[Pigging by Wilfrid: October 13, 2008]
This narrow burger joint on East 5th, more a bar than a shop, was months in the planning and building.
Which meant months of speculation by online burger mavens, a nail-biting final few weeks leading up to the opening, and then absurd crowds squeezing through the doors and wondering why it took forty minutes to get a sandwich.
You see, you can get too much attention. Immediate word of mouth mentioned over-cooked burgers, oily fries and long waits. Eater plaintively wondered why there hadn't been more reviews. Well, I sat in there late one night shortly after it opened, commiserating with the charming server about the impossibility of getting food out fast to that many people, and concluded that there was absolutely no point reviewing the place until things settled down.
Which they pretty much have.
You step off the street to find a short bar to your left, and a scatter of small, high tables to your right. The huge griddle on which the burgers are cooked - stainless steel rather than black iron - is pretty much the center-piece of the room. A griddle chef shapes patties with his hands, slaps them on the griddle, and drops baskets of fries in hot oil.
Behind the bar, a large and attractive mirror lists all kinds of food the place doesn't actually sell. Fish and chips, chili, buffalo wings. Apparently that all seemed a good idea when they were putting the mirror up, but burgers and fries (and a few other sides) is about all they have capacity for.
The basic burger is served on an Orwasher's roll - bready, chewy, with a few sesame seeds. It's not a small patty, but the bun slightly overwhelms it. I recommend the so-called Black Iron Burger, which gets you two patties, and restores the meat-to-bread balance of the sandwich. Now the regular burger is $7.75 ungarnished, so you are into double figures once you invest in the double patty and any sides.
Add cheese to the basic burger for $1,50 - over-priced, I think; but the Black Iron comes with horseradish cheddar. Pleasant enough, although I'm sure you can substitute a regular cheese if horseradish isn't your kick.
It was certainly the case that they were sending out over-cooked burgers in the early days. In an effort to keep up with demand, large numbers of patties were on the griddle at any one time, and I am hardly surprised the chef couldn't keep track of them.
Surprisingly, given the emphasis on good quality (LaFrieda) beef, the default is still medium. That's what you'll be offered. On a recent visit, though, finding the bar relatively quiet, I asked for medium-rare and certainly one of my patties came as ordered (the other just slightly over-done). They need to fine tune this, and they have a chance to do so now the crowd has thinned.
One big positive: I can't fault the fries. Skinny, crisp and suitably salted, and a large portion.
For all the machismo of the Black Iron name, and the implication of brawny ironmongers slamming beef on white-hot anvils and cooking the shit out of it, the beer selection is very fancy-schmancy.
I usually end up drinking the Radberger Pilsener, a creamy lager served in a special tubular mug with the handle in the wrong place. That's because, while I enjoy hoppy, artisanal IPAs with with some kinds of food - slow-cooked braised meats, or even hard English cheeses - with a burger I want something crisp, light and cold to cut the fat. I can't even think about pumpkin ale with a cheeseburger. Some Porkslap cans are behind the bar, for decoration I guess, but that would be a nice choice for this food.
One other downside I have to mention: the sheer smell of the place. That huge griddle in the middle, clean as it is, sends a heavy fog of beef fat into the ambient air where it drifts, hangs, then settles - in your hair and on your clothes. I know time and money was spent in the design of this place, but without major extraction it is going to be unliveably thick and smelly with grease when the cold weather comes and the doors close.
Many, many burger choices in this neighborhood now - and two years ago there really were none. Zaitzeff if you like sweet rolls; Royale if you're a fan of the smaller, juicy Corner-Bistro style; Croxley Ales for a big bar burger, fully garnished, deluxe at a fair price. Black Iron is trying real hard, but I am not sure what separates it from the crowd.
Say cheese! (The web-site isn't ready yet.)
