Beauty in the Beef

A search for the perfect tavern burger in New York City.

I don’t love all burgers, but I do love a smash burger, and for a long time, it’s been my burger of choice. Maybe it’s because it can satisfy all my cravings in just a few bites, or maybe it’s because it’s just so quick and easy to prepare. Either way, there’s something about a well-made smash that delivers a real harmony of flavour and texture. At least, these were my thoughts until I bit down into a few of NYC’s best tavern burgers on my most recent trip to the big apple.

Now, before we dive into my tavern burger excursion, I think it’s important to set the scene here and talk a little bit about the smash burger. The beauty of the smash, is all in the prep. First things first, you need a few nice cuts of that high-grade. High-grade beef, that’s well marbled with fat (at least 70:30) and you need it to be double ground i.e. put into the mincer twice. From here, just form some moderately-sized meatballs and place them onto a hot flat-top laced with fat. Press down firmly into the grill so the beef gets dispersed into a circular disc. It’s this motion that creates the strong maillard reaction and it’s what really allows the beef to develop its caramelised crust. In turn, this is what intensifies the flavour of the beef whilst also creating that signature crunchy texture. There’s a big debate about how much to smash, and in my opinion, a lot of places go wayyy too thin, but each to their own. I like to do a medium-smash so that the patties are thin enough to double-up but retain their moisture at the same time.

For the last few years smash burgers have been all the hype and new spots have been been popping up all across London, New York, Dubai etc. It was my recent trip to New York though, that really opened my eyes to one of the classics in the burger-world that I don’t think is shouted about enough. Enter, the New York-style tavern burger.

The tavern burger is the complete opposite to the smash burger. In the classic tavern burger, you essentially get a really thick beef patty (it’s like half an inch to an inch thick and blushing pink in the middle) that’s served medium-rare, often with raw onion inside and pickles lying somewhere on the plate. When made properly, the tavern burger reaches heights that the smash burger could never reach. More flavour, more craftsmanship and more indulgence.

On my recent NYC trip I went to a handful of taverns serving really comforting but elevated home-style food. Tavern burgers are a big part of these menus and although fairly big in the US, this beast of a burger isn’t quite as mainstream elsewhere. I figured I should explore the world of the tavern burger and so decided to venture to a handful of spots in the couple of days I had in the city.

So, in anticipation of my own tavern burger recipe hitting these pages very soon, I’m going to talk you through my top three tavern burgers in NYC so you can see how my own recipe developed as a result. I’ll caveat this all by saying I was only in NYC a couple days and so there are so many more I need to try.. but this was a good enough to start.

My first stop was to see a friend of mine, Chef Mike Anthony. Mike is a pretty big deal in NYC and is the man behind the institution that is the Gramercy Tavern.

Gramercy Tavern serves really, really delicious food and their tavern burger has been an iconic bar menu item for many years. Mike asked me to come in and try his burger.. and I ain’t one to turn down an invite like this. In short, it was incredible.

Now before we get into Mike’s famous tavern burger, let’s talk about the sides it’s served with. On the side, a pile of duck fat potato chips that are super dark and crispy, ultra meaty, fragrant and indulgent. I think this is genius because although they are great, they don’t steal any of the limelight from the burger itself. The richness complements the plate but the focal point is still the burger. The second thing on the plate is the creamy smoked onion aioli. A welcomed layer of richness that you can use to your liking.

As for the burger itself, it’s a hefty old thing, but with that heft comes serious flavour. Mike only uses really high-quality beef and in his burger he uses three prime cuts: chuck steak, brisket and short rib. All three of these cuts of meat are quite fatty and they all have different textures, so what he’s done is taken three of these really fatty, texturally unique cuts of beef and combined them into one mass to create the perfect balance of flavour and texture. We’re on to a good start here..

The beef is all hand-chopped and so immediately what you’ll notice is the texture of the bite is very different than that of a burger that goes through a mincer or meat grinder – it has a much more steak-house style vibe to it and it’s a coarser consistency.

