The Tavern, Chopinova 26, Prague 2

The Tavern, is a great find, thanks to Eddie, another Restless Hamburger eater. Right at the corner of Riegrovy sady park, a small place with limited seating, in a wonderful hole in the wall atmosphere, weekends you need to book ahead of time if you want to savor the burger fest. The Tavern only serves burgers, and a exotic selection of fancy drinks, no umbrellas, with a election Jejek Beer. The place is cozy with wooden furniture, a very friendly staff of handsome young men and great service. I once again continued on my path of the bacon cheese burger. To be noted  two excellent vegetarian burgers are on offer here too, and got a thumbs up from members of our party night.

The meat patty was cooked with a slight crispiness which I really liked, the bun was very fresh, and mayonnaise with an onion as one of the top condiments was a nice touch, the burger was fresh, tasty, and flavorful.

The burger was served in a plastic basket "diner style" and a side of three differently shaped fries was a lovely twist and cooked just dark yellow.

One thing which was odd, no napkins, the combination of the juiciness of the meat patty and creamy melted mayonnaise,  made things quite messy.... the staff responded instantly to our request for napkin help, and again giving that diner feel, the napkins where red and white square designs.

A delicious burger but the curse of the burger bun of Prague, again reared its ugly head, and the bottom of my bun broke apart, I once again resisted the knife and fork which where brought half way through, and finished with a nice little pile of diner napkins besides me.

http://www.thetavern.cz/, is a must do, the atmosphere, its location, excellent price, and a very good burger, all surrounded by a great drinks menu and beer selection. A fun place to go with the family or a night out with friends. Restless Burger gives it a 7.

John@ http://beyonddigital.org

Bohemia Bagel, Prague 1

Bohemia Bagel is a long time favorite with tourists and expats in Prague, the location off the old town square on a side street gives the place a back alley feel. The atmosphere as you walk in, walls covered with pop art, exhibition posters, and odds and end from Prague, feels like one of your favorite Univeristy bar food places, that everyone tended to hangout at.

One of their staple and popular dishes is of course the bacon cheese burger. Simple, with an excellent fresh meat patty, grilled and cooked to just right. It is served with red onions, ( I opted out from the sweet potatoes fries) and had a side of lettuce with tomatoes and cucumbers. The bun on top, had its white bread taken out to give more room for the meat patty to sit in the bun, a nice touch. The one criticism, and this is the case with many burger places in Prague, the bun on the bottom disintegrated as I was quietly working myself through the delightful combo, of bacon, melted cheese, and a perfect hamburger patty .

Something about the bun disintegrating while you are eating your burger, it in many ways kills the moment, as now you are worrying about the various layers breaking up, and falling all over your plate. This is in my opinion an unnecessary stress when eating a burger. As I believe, if you are finishing your hamburger with a knife and fork, it was not a hamburger.

That said, the desserts, cold pilsner, and wooden booths, makes it a great place to eat, chill and catch up with the friends. Restless hamburger gives Bohemia Bagel a 7. Do go to for the extensive great breakfast and brunch options and in summer the tiny garden and patio are a nice escape from the  center of Prague

Restless Burger gives it a 6

John@http://beyonddigital.org

Jama Prague, ~Czech Republic

A first guest contribution from friend Jaz.

Jama is one of the best burger places to catch a quality burger and wings in Prague. I’m not exactly sure how long its been here as to me only being here for 7 months but as soon as you taste the burger you’ll forget about how old or dusty it may be. It has a great atmosphere of older and proper English restaurant/pub. The old albums covering the wall can contribute the pub like feel. Nirvana, Kiss and many others watch over you as you chow down on some serious burgerage.  You sit in or around the bar, because the long tunnel feel to it. Now, on to the food.

They serve decent wings for starters,

The “Nuclear Wings”, (which are a less spicy buffalo wing that are good but horrible when cold so get’em while there hot)

The “BBQ Wings”, (my personal least favorite, have a sort of taste that can never decide if its spicy, sweet or bitter, although they are my moms favorite, but hey, can’t get them all right.)

The “Terriyocky Wings”, (my favorite, which are sweet and have a slight hint of spice to them. They are about as good as any other decent wing, my mom’s least favorite, so just cut her a little slack)

Finally the part we’ve all been waiting for, THE BURGER!!!!!!!

I got a bacon burger, and although I didn’t get a real picture of it, trust me its defiantly a larger serving at the very least. (I almost broke my record of not finishing a good burger J) Served on a soft classic bun with sesame seeds it is made out of absolutely stunning burger meat with the right amount of grease. After a while the bottom bun falls off or disinagrates, so look out for the dropping of a burger. Cooked to perfection the burger has a perfect amount of melted cheese and good bacon, not the kind at Mcy Dee’s but real bacon fried just right. The end result is the best burger I’ve tried in Prague so far. If you’re a committed burger addict you’ll love this place and especially the food.

