Oscar's Diner Luxembourg

When you move to a new city, in this case Luxembourg, often the best way to discover the local area, is to simply walk around the neighborhoods.  Doing this with very little plan or actual understanding where you are going or want to go. When doing this you bumped into so many little corners, shops, parks, and city neighborhoods that each bring out the charm or special atmosphere of what a city always has to offer. I had to run an errand to the post office which is not to far from the main train station of Luxembourg. In an effort not to walk back the same way I cut up a side street. I came up to some shops, eateries, specialist stores and quite a few bars and cafes. The street had a wonderful feel of people out and about, quite a few locals enjoying an afternoon coffee or drink, and with a few open fruit stalls a sense of a place alive and well.



I have over the years always enjoyed playing pool, and as I was heading by one shopfront I came up onto this place http://www.oscarsdiner.lu/

What I like about it immediately was the open windows onto the street it had from the store front. It was a hot summers day, so you could pop in through the entrance or just through the open windows from the street that came up onto tables that looked out on the street. I walked into a dinning area and in the back was a large play area full of pool tables, two snooker tables and a row of nicely set up dart boards. All around big screens showing sport. I walked in and met one of the bar tenders, Curtis, who let me look around, and shared that the best burger in town was available here. Hearing this, my curiosity peeked, quite a statement to make. He said it with such a casual and non arrogant manner, I was in my mind jotting the address and location in my head. Need to come back.

A few days later, I mentioned this to a couple of our friends, and they said Oscar's was had been a popular place with people from our new work place to come on a Friday to have a drink and catch up.  In my own mind I was thinking having a place with pool tables and claiming the best burger in town was quite a combo. I and my friend, Graeme,  made a plan for a Friday night out.  Shoot some pool and try the burger. Naturally I went with a little apprehension, and tried to have no expectations.



We ordered a couple beers on tap and then both choose the cheese burger. While talking to the bar tender we where told how the staff make all the ingredients fresh, and the meat is selected and beef ground on location. We here presented with a nice wooden board, fries in newspaper, with the lettuce, tomato, and onion on the side. There was the option for a couple other style of fries.  We stuck with the classic. The burger came with a special Portuguese style bun, from a traditional recipe. A interesting side note, there is a large vibrant Portuguese community in Luxembourg who make up one of the largest non Luxembourg groups in the country. Naturally having an influence of its own on Luxembourg culture, this seems to one of them. The bun had a more rustic look with a very very light coating of fresh floor, and a slightly harder crust on the outside, and then soft light white/ brown on the inside. The beef patty was fresh, juicy and was done medium rare. Interesting we where actually never asked how we wanted the meat done, and what was delivered was perfect. The meat was delicious, a fresh flavorful taste and enough redness to give you the full essence of the beef but cooked on the outer edges which provided a nice jacket coating, and lovely taste. The size was good, and the bun which had its on flavor. This added to the combination of the condiments and beef, a nice taste. Again one of my pet peeves is the buns that crumbles, but here having cut the bun in half the bun kept in all the ingredients, their moisture and flavor and with a more crisp outside did a nice job of acting as a trap for the meat and condiments. I must say I came in with much apprehension, and somewhat skeptical. There is no doubt that the time and culinary skill behind the meat, the grind and cooking was outstanding. I loved the idea of the Portuguese bun and the fact the meat had enough blood red freshness to bring out the full flavor and nicely complimented with the outer patty being nicely cooked.

Both bartenders were very friendly, great service, warm and up for conversation. The feel of the place had this "your local" atmosphere where you could see some patrons came here a lot, others just tourists, then your pool players, and me enjoying this new burger place. The down to earth feel, and the combination of people coming for good food, playing pool, darts or just to hang to watch one of the many big screens show sports, gave off a good positive vibe. Definitely a place I see myself coming back with friends. Restlessburger gives a 9 rating.