Once the meat is hand chopped, Mike and his team form them into patties and then chuck them onto Gramercy’s hardwood grill so that they develop a really nice char and smokiness. The beef patties aren’t pressed into the grill here, just rested on top so that the direct heat and fire does all the work. The beef still develops a nice even sear and is well caramalised but not smashed to a crisp. Each patty is constantly flipped so that it all cooks evenly too – there’s a lot of care that goes into creating something like this!

After a few flips and a solidified sear, the cheese is added on and it’s laid to rest so that it all melts whilst the beef comes up to temp. Mike uses this cheddar cheese called Cabot Cheddar, it’s a sharp, aged cheddar that’s smooth, buttery and mature - it’s got a bit of tanginess to it and it really amplifies the flavour of the beef. Optionally, you can add bacon too – obviously I recommend that. It’s yet another element that adds depth and smokiness to the already dreamy bite, but do as you please, it would still be great without. In terms of the buns, Gramercy opts for a sesame-seeded potato bun. I’m a sucker for a soft potato bun but also love sesame seeds – so this is a dream come true for me. I love the subtle nuttiness and cloud-like texture of a potato bun. Adding all these elements together works so damn well. The buns are grilled on one side too.

It all arrives to the table on this massive plate: burger sliced in half, a mountain of duck fat crisps and a small ramekin of the smoked onion aioli. As you pull the two halves apart, the juices just start running out almost immediately. It’s an amazing sight. But when you eat it, it’s wild. It’s funky, it’s rich, it’s beefy, it’s really peppery and yeah, it’s a fantastic bite. It just tastes all very clean somehow. I suppose the high-quality ingredients here really do speak for themselves.

So overall, it’s a great burger, although I would love some pickles in there. I would also love some onions, maybe raw, possibly grilled. I also wouldn’t mind some more sauce. But as far as tavern burgers go, this was an excellent start. I highly recommend it.

It was after having this that I thought to myself, damn, I need to attempt one of these at home. Being in NYC though, I needed to try a few more for some inspo. Next stop:

Red Hook Tavern

This place was my second stop on the tavern burger hunt and ultimately my second source of inspiration for the recipe you will be seeing this Sunday. Red Hook Tavern in Brooklyn is a spot I’ve been wanting to go to for a very long time. For some reason I just hadn’t made a trip out to New York for a couple of years and so when I knew I was going to be back in town, I booked it right away. It’s not easy to get a booking here, so make sure you book in advance – I do not advise turning up on the day. Whilst they do accept walk-ins, people get there early, and the list builds up QUICK. When I arrived the woman at the door told me there was 150 people on the waitlist. Lucky I had a booking.

At Red Hook, there is a full tavern menu but the number one dish, the one every single table is ordering, is their very own tavern burger. The burger here for me has the perfect look and wow factor – a golden glistening, seeded bun, a huge mound of beef covered in fully melted yellow cheddar and a thick slab of raw onion on the bottom - all surrounded by their signature fries and a pickle. The beef patty here consists of only two cuts of beef: New York strip and hanger steak. The steak is ground once before being formed into huge 8oz patties. The patties are then covered in LOTS of coarsely ground black pepper before being carefully grilled up to temp. It’s an almost overwhelming amount of black pepper – but it gives you this really unique texture when you bite into it and there’s this undertone of heat and spice because you’re also chowing down on little pieces of black peppercorn. Some people might not like this but I thought it worked really, really well with the smokiness of the burger. Clearly everyone else in there dug it too! Every spot has their signature touch, and I think this is theirs.

