Mississauga – Page 6 – Tasty Burgers

Peter’s on Eglinton

Published on December 16, 2012 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

peter
Location: 1035 Eglinton Avenue East, Mississauga
Website: http://www.petersoneglinton.com/

Peter’s on Eglinton kind of saddens me. Unpretentious to a fault, serving generous portions of unassuming diner fare, with clientele who look like they’ve been frequenting the place for years, it’s the kind of place that you really want to like. Sadly, I’ve been here a few times now, and I’ve yet to have a meal that was particularly good.

The varied menu ranges from breakfast fare to stuff like souvlaki and pasta to (of course) hamburgers. I ordered the standard burger, and asked for it topped with tomato, pickles, and mayo.

I was concerned that with such a variety on their menu they’d go the frozen patty route, but thankfully this is not the case.

It is, however, a meatloaf burger, and they certainly aren’t shy with the seasonings. In fact, I’d go as far as to say that it’s the meatloafiest meatloaf burger that I’ve ever had. The flavour of the beef is absolutely annihilated by all the spices and miscellanea in the burger. It also has a somewhat mushy texture — perhaps from all the stuff that’s been mixed in.

It’s actually kind of absurd how strongly-spiced this “hamburger” is, but if you’re in the mood for a meatloaf sandwich, you could do worse, I suppose.

Aside from the prodigious spicing, the grilled burger is cooked to well done but not overcooked, and it’s actually reasonably juicy. The bun is a bit too bready, but basically fine, and the toppings are okay (though the pickles are sliced a bit too thick). Like I said, as a meatloaf sandwich it’s not horrible, but as a hamburger it’s almost hilariously misguided.

The burger also comes with a generous portion of fries (which are frozen and fairly mediocre), and a baseball-sized mound of tasty, vinegary coleslaw. It’s a pretty good deal for just about ten bucks.

On The Bun

Published on October 21, 2012March 23, 2018 by Michael Nusair1 Comment

Location: 5030 Maingate Drive, Mississauga
Website: None

I actually found out about On The Bun via an email from a reader of this blog, though whether he was just an anonymous customer or the owner of the joint is a matter of some debate. It doesn’t affect my review either way, but it is clear that I wouldn’t have discovered the place if it weren’t for that email; it’s brand new, and there is nary a trace of it on the internet.

It’s an unusually large restaurant (I don’t think finding a seat will ever be an issue here), and there was only one other customer when I visited on a Saturday afternoon. Clearly, word has yet to get out.

I ordered the hamburger combo with fries and a drink, which is a pretty good deal at less than ten bucks. The restaurant has a fairly typical setup — you order your burger, wait, then pick from the toppings behind the glass. I went with tomato, pickles, and mayo, and noticing that they didn’t have any plastic knives, asked for my burger to be cut in half.

That’s when something unusual happened: the owner of the place (who was manning the register and cooking up the burgers solo), noticing me taking pictures and asking for my burger cut in half, sussed out my identity as a blogger. That was a first. Thankfully it happened after my burger had been prepared, so I don’t have to worry that he paid my burger any special attention, knowing that I’d be reviewing it (not that I’m exactly the Toronto Star, but I suppose this will be the first word on the place on the internet).

He did, however, send over an order of masala fries, but that was the extent of any special treatment that I received.

That being said, hopefully you’ll trust the impartiality of my opinion when I say that it was a solid burger. It’s nothing I’d go crazy over, but you could certainly do worse.

The burger is cooked on a griddle, and unlike another Mississauga burger joint, Burger Factory, it has a decent amount of crust. This is always a good thing.

The beef itself had a decent flavour; it’s not the beefiest hamburger you’ll ever eat, but it’s reasonably flavourful. I think it’s seasoned with something other than salt and pepper (I couldn’t put my finger on what), but it’s subtle, so it’s not a big deal.

The meat had a slightly odd texture, like it was perhaps ground too finely. However, the well done burger was also quite juicy, which I definitely appreciated, and which was enough to allow me overlook any textural nitpicks.

The bun, on the other hand, is harder to overlook: dense, over-sized, and vaguely stale, it completely threw off the beef-to-bun ratio, and was constantly threatening to overwhelm the burger. In my conversation with the owner, he mentioned that he was eyeing a new bun supplier, which is definitely a good thing.