Snooze Luxembourg

Having just recently moved to Luxembourg I was excited to explore some the burger places, which are quite prevalent here. To be honest in the last three years in my travels around Europe there has been a huge growth of burger bars, restaurants, and bistro's. Ranging from the very fancy to the more mundane or the simple food stall. I think there is now a hipness about eating burgers and they have become quite fashionable. With this there is now a whole culture around the presentation, ingredients, recipes and settings. Interesting and good for someone writing a burger blog.

Good friends of ours Graeme and Kim introduced us to this place one evening, set in a side street of the old town of Luxembourg in the center. The place has a set of outside tables "cafe style" and full set up indoors, in a hip decor, with a bar and dark themed Snooze atmosphere. The color combination as seen on the menu. A place you have to book ahead of time, as it has become quite popular: http://city.snooze.pub/ 


The place has built itself quite a reputation in town apparently, for its burgers, choice of different fries and a good wide selection of specialty beers. These available in bottles and draft, a very good selection.

The atmosphere is comfortable, trendy, a feel of "the place to be" and very busy. The staff are friendly, helpful and good about being patient as you navigate the menu with a full array of burger options both meat and vegetarians, and a selection of  grams of meat. They also have some interesting non beef suggestions which I hear are excellent.

As always I went with the classic cheese burger and a regular size. You can have a double size, two beef patties, which one of our friends had.  Massive, huge and looks amazing but you would need to be very very very hungry. It was for me a meat overload, but great presentation. He said it was excellent.

I ordered the curly fries, you have an option of classic and sweet potato fries too. You can have with the burger some good side options.

The burger came with a very fresh sesame bun, and garnished with tomato, pickle, lettuce and cheese. Even though everything came already on the burger the lettuce stayed crisp and the tomato quite fresh. The cheese freshly melted and done that it was not dripping all over. The beef patty was medium rare, which I had asked for, was juicy and freshly cooked upon being served. The meat was flavorful, a fresh taste no meat blend, pure beef.

The size of the meat patty was a good and the combination of ingredients, blended nicely together. The curly fries where excellent not greasy and had a little darker brown tinge that gave them a nice crispness.

The atmosphere was bustling, and the service good, and even though the place was very busy we did not need to wait to long, and with a party of 7 things came together close to each other, which was nice.

I enjoyed the burger, had a great evening with friends and some good beers. But somehow maybe a bit of the hype or just me, it was not amazing burger. Do not get me wrong, excellent presentation, and very good ingredients. I think with the reputation I was expecting something to hit me in the face, and it did not. I will go back and with the great selection of beers and some other interesting options on the menu would branch out. A very good burger and Restlessburger gives it an 8. Definitely a must go place for others to explore if in town. Then try and convince me otherwise on the rating.

Jack's Santa Cruz, California

Jack's ( no website just the location) with a long tradition of being Santa Cruz classic, and something the locals have counted on for numerous years in different locations. Currently just sitting on 202 Lincoln St. Santa Cruz downtown. With a small interior and a nice outside sitting area. Jack's  has the looks of a fast food eatery with the take out option, and order window both on the outside and inside. The menu has a nice variety of options, not only burgers but also an excellent selection of sandwiches and sides. With such a local strong tradition, I was excited to try the burger out and see what makes locals all so excited about this place, and why they keep coming back year after year. The key word is simple, to the point, very unpretentious and a friendly and efficient wait staff, that take care of you at the counter only.

Jacks is all about burgers, no frills, and a place people come to have a burger, eat, and not hang too long. The burger is made fresh on order, from pre made beef patty, served with fries and a couple options of cheese burger, and some variations. Every thing served in a paper glove like dish.

The burger patty is always hot, and feel freshly cooked, it is no frills but has a fresh beef taste with some juice and a little flavor of oil or butter giving a little extra to the meat taste. The bun hugs the meat patty nicely making it a pocket, and the lettuce and onions and tomato even though put on as it is made feel very fresh and crisp. The fries are good, nothing out of this world but decent and tasty and a nice portion.

