Resto

After New York Magazine wrote that Resto had the "burger of the year," and posted an appetizing picture, I had to try it out. So, the other day, after a rather stressful day partly caused by the New York transit system being brought to its knees by a fucking rainstorm, I decided to treat myself by heading up to 29th St. and eating alone (something I've been known to do).

The place was crowded for a Tuesday night, and I had to wait a while for a seat to open up at the bar. The flamboyant maitre'd told me to stand in a specific place where he thought one would open up, so I perched awkwardly next to two towering bankers (or part of that species, at least) who were discussing domestic matters and, later, the new Bourne movie (one of them had tried reading the Robert Ludlum books and complained that they were "too wordy.") When a third pal appeared, the giant at the bar graciously offered me his seat at the bar so I could sit down and eat, and my opinion of the trio improved immediately.

Anyway, the place was loud but convivial, and there was a pleasing selection of (expensive) Belgian beers on tap, this being a Belgian restaurant. As for the star attraction, the burger, it was...well, good. Nothing out of this world. You can blame the NYC hype machine for that, I guess. My main complaint was that the bun was Mcdonalds-y...a high class burger like this should have a toasted bun made of high quality bread. This one seemed average at best. Also, when I ordered the burger, the waiter (who admittedly, was the bartender for me) didn't even ask how I wanted it cooked. The rest of the ingredients--gruyere, pickles, the mayo they provided--were good, though lacking in onions or the option of mushrooms (a burger standby for me). Strangely, the pickles proved to be the highlight, which I can't say for any burger I've had before.