A few days ago, I went to Burger Company, a upbeat diner located in Scout Reyes, Quezon City. The place has been there for quite some time now. According to the owners, they started the venture in 2012 as a quaint and simple restaurant. They diversified into a boardgame place a few months after; and their clientele also grew. From hungry diners looking for excellent burgers, customers soon flocked to their place looking for the newest board games to buy or play. This was my first time in a place that has garnered a lot of accolades for its excellent food, particularly burgers and sides.
The owner truly had a passion for cooking the best dishes his skills can conjure. He took pride in personally sampling his creations and making innovative ones that would surely catch the taste of even the most discriminating foodie. The creations of his restaurant originally came from a previous business venture in Quezon City. After it ended, he immediately imported it into Burger Company's selection.
I was able to sample a few of their long-time favorites plus a few new dishes. Two of these are Japanese themed while the other is a Mexican variant.
According to the owner, the Hambagu Kare and the Menchi Katsu Kare were the product of his fruitful Japan trip. He explored the places in Tokyo which had the best curry dishes. He also went from store to store to make a curry formulation which would be highly palatable and enjoyable for customers. Finally, he dreamt of a secret recipe for these curry dishes using his experience and knowledge.
On the other hand, the Burgerrito was conceived out of his supplier's request. The dish was made one week before the deadline of a Mexican month event organized by Potatoes U.S.A. Using only the finest potatoes coming from the latter, the owner combined his love for burgers and Mexican food and made this.
The restaurant's menu is composed mainly of different burgers, all made from high quality U.S.D.A. Angus Beef and other fresh ingredients. The menu prices were very reasonable given the quality and quantity of the food served. I must say, though, that the menu is for those who crave high-fat meaty goodness. Hence, the selections are geared towards the tastes and preferences of a younger generation.
The restaurant also has an impressive array of board games, ranging from casual and easy-to-play ones up to hardcore titles for the gaming fanatic. With more than 100 boardgames in all, a diner will surely not run out of games to play with during his stay. Some of my favorites, inlcuding Politricks, Ticket to Ride, and Avalon were in this extensive collection.
The gamer/diner can also indulge himself in the Gamer's Platter while being busy with his favorite games. At Php 450, the meal, consisting mostly of finger food, included Bacon Dippers, Cheese Bombs, Chicken, Firecrackers, and Buffalo Wings.
The restaurant had simple yet colorful interiors. Apart from being eye-catching, the interiors were also well lit. The table sizes were just right for food and board game placements at the same time.
The Gamer's Platter in all its fatty glory was pretty well-stocked. The Bacon Dippers were greased with a super secret Chinese-style batter that prevent the juicy strips from shrinking. Every bite radiated with crispiness and the familiar fatty taste. On the other hand, the Firecrackers were coated in an anonymous breading (made from a popular junk food) that gave it its crispy outer core. The insides were pretty tender and juicy without being too oily. The cheese bombs had a thick Bechamel sauce for its interior and a cheese cube for its core. The breading was pretty hot and soft. Perfect for those who like the food ultimately cheesy. The 4 piece Buffalo wings, while a bit smaller than its competitors, were cooked in a spicy barbecue sauce. This was truly perfect for a spice lover like me.
The Gamer's platter came in 3 distinctive sauces. The first is the cheese dip for the Bacon dippers. This was a true testament to the age old adage that bacon goes well with anything cheesy. The second is the garlic and sour cream sauce for the wings and the firecrackers. The third is the spicy aioli sauce for the cheese bombs. The spiciness of the latter balanced out the cheesiness of the bombs.
Another shot of the Gamer's Platter. the Firecrackers also pair well with a dab of Heinz Ketchup.
The Choc-nut milkshake was an in-house specialty that is brimming with a thick ice-cream and milk cocktail that had bits of whole chocnut in the lower parts of the drink. I must say that I didn't have a fond appreciation for choc-nut but the vanilla flavored concoction changed my opinion. The sweet and thick consistency of the drink coupled with the bitter, nutty flavor of the choc-nut blended well and made me finish the whole glass with ease. The price was pretty reasonable at Php 171, given its top-notch quality.
The gamer's platter, now in an avant-garde shot.
The Bacon Dippers, served as a stand-alone dish, cost Php 193 for share and Php 284 for party size. This was the same variant served with in the Gamer's platter, albeit in longer cuts and quantities, plus an excellent amount of the cheese sauce. It still had the same goodness and familiarity one would expect from bacon, plus the fact that the size didn't shrink due to the special Chinese-style batter.
Ah the Burgerrito, in its full glory, was priced at Php 310. It was composed of their signature Angus beef patty, Nacho hash, flour tortilla, the secret picante sauce, cheese, chopped lettuce, pico de gallo, sour cream, and a lime wedge for garnish. I guarantee that a single person can rarely finish this due to the overload of carbs and meat, which were of the best mixes and quality. Every bite is reminiscent of an excellent Mexican burrito even with innovative ingredients such as Nacho hash and burger patties in lieu of chopped beef cubes. The amazing combination of a burger and a burrito was truly made apparent in every bite. The tangy, spicy, and meaty flavors brought about by the variegated mix of ingredients was a truly filling and satisfying experience.
We ended the night with a sampling of the Hambagu Kare and the Menchi Katsu Kare. The Menchi Katsu Kare, pictured here, was a katsu style beef patty fried to perfection in a special breading. The Katsu was of a larger size than the Hambagu due to the fact that the fats were trapped inside the crispy breading.
The Hambagu Kare was an angus beef patty grilled to perfection. It was filled with the owner's curry sauce, an eclectic mix of special spices and herbs for that top-notch, yet restrained flavor. According to him, the sauce was based out of beef stock, which definitely gave the curry a brown, almost gravy-like color. The curry was a cocktail made out of more than 5 spices. Furthermore, the sauce was unlike Philippine style curry which was more of the Indian variant.
I must say that the owner's meticulous planning and vivid dreaming have surely given fruit to a meal that perfectly replicated the trademark Japanese dish, while at the same time created to his own unique concoction that will surely be loved by diners.
The Curry dishes may also be paired with a generous siding of buttered corn and/or a sumptuous cheese filling. The Php 235 and Php 249 price tags were a steal since other Japanese curry places in Manila offer curry dishes at twice the price.
Burger Company surely has cooked up something new once again. Their fresh ideas for preparing burgers will surely give foodies like me something good to look forward to.
Burger Company is located at Scout Reyes Corner Mother Ignacia Avenue, Paligsahan, Quezon City 1103. It is open from 11 AM to 10 PM, Monday to Sunday.
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