It arrives to the table with these sort of golden waffle fries, well almost like a crinkle cut crisp, but a little bit thicker. These potato waffle discs were delicious. Crispy on the outside and fluffy in the middle. Also on the plate, one thick-cut spear of pickle. As with Gramercy, the beef patty here is nice and thick, super juicy and super pink in the middle. It was warmed all the way through and had juices seeping all the way into the toasted bun. The beef had a light dry-aged flavour to it but not an overwhelming or particularly funky one. It had a nice balance of flavour, though personally I think it needed a little bit more salt and maybe a little bit more dry-ageing to get a full steakhouse-style flavour profile. Cheese coverage at Red Hook was spot on. The thick slice of raw onion underneath the beef patty was really welcomed too as it was crunchy and a little bit spicy - it just worked so well with the burger, the one little slice of veg. As soon as I had this, I knew I needed a thick slab of onion in mine too.

Overall, a delicious tavern burger. My friend loved it here and thought the burger was top-tier. A sentiment we shared. For me, it was a fantastic burger, but I found the flavours from Gramercy to be superior. Red Hook however, was juicier, had better cheese coverage and that magic onion. One thing is for sure, it’s impressive how consistent and beautiful the burgers are here given the sheer amount of tables ordering them. It’s not easy achieving the perfect cook on these things.

Next up, Lord’s

This spot is run by a lovely husband and wife team from London. I actually met them at a pizza spot randomly a few days prior and they said to arrive early to secure a burger. It’s a really cool British-style pub that they’ve opened fairly recently and have created their own version of a tavern-style burger. It’s quickly taken NYC by storm and made it to many of the top burger lists. Lord’s version is super interesting because it throws some British flavours into the mix. Enter the Welsh rarebit tavern burger. They only make 12 of these per night, so it’s first come, first served and you have to get there when it opens as otherwise, they sell out. When I was in the queue everyone behind me was counting the number of people in front to try and figure out if they could secure one of these things – it’s a bit mad but worth it to get there 15-20 mins before opening. The queue wasn’t crazy tbh, so 15 mins was all that was needed.

So then, a Welsh rarebit burger – let’s get into it. As with the previous two spots, Lord’s opts for a really thick, (7oz) beef patty made from prime beef (not sure the exact cuts, I need to check - will report back), but the cheese that they use is a compound cheese made from a classic Welsh rarebit recipe (this usually starts with making a roux from flour and butter, then deglazing with an ale or Guinness, then adding in lots of sharp cheddar, Worcestershire, mustard, sea salt and pepper, cayenne etc). It’s a cheese sauce that really packs a punch and adds so much depth, tang, heat and umami. This adds an entirely new flavour profile to the burger which worked so well with the beef. It was just sensational. The beef patties here are grilled and then rested in brown butter and Worcestershire sauce - a super interesting technique that gives this thing even more depth.

Again, there was a thick slice of raw onion on the bottom here, and for the bun, they use a beautifully toasted pretzel bun – dark, golden and nicely glazed. Super unique, as nowhere else serves something as interesting as this. The result is phenomenal. My overall thoughts are that the Lord’s burger is a damn good one. That being said, it’s very rich, almost a little too rich and the cheese sort of overshadows the beef. I’m all for an indulgent cheesy bite, but there must be balance.

For my last dinner, I popped into 4 Charles Prime Rib (my second visit here) and they also do a monster burger, which some say is one of the best in NYC. Now this isn’t a tavern style burger, but since we are talking about burgers in NYC, thought I’d mention it – two 12oz beef patties, American cheese, a fried farm egg on top, two thick slabs of maple-glazed pepper bacon and a thick spear of pickle on the side. Again, good, but there is a little too much going on for me and took away from the beauty of the beef. I think they could dial this back a few notches, make something simpler and still have an amazing burger.

So, that’s it on my recent trip to NYC and the tavern-burger adventure - I found three great spots and thoroughly enjoyed them, but my search continues as I’ve just scratched the surface of this world. There are still so many other big names I want to hit next time I’m in New York, so tell me what your favourites are, and I’ll make sure I hit them! 

I’ll be posting my own tavern burger recipe on Sunday for all of you lovely paid subscribers, so stay tuned and get ready, because it’s going to be a big one. It’ll be sent straight to your inbox and be available on here at all times.