The burger I had which was a cheese burger was tasty, loved the combination of the melted cheese fresh on the meat patty and then the crispy crunch of the lettuce and tomato. The price is excellent, the service no frills quick and to the point. They have been doing this for years, and with the always busy crowd, you know they produce a burger that people love coming back to. It is important to understand the place is about feeding loyal customers year after year, being simple to the point, and very consistent which they have been doing for years, ad local eatery that has a strong fan base, nothing nice that the simple philosophy of making a good down home burger with no agenda  Restless burger rating of 8.5

Grand Lux Aventura Miami Florida

It has been actually a couple years since writing on the Restless Hamburger, life keeps you busy, and somehow just did not get to writing any reviews. I have not been avoiding burgers at all, and have found a few great new places, and returned to many old favorites. It was recently during a work visit to Miami that I got inspired again, and share this new entry . Motivated, and also excited about some new discoveries that always make the meal a treat.

Aventura Mall might not seem the place to get a burger, but as with many shopping malls in the United States tied to the shops are often a rich selection of places to eat, food courts and stands. Every year when I go and teach at the Principal Training Center, we do an evening with participants and go to the http://www.grandluxcafe.com/menu/burgers-and-sandwiches which has a huge selection of foods, bar type for all budgets and tastes. In many ways the cater the classic dinner like dishes, and provide a lot of mix options, blending Tex-Mex, Italian, and classic American dishes.

They have a good selection of burgers and sandwiches, and I opted for the DeLux Drive-In Burger which comes with a chargrilled beef, with Lettuce, Tomato, Onion, Pickles and Mayonnaise.

The burger is a decent size and comes with a classic soft burger bun, and a side of lettuce, tomato and pickle, and the option of adding extra condiments: cheese, avocado, bacon, etc... the portions are large and actually I took the regular size and it felt big. Note the picture is not mine which I usually take, a stock photo as I forgot to take a picture, I did not have onions rings on the burger.
The beef patty was well cooked, and a lot of flavor, and also moist and the grilled  taste that gave it a freshness. I added bacon and cheese, and avoided the mayonnaise sauce or the house special. I liked having the side of lettuce and tomato on the side, giving me the option to added it. I like having it fresh and crisp and always appreciate when it is available and set on the side of the order. The buns was a classic soft bun, nothing special actually a little bland and not much flavor or taste, very plain. With this came a side of French Fries. The fries where large, and somewhat bland in flavor definitely frozen. The really felt like filler and nothing much to get excited about.

The bun quickly got soggy and start falling apart as I was eating the burger, and as folks know, one of my big complaints about burgers is a crumbling bun. They should not disintegrate as you are eating them. I had cut the burger in half to manage this. The chargrilled taste of the patty was not to overwhelming, and added that grilled taste. As I was eating the burger it got messier and messier, and made the whole experience very napkin centric, this to me I find annoying. I feel eating a burger should not be a messy experience, and the taste and flavor should be the focus.

I give the burger a Restless burger rating of 6.5, not because of the meat, but just the general messiness of the eating experience, the bland bun and fries created a mundane experience.

The atmosphere of the place is quite busy, feels like a chain, somewhat impersonal, but great service, and a lot of options if you are not a burger eater. Would I go back, yes, but might try something non burger like.

8610 am see, Uster

A lake side eatery on the Greifensee in the city of Uster. 8610 am See is located right by a jetty on the lake at the crossing of a bike, hiking and roller blade path, on the lake side.  The organization 8610 am See sponsors and supports the local community of people with disabilities. They provide a series of services with education, job training, work opportunities and housing support services. This food stall is tied to a restaurant which is fancier and is for sit-down meals. The food stall attached serves two things, a burger and a sausage, which are made to order right in front of you, in addition there are quite a few snacks, sweet condiments, drinks and beers. The system is simple you go to the main counter make your order, and then walk out to the patio give your ticket and your order is made on the spot. On a sunny day, there can be a decent line and as only one person mans the station it can take sometime.  Remarkably they are quick, and the fresh taste and seeing your own burger made right in front of you gives a nice touch to the experience,

