[Pigging by Wilfrid: October 19, 2007]
Seeing it carried back and forth by servers when I dined there...
I had to go back and eat it.
I have never been a big fan of eating a sandwich as the entrée in a three course meal. The truffle-burger at dB Bistro Moderne is reason enough to eat there, but by all means take it as a single course for lunch or supper. There are exceptions, of course: I've eaten the Tides lobster roll between the fried oysters and the sweet course. But I wasn't going to insert a large, piggified burger and fries after the tapas and appetizers at Pamplona.
So back for lunch. And happy to report the restaurant doing a fair midweek lunch-time trade, eight or nine busy tables (but an empty bar).
Served on a brioche bun which is sturdily up to the job, the substantial patty is composed not only of ground beef, but also chorizo, and piglet. Suckling pig in fact - or cochinillo, as it appears on the menu in its individual glory - suckling pig confit with chestnuts and Swiss chard.
The chorizo, in fact, wasn't strongly in evidence, but I didn't miss it. The burger is streaked with delightful, tangy porkiness, and juicy with pork fat. I had feared some chewy bits of pig skin or nuggets of crackling, but no - although there are welcome pockets of textural variation, the patty's integrity is preserved.
As you can see it comes with standard issue salad items and a bowl of fries. The fries were freshly made, well-salted but - I'm sorry - they were floppy. We can't have floppy fries, and Alex is too good a chef to permit them. Crisp the boys up, please.
I ordered it medium-rare. The char is dark, the center really quite pink. That's how I like it; you probably need to order it medium to avoid blood.
Some may balk at the price - seventeen and change. I have seen complaints about the $13 burger at Resto (which in fact incorporates some pork fatback). What can I say? It's a very big burger, it's rich, and suckling pig doesn't come free. Alternatively, you can eat an inexpensive lunch here from the tapas menu - dishes priced between $4 and $6.
Serious swine-fans and burger-worriers do need to get this notch in their extra-large belts.
Discuss this article at MouthfulsFood.
