Tuesday Treat: "The Burger"

Tuesday. A day I usually associate with tacos, $2 drinks (thank you Kilroy's) and live music spin class (thank you LVAC). However, now that I've been made aware of a new burger creation from the folks at Public House, I have a new item to associate with Tuesdays, "The Burger."

The BF and I were invited last week to enjoy a meal at Public House, including taste testing "The Burger" which is only served on Tuesdays. We started off with two beers to wash down our dinner of champions (and Artery Cloggers Anonymous). The BF had a Lagunitas Little Sumpin' Sumpin' and I tried Goose Island's new Ten Hills Pale Ale.

To kick things off we ordered the nachos, which our server recommended since we arrived quite hungry. The portion size of the nachos was GIGANTIC. They could have easily fed the entire Chicago Blackhawks and I felt like we barely made a dent. The chips were light and crispy and the guacamole on top was super fresh.

Nachos: sea salt tortilla chips, three cheese blend, guacamole, ranchero beans, sour cream, habanero salsa, cilantro

We each got to try "The Burger," though our server brought each burger out with a different type of fries. One came with dry rubbed fries, while the other was served with garlic-parmesan fries. It worked out well because I loved the garlic-parmesan fries and the BF loved the dry-rubbed fries.

The Burger served with dry rubbed fries (front) and parmesan-garlic fries (back)

Let's break down the burger. For $10 you get a burger, fries and a PBR. Not bad if you ask me, especially in River North. The burger had two 4-ounce patties, sharp American cheese, lettuce, raw onion, tomato, pickles and "the sauce." We were unsuccessful in finding out exactly what goes into "the sauce" but we did find out that this burger is their take on a Five Guys-esque burger.

I appreciated how they used two thinly-sliced patties, rather than a huge beefy (pun intended) patty. This allowed you to really taste the toppings. The onions, lettuce and pickles were chopped and added a nice crunch. The cheese was probably the star of the burger because it was gooey and sharp and didn't taste like your standard processed Kraft Single. I couldn't really taste "the sauce" until I deconstructed one half of my burger and ate it with a knife and fork. It was definitely some sort of spicy aioli.

The Burger: 2 house-ground patties, sharp American cheese, lettuce, raw onion, tomato, pickles, and "the sauce," served with dry rubbed fries

If you're craving a more upscale and high quality take on a fast food burger, check out "The Burger" at Public House...but only on Tuesdays!

Note: my meal at Public House was complimentary, however opinions expressed here are my own.

*Update: So, apparently this burger was not intended to be Public House's take on a Five Guys burger. According to Chef Tannehill, this was the inspiration behind the burger:

"There's a lot of (delicious) burgers in our city that focus solely on big patties and an ever-changing orbit of cheese options. For this burger in particular, I really wanted something with a unique personality, a little greasy, a little less Austin Powers and more Dr.Evil. I picked a familiar cheese for the gooey factor, but intentionally didn't select anything crazy. The goal here was to show off the quality of the meat while having some fun, hence the secret sauce!"

Public House

www.publichousechicago.com

400 N. State St. 

Chicago, IL 60654

312.265.1240