You're The Best Around - Best Burgers and Shakes (46th St.)

A free burger to the person who can tell me where this article's title comes from. Note that the free burger will cost me less than $10 and anything over $10 will come out of your pocket. You will not trick me into one of those $150 burgers, tricker.

Killing time yesterday before Atmosphere rocked Terminal 5, I drifted around and around until I stumbled upon this hole in the wall that was simply called, "Best Burgers and Shakes." There's nothing I love more than confidence, arrogance, swagger, or all of the above. You're the best? Say it. You can back it up w/facts later but don't be ashamed to be #1. Pop that collar, brush your shoulder off, do something that Jay Z would write 8 bars about and turn into a bazillion records sold for no apparent reason.

So this "Best" burger place also received an A from the Health Dept. and while I could really care less about these grades, that sign was obviously stolen from another establishment OR it was earned not based on cleanliness and perhaps based on something else - I'm thinking underhanded. Or overhanded, depending on your technique. Inside, the place is small and noticeably dirty, to the point of sticky. There's also the odor of a wet canine but that could be from the former tenant, or the cook. Who really cares? As long as it's not on the menu.

Speaking of the menu, it's downright strange. Their "double cheeseburger" is $2.25 less than the double hamburger. After finding out why the menu seems to have such odd pricing, the double cheeseburger is, in fact, 2 pieces of cheese on one slab of beef. Crafty and deceptive. Maybe the counter guy/cook is a ninja in his spare time? I did detect an accent.

Alas, food was ordered and cooked fresh. The burger was actually really good. Sure it was a frozen piece of meat but it was not cooked on such a high heat to cook unevenly and render it inedible. It was also nice and juicy, just like a medium rare burger should be. It was served with perfect grill marks on the meat and the bun which was a nice plus. The semi-toasted bun was perfectly sized for the burger along with the lettuce, tomato, and red onion that was served with it. Look at that perfectly cooked, medium rare treat with juices flowing like the river Nile.

Is it the best burger in NYC? Not quite. But it's solid and they also feature Cluck U wings and that counts for something in my book. I didn't try a shake but I'll save that for my next go-round since I'd definitely go back for more.

Rating - 4/5. I'd say it's a shade under a 4 for the burger alone but that swagger gives them a little bump up the charts.