The burger is a fresh patty of locally produced beef from the region, and grilled on a gas grill. The bun is lightly grilled and the condiments are fresh onions, lettuce, tomato and pickle with the option of mayo, mustard, and ketch up. You tell what you want  on the burger and how much, this is then put in a paper food pocket and you are ready to go. The grilled taste is wonderful, and being so freshly made the simplicity of the process gives this a positive atmosphere. I like the grilled bun touch which gives a light crispy taste to the burger and with the combination of the onions, lettuce, tomato and pickle these compliment nicely the whole fresh flavor and taste.  The patty is grilled and not overdone but enough juice to give it a real flavor of being fresh. The simplicity, informalness, and being right there as it gets made for you, adds to the atmosphere. The staff are always patient, efficient and helpful considering how busy it gets. The added bonus is the setting right on the Greifensee, and on a sunny day a good place to take a break from the endless cycling options around the lake and the villages in the region. Restlessburger gives 8610 am see a 9! Simple, to the point, no frills, and what it should be tasty, juicy, and complimented with the counter taste of fresh condiments. A place which I return to on a regular basis.

Gaul Burger Harbrucken Zurich

http://www.zumgaul.ch/  Geroldstrasse 35, 8005 Zürich is tucked under a highway overpass and one of Zurich's main train stations Hardbrücke. With an outside patio, bar and  green awning for when it rains,  The location is right in the criss cross of the bussel of cars, pedestrians, cyclists and train traffic. The setting is quite relaxing and an added bonus is the very friendly staff . There is a good selection of beers. It is self serve at the bar and the menu is small with a focus on local and regional product and an emphasis on bio meats. 

 Their burger served on a sesame bun, with a generous bio swiss ground beef patty. This complemented by a bed of shredded red cabbage, lettuce, spinach leaves, and onion and tomato with a paprika mayo/mustard. Served with a side of shredded red cabbage, carrots, red radish and excellent fries with paprika salt instead of salt. The burger was freshly cooked on order, and the 20 minute wait was well worth it. Sitting in the urban environment, the burger tasted very fresh, and the shredded red cabbage gave a nice crunch taste to the condiments. The sauce was a little to sweet for my own taste, but did not spoil the experience or drown itself over everything else. The portion was decent. The bun did a good job of keeping everything in as the condiments where served fresh so the bun did not get soggy. Throughout the meal everything complimented the other, be it the crispy vegetables or juicy fresh cut tomato. The fries were excellent.

Definitely a great spot for vibe, food, and price. The service and sitting outside in a sheltered little haven, surrounded by urban sounds, brought a lot of atmosphere to the meal and it was fun just hanging there for a couple hours.  The pricing is quite reasonable. Restless burger gives the Zum Gaul bio burger an 8.5. A unique place, unexpected find, and a must go back to. Well worth the visit on a sunny afternoon when you have a couple hours to chill.

The Korner Burger Zurich

The Korner http://www.gourmetburger.ch/ is one of Zurich well regarded Burger Bars and has an outstanding set of beers to pick from. The burger menu is rich in variety and they also have a few option with their fries.
The Burger choices are varied with options of Lamb, Chicken and then a wide variety of extras and combinations. There is of course a vegetarian option.

The burger is served with a nice size sesame bun and I opted for the more traditional burger with the condiments of salad, tomato, pickle and Cheddar cheese. The burger patty was a very generous size and cooked fresh with a nice smokey flavor to it. The one thing that did not rate well for me, was the consistency of the Burger patty, which was beef but with a mix of some pork meat which diluted the beefiness of the taste and gave it more a sausage taste then that pure beef flavor. To me it honestly did not feel like a burger but more that mixed meat patty taste which is nice, but not a burger taste in my opinion. This was disappointing. It is a shame as the atmosphere, decor and service are wonderful. The selection of beers is impressive and the choices of special sauces available was nice, and the straw fries we had were excellent. This issue with the patty is something that I am discovering here in Switzerland that it seems to be the style of the meat patty a more mix cut of ground beef than one single selection.... will have to now try some new locations and see if this is the case or just a one off.
Restless Hamburger gives the Korner a 6 for their Burger.