cheddar cheese. That's right, BEER CHEESE!! All that is put inside the famous Umami-branded soft Portuguese-style bun.

My love of Umami's burgers is no secret, and that love remains strong. And despite the accoutrement (I just pulled out the onion ring and ate it separately after the first bite), this burger is all about the meat, which is cooked perfectly. The BBQ sauce is bold, and the cheese provides more of that nom-nom-nom mouth-feel which gives the restaurant chain its name. But really it's about that meat, of which I ate every last bit. Now where are those hot dogs? Burger, about $11.