Calgarylicious: Tommy Burger & Bar

This is a small bar & restaurant off of Macleod Trail in Calgary with several flat screen TVs above its stylish-lit bar to keep sports fans entertained. We arrived there famished, so we dove straight into the menu drooling over all the different burger options. They offer sandwiches and other fares too, but we came here to get a taste of their specialty gourmet burgers, which were about $12.75 each, topped with half a pickle and accompanied by a salad, soup, or generous serving of fries. Bun choices include multigrain and sesame.

You can create your own burger too for $10.50 with tomatoe, lettuce, red onions, chipotle ketchup and tommy burger sauce. Adding an extra topping brings the total to $11.50, and one more for $12.50....you get the idea. Toppings are categorized as dairy (camembert, blue cheese, swiss, etc.), Veggies (sprouts, avocado, etc), Meat (extra patty, bacon, etc).

My two topping customized burger came with a half inch thick patty topped with melted smoked Gouda and lots of sauteed mushrooms, sandwiched in a multigrain bun. Upon seeing the burger tower, my angry, growling stomach smiled.

Initially I couldn't taste anything other than the juicy patty because the chipotle ketchup (tasted like ketchup mixed with smoked bbq sauce) monopolized my tastebuds. After I scraped off a thick layer of the sauce, I could appreciate the slight hint of smoked gouda playing off of the meaty mushrooms, with the crunchy lettuce and tomato to add texture and a sense of freshness to the bite. The salad was served in a separate bowl in a very satisfying portion, considering it's only a side dish.

Edwin had the Tommy Burger with blue cheese, fried onions. and bacon. It had a much stronger taste than mine, half of it was because of the generous layer of blue cheese that was squeezed in there.

As with any burger joint, they also served milkshakes but we weren't in the mood for it at that time.

Overall, I felt that he burgers were slightly overpriced, but the ingredients were fresh, portions are generous and taste is acceptable. However, a much better deal can be found at Moose McGuire in the North end of the city, where the Coyote Burger, a delicious patty with Cheddar cheese and thick layer of guacamole, served with your choice of salad, fries, soup or rice for only $7.50. (I would've blogged about this but the camera was out of battery...).