By: Jaz W.

Cole's BBQ Santa Cruz

Cole's BBQ is a Santa Cruz landmark in its 30 year of service, famous for its BBQ ribs but also comes in strong as a Burger option. With also an extensive menu of a variety of BBQ meat options.

The setting has a feel of the classic drive thru dinner,  and a set of tables outside with a small space for inside seating. Definitely a place that gets a lot of take out traffic. The staff are most welcoming and the menu options are quite varied. With a focus on the Hamburger I opted for their burger selection.

My choice was the the Cheese burger 1/4 lb with all the fixings (salade, red onions, pickles and tomato). A nice touch was the option of having a variety of side dishes: potato salad, coleslaw, or fries. I went with the coleslaw. Any drink you buy they provided you with unlimited refills.
The burger was cooked just right with melted cheese and a nice touch of a little pepper and paprika sprinkled on the melted cheese, giving a little extra zest to the taste. The bun was a traditional burger bun soft, fresh and a good size which allowed the burger to sit comfortably. I like the way the fixings were on the side. Leaving them crisp and fresh and allowing you to add them at your convenience. The best way to describe the burger was it was not a gourmet fancy burger but a down home burger which had similarities to the In and Out burger but fresher. The meat was not greasy and you did not need to add ketchup or mustard, and the combination of the fixings, cheese and patty held their own in taste. The coleslaw was outstanding, not to much mayonaise and freshly cut ingredients that were crunchy and obviously had not been soaking in the sauce. A generous portion to say the least.

There is a simplicity and down to earth feel about the place and the food that I think is why it has been so successful, no frills but solid good home cooking with a focus on freshness. The friendly staff who all seem to have been there for a while, also made the experience positive.

A definite 8 from the Restless Burger.

John@ http://beyonddigital.org

Surfrider Cafe Santa Cruz California

The Surfrider Cafe is relatively new in the Santa Cruz area, previously the Pontiac Grill was located at this location on Front Street. The Surfrider atmosphere is warm, welcoming, and the decor a kaleidoscope of local events, nick knacks,  pictures, and articles.

We were greeted by a friendly waitress, with the suggestion of the avocado fries as an appetizer which was a perfect way for us to get into the mood for a hamburger.

We had a good selection and variety of options available on the menu  to us and for my daughter a vegetarian, and decent selection of alternatives for her.

The hamburger menu a colorful set of names connected to local points of interest or surf terms.

I went with the 38th Ave (Govies): grilled mushrooms, bacon, and cheddar. This was served on sour dough bun, with a side of lettuce, tomato and cucumber. No special sauce, and the patty was perfect just cooked "a point".  The meat size was perfect, the bacon was crispy but not burnt, the mushrooms grilled to perfection and gently laid onto the melted cheddar cheese. The bun was wonderful but a little too big to be able to eat this with one hand, a thinner bun would make the difference. All condiments were fresh and crisp, and I like the fact you could add these on your own or not. The sour dough bun is a great touch and compliments well the burger.  Delicious, and filling but did not blot you.

We did venture with the recommended onion rings, which complimented the burgers perfectly and could deserve their own entry and focus, outstanding. They also had a lovely selection of beers local and regional on tap..... you could spend time there.

Surfrider's was a great stop, the combination of service, atmosphere, and quality make it a classic hamburger stop for one to savor good food in an original setting.

The Restless Hamburger gives it a 8.5

John@ http://beyonddigital.org

Betty Burger Santa Cruz California

http://www.bettyburgers.com/ a local Santa Cruz, California eatery with now two locations. A popular hamburger venue that has become somewhat of a local institution and over the years has developed a very positive reputation

I went with the Basic Betty 1/3 lb. burger patty with Betty’s secret lube adding Swiss cheese, the Sautéed Onions and Mushrooms and a Basket of Sweet Potato Fries.

The burger was perfectly cooked, not rare or over done, and even though there was their secret lube, the salade and tomato were crisp and fresh, and not warm or soggy from sitting with the meat on the bun too long. The burger it felt like was made to order. Actually we made our order and then had to wait about 5-7 minutes and the burger's where brought to our table. The bun was soft but not damp, or soaked by the meat juice or Betty's secret lub. You could easily eat the bun and burger and it did not fall apart as sometime burger buns can if left sitting there too long with the meat and condiments. I like the fact that the salade, tomato felt fresh and a little cold, and the burger and cheese freshly cooked and warm. Betty's secrete lube provided the necessary extra taste in my opinion that you did not want to add any mustard or ketchup.

 1/3 lbs option was a perfect size and with the extra's had you feeling full and well feed. The staff and environment were relaxed and friendly and you could sense a general pride and love for the place by both patrons and staff.

The pricing was reasonable. A definite place to come back to more than once.

The Restless Burger gives it 8 out of 10

John@ http://beyonddigital.org