Before our trip to Greece, even though David and I were trying to get our bodies beach-ready, we decided a little caloric splurge at the Brindle Room was in order. Anyway, it one of those rare days duck confit poutine ($13) was on the dinner menu (Brindle Room tweets when poutine is available), so really, we had to go.
We haven’t had much luck with poutine in New York, and at the Brindle Room, it was no exception. The duck was decent, and I loved the addition of all the crackling bits that gushed heavenly duck grease with every bite, but the gravy was way too thin. In fact it was so thin, when the waitress brought over the poutine, through no fault of her own, some of the soupy gravy sloshed onto my toes. (I was wearing strappy sandals, not pulling a Britney Spears.)
In contrast, David’s burger ($14) — topped with caramelized onions and American cheese (other cheese options are cheddar, blue cheese, and Gruyère) — was unbelievably good. Made with “prime aged beef trimmings and deckle” from Sebastian’s, one of the partners’ steakhouse in New Jersey, the burger was full of flavor. It was like eating a juicy, perfectly cooked, aged steak in burger form. Why eat any other kind of burger? It just doesn’t make sense. David ordered the burger medium. I can only imagine how much better it would have been medium-rare. The french fries on the side could have been more crisp, but who cares when the burger is so phenomenal?
Perhaps it was just a bad night for the poutine, but I’ll stick to the burger and doughnuts next time. No need to mess with a stellar line-up.
Brindle Room
277 East 10th Street (b/n 1st Ave & Ave A; map)
212-529-9702
Tags: American, Brindle Room, burgers, Canadian, deckle, NYC, poutine
