At long last, another BURGER REVIEW. Despite the blog name, I have not reviewed a hamburger using the original ‘07 format in a while, but, after my short absence from the blogosphere, I must do this as a service to you, the fans.
Today’s burger joint: DuMont (the restaurant, not the DuMont Burger spin-off). I was starving when I arrived at DuMont early on a Friday evening. Famished. Running on empty. Hunger pangs, the full nine. Fortunately, JBE and I found a parking spot right outside, and we were sitting within moments of our arrival. The place was decently crowded, but the OpenTable reservation made moments before departure was a key move. BG was there already and had snagged a table for us. Why I am giving you all a play-by-play is beyond me, but it just feels right.
You know what else feels right? Knowing you are going to be going to town on a burger within an hour. I am actually heading to JG tonight, so I know exactly how right it feels, even as I type this.
And without further ado, the review, in the classic 2007 format:
Overall: A very solid burger spot out in Williamsburg with a chilled-out vibe (I mean, these guys opened up DuMont burger, so clearly something is right!). I can’t attest to it, but the mac and cheese also looks like it’s a crowd-pleaser. Which reminds me, I should eat more mac and cheese. I mean, I love the stuff.
Be careful with some of the starters, and get a salad, for sure. I know, I know, a salad is generally a weak choice in lieu of fries, but JBE and I got a bed of fresh baby, while BG got stuck with “eh” fries.
“Hi, I’m….”: “Jesse, Jeff, Jett, Jacynth, and Jesth, ‘with a J.’”
I mean, it’s Williamsburg. You’ve got some hipsters wandering around, wearing tight flannels, skinny jeans, plastic-rimmed glasses, long-ish hair. The works. But everyone seemed pretty cool and laid-back, so I was cool with it.
I’m Here, What do I see? : The owners of this place also own the Dressler, which gets props for its décor. The atmosphere is pretty laid back, with a bit of that “this could have been picked up at a flea market” feel to it. We were a group of three and we sat out in the “garden,” which was kind of a make-shift covered outdoor space with gas heaters. I’ve never been in the summer, but I can imagine that it gets pretty packed on the prime weeknights, and I could see myself hanging out putting back a few Six Points. The heaters kept everything warm and toasty, which is prime burger-eating temperature. You can’t be wearing a sweater and expect to get all up in some ground meat.
NB: The area isn’t really the best part of Williamsburg, but it is right near the subway, which helps for non-BK residents.
The Good Stuff: Now, I usually don’t comment too much on other food items than the burgers, but since DuMont is a bona fide restaurant, and we did have a few starters, so I feel like they are within the scope of work here.
Because of the aforementioned hunger pangs, we got a few starters. We got the crispy artichokes (“crispy” is my favorite euphemism for “fried”—let’s just call a spade a spade. Nothing is crispy naturally apart from raw vegetables, and no one wants those as a starter), the smoked spare ribs, and a braised pork belly with maple fried rice. These were our starters before having burgers. To be healthy, JBE and I got salads. You should see us, we are veritable Adones.
Anyway, of the three items, the crispy artichokes were the best. They were fried perfectly, with a tangy garlic vinaigrette and freshly squeezed lemon. Although they were fried, they were light and not at all greasy, just the way they should be. And, as an added bonus, they took away all of the pieces that I can’t chew, which usually end up piled on the side of my plate like a piece of gristle from a sirloin.
The ribs were good, but nothing to write home about. They were barely worth writing about on the blog.
The pork belly was also good, but honestly was not much better than a local Chinese joint could put together for delivery. The pork was good but overly sauced, losing all of its delicate porkiness. It was (dare I say) too fatty, and was just over the top. The fried rice was tasty, but it was way too sweet. The maple flavor was over the top, and it did not really complement the pork belly for me. It was a special for the night, so I would not order it if it came back.
Now, on to the main event. I got my burger with cheddar cheese, medium rare. What arrived at the table was a perfect medium rare burger, and the cheese was melted to perfection. I don’t remember too much about the bun, but I remember that it was a brioche bun that was a little too sweet for me, but BG likes her burgers on brioche, so it worked out for her. Next to the burger were some pickled cucumbers and onions. The pickled onions were awesome and I could have eaten an entire jar of them. Apparently the onions are missing if you go to DuMont Burger, so keep that in mind.
The burger was very juicy and well-seasoned, and incredibly juicy. The patty was nice and thick, but I would have preferred to have a little bit more caramelization and crust on the outside of the patty. It’s not cooked on a flat-top, so that explains it. In spite of that, I truly enjoyed the burger. It came together as a solid package, and I would definitely go back, although I am not in any particular rush.
And next time, I won’t get as many starters. I’ll start with a clean base.
Rating (out of 7 cows): 4.5/7
DuMont
Union and Metropolitan Avenues, Williamsburg
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