Time for Elder Rime-01.22.2022

It was a Saturday night and we felt like taking the night off cooking. Our son and his wife gave us a gift card for a local restaurant, a bit upscale but casual, the Elder Rime. It's housed inside of the Renaissance at Mayfair Mall shopping center. We heard some good things about the place and thought, let's go!

Super cool vibe. Especially considering it's at a super busy corner for traffic and the mall is in plain view. It's all booths unless you decide to sit at the bar but why?

We ordered drinks. I ordered the Reykr Old Fashioned. Great choice. The presentation was something else. The server brings the cocktail under a dome of smoke. The drink is perfectly mixed and has that smoked edge to it. Totally setting the scene for what's to come.

About the only offering for burgers was the E+R Burger. Described like this...wisconsin grass fed beef, Roth Butterkase (WI company), smoked onion jam, house pickle, potato bun, hand cut frites. What I know is this, when it arrived I was surprised at the bun to meat ratio. Somebody finally figured out that I like the bun but really want the burger. All the components were also in perfect ratio. The cheese was buttery and flowing out from everywhere. The beef was near perfect cooking for me. Would have liked it a bit more pink. Wonderful seasoning. Not an inexpensive burger but, presentation, flavor and balance of ingredients made it a decent value.

Rate it: 4 of 5 The patty could have been a bit more pink. Maybe they don't like to serve it that way? Maybe a bit less cheese? Really, there isn't much to pick on.

Nothing Flat About the Burger: Flat Iron Tap-Lake Geneva, WI 01.26.2022

 This past Wednesday we were headed to Geneva WI to see the Ice Castles at the Geneva National Resort. It's almost an hour drive so, we decided to grab some food in nearby Lake Geneva. Mexican? Pizza? Plenty of choices for both. What about a bar that boasts an awesome burger? Well, I guess, if I have to. 

The Flat Iron Tap showed up on the list of local places for dinner. No kidding, this is on their website header "Lake Geneva's Best Gourmet Burgers". Whoa!

I got the Cheesehead. I almost got the Plain Jayne Playne w/cheese. The idea of Gouda and Cheddar made it seem as thought they did it on purpose. Hill Valley Dairy cheddar & gouda on a toasted brioche bun – mixed greens, heirloom tomato & red onion on the side. I appreciate the tomato and onion on the side. It gives me a chance to snag a bite of the burger by itself.

The burger arrives on a piece of paper that has the look of an old time newspaper in a metal pan. Fries are covering at least half the pan/paper. Pickles are stacked on one side along with the greens and onion. The burger stands tall in the midst of all this. The bun is got a slight gloss to it, the edges are toasted nearly perfect to my tastes. It's big chunk of meat. Hand formed and the texture suggested it was probably cooked in a big iron pan. I didn't get a look at the kitchen area to verify. No fear for seasonings. The flavor was wonderful. I like a little pink, that's what I got. Juicy, flavorful.

It's been tough to find a place that can get it all together at the same time. These folks did it.

4.5 of 5 The $14 price isn't shocking especially when it's a damn good burger.