Mel's Burger Bar

Mel's Burger Bar - Al Fresco

Oh the Upper West Side. Where do you really begin and end? I mean, by real standards and not real estate standards. I don't gauge the boundaries of this neighborhood by the insane costs of rent to live on top of people but more so on the rotten summer stank on the 1 train as you cruise up Broadway. I have a certain disdain for the waft of hot, dank air that blows into the air conditioned train cart at each passing stop and when you hit 96th, you know you're either ready to a) get off the train and just hoof it b) spray some type of deodorant to neutralize the funk in the air or c) put on a gas mask and enjoy the rest of the ride.

I had the recent pleasure of riding the 1 up to 110th to hit up Mel's, who offers a wide variety of burgers and shakes (Cookie Monster - ahem, Big Daddy's clone, PBJ, Smores, etc.), along with a handful of interesting starters (fried pickles, buffalo wings, brisket chili). The burger of choice for me was "The Original" because I kinda liked the nod on the menu that read "Thank You Louis." A nod to Louis Lunch over in New Haven that I thought warranted giving the burger a shot. For the record, I did not think it was going to replicate what LL has been doing for 115 years in any way other than slapping the burger sandwich on toast. A true LL fan like myself can also tell you that the obvious omission of the cheese spread left the sandwich lacking a little flavor (not just because they forgot my onion). Overall the burger was good. The girl was seemingly intent on giving me a medium burger, and I quote "is medium ok." To which I replied, nope. Gimme mine mooing and I'll take care of the rest.

Mel's Burger Bar - The Original

Overall the burger was good. The meat was really just meat. Black Angus? Who knows for sure. Could have been Angus MacGyver for all I know. It's a nice label but irrelevant in the scheme of things, especially if the meat lacks an overall flavor palate to make it stand out. My biggest complaint, if you can call it that, was the fact that the bread was a little too big for the burger. Not brutally big, but a little oversized. Did I enjoy this burger? Yes, I did. Was it a bit off? Yes it was.

Mel's Burger Bar Slogan - OK?

So what do we do? On the one hand, there's an extensive burger menu with some interesting and unique offering and on the other there's a lack of meat flavoring that makes the burger stand out assuming you were to eat it on a plate (but who really does that?) If you like well done fries, Mel's has exactly what you are looking for - twice fried, done nice and hard.

Rating - 3.5/5 - If ranking just my burger experience it would have been a little lower but I am giving a half point bump for the shakes (though I didn't try one they did intrigue me so I'll venture back, ideally in the Fall) and sides.

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