It turned almost into an event…going to Slater’s 50/50, that is.
I ate a small breakfast at Corner Bakery while I did some work…cinnamon roll, OJ, lots of coffee. Then I hit Total Wine for my annual “find something I can’t find easily at home” run. Kalifornia Bourbon, this time…full review will post when I get a chance. Then out to Anaheim Hills. I was close to an hour ahead of Slater’s opening time, so I searched out and found Embassy Cigars. I had been to the Brea location, but the AH store seemed to have a better selection and lower prices on certain hard-to-find items. I got a Opus X Lost City Lancero, something from MBombay, and a couple other things that are difficult to come by. Then I headed on to lunch.
SLATER’S 50/50
What a menu! Tons of choices, tons of options on every choice. Great beer selection on tap. The first secret to Slater’s 50/50 is that their burgers are half ground beef, half ground bacon. So there is that. I went with the Original, featuring 1/3 pound (weighed after cooking), pepper jack cheese, a sunny-side up egg, avocado mash. And fried pickles…called frickles here…oddly the first time I heard that term was last night while reading one of the Harry Bosch novels. Then I hear it again today.
Atmosphere at this place is definitely a step up from G Burger and is better even than Burger Parlor. It’s a real sit-down restaurant, although I am guessing I won’t actually end up spending much more money than at the other two (they’ve averaged about $18 – 20, including tip).
I got a Left Coast Voo Doo American Stout to go with my burger. 12 ounce glass was $7.00, which I found fair. The beer had a very definite sweet malty note to it, sweeter than probably any other stout I can remember having.
The burger was definitely the messiest one I’ve ever had. The waiter advised me that utensils were “allowed” but I decided to soldier on, eating a burger as God intended…with my hands. I dripped my way through 3 napkins, thanks to runny egg yolk, medium-rare burger/bacon grease, and avocado mash. And, Holy Cow! (Yes, I’ve been waiting to use that), this was possibly the best burger I’ve ever had. Every bite was a flavor cascade and journey of discovery.
Guess what? The frickles were pretty great, too. I liked them dipped in ranch better than honey-mustard, but either way they did a more-than-adequate job.
Okay, so what now? I found a burger that is a very strong contender for “the Best” and 3 more days to try to sample some more. I could call this Quest quits, but I think I will continue on. I’d almost rather just come back here 3 more times this week, though.
I need a cigar!
I topped off the experience by lighting up a Bellas Artas by A.J. Fernandez…and again, a full review will follow in the not-to0-distant future.