As for the fries, they were crispy, greasy, and delicious; they actually reminded me quite a bit of chip truck fries. The masala fries, with their addictively curry-tinged seasoning, were even better.

Union Social Eatery

Published on October 7, 2012October 7, 2012 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: http://www.unionsocial.ca/
Website: 6986 Financial Drive, Unit 6, Mississauga

While trying to figure out what burger to review next, I checked out Urbanspoon’s list of the top-rated burgers in Mississauga (an unimpressive list to be sure — if you think Toronto has a lack of really good burger joints, go to Mississauga and prepare to be horrified). The number three spot on that list was Union Social Eatery, a restaurant I hadn’t heard of. Though a high Urbanspoon ranking is generally a questionable gauge of quality, I decided to check the place out.

It’s basically a family-friendly pub, with an all-over-the-place menu that ranges from pub standbys like wings and nachos to Pad Thai and swordfish steaks.

The restaurant’s family-friendly status was in full display when I went, with a birthday party full of screeching, excited kids sitting a stone’s throw away from my table. That was a bit grating, but I can hardly fault the restaurant for that.

What I can fault the place for was the glacial service. There was exactly one waitress serving the entire restaurant, which was fairly busy for a Saturday afternoon. Naturally, this resulted in service that wasn’t exactly speedy. The waitress did her best given the circumstances, but the management never should have put her in that position.

So it wasn’t the best dining experience ever. Slow service + whooping, hollering children = me contemplating suicide.

But let’s talk about the food. When the waitress was finally able to make her way to my table, I ordered the U.F.O. (Union’s Fresh Original) Burger, which is advertised as coming with “ancho BBQ sauce and all the trimmings.” Though I generally find barbecue sauce to be a little bit overwhelming for a hamburger, I decided to get the burger as is.

A little while later (okay, a long while later), the burger came. “All the trimmings” turned out to be lettuce, tomatoes, and red onion (which I removed). There was also some kind of mayo/mustard-based sauce.

I’ve gotta hand it to the place, though my expectations weren’t too high, this was actually a pretty solid burger. Let me get the bad out of the way first: the grilled burger was cooked all the way to well done and then some, hitting the upper reaches of how much you can cook a hamburger before it hits the point of no return.

Miraculously, despite the hamburger’s borderline-overcooked, fully gray interior, it still managed to be quite juicy — meaning that the beef actually had a reasonable fat content. Too-lean beef is the norm in the GTA, so for this alone I was tempted to wander back into the kitchen and shake the chef’s hand.

The loosely packed patty also had a very pleasant, mildly beefy flavour. It wasn’t the beefiest burger I’ve ever had, but considering the caliber of the last few burgers I’ve reviewed, it was practically a revelation. It also had a bit of flavour from the grill, but not so much to overwhelm the beef.

The condiments, too, were pretty good. Though I feared that the barbecue sauce would overpower the burger, it was sparingly brushed onto the patty and gave the burger a mild tang while still making sure that the beef was the star of the show. The mayo, too, added creaminess without over-asserting itself.

The lettuce and tomatoes were fine, and the fresh, buttered-and-toasted bun complimented the burger quite well.

As for the fries, they were crispy, with a fluffy interior, and were kind of perfect.

I should note that the quality of the burger and fries doesn’t necessarily translate to all of the items on the menu; my dining companion had one of the flatbreads and was underwhelmed, commenting that it tasted like something he could have thrown together at home with leftovers.

C & Dubbs

Published on June 16, 2012June 17, 2012 by Michael Nusair9 Comments

Location: 1706 Dundas Street East, Mississauga
Website: None

I knew it was a bad sign when, while taking my order, the rotund man behind the register grabbed a handful of his apron, brought it to his mouth and let loose a hacky cough. To be fair, I do not believe that this man was handling any food (though he did pour the soft drinks). Still, that’s not something that you want to see.

It was another bad sign when my dining companion asked for mayonnaise on the side and was informed that this would cost him fifty cents. Really? You’re going to charge fifty cents to pour mayonnaise into a tiny cup instead of onto a burger?

Neither of these points have much to do with the quality of the food, but they do illustrate a certain attitude that I think is reflected in the lack of care that C & Dubbs puts into their menu.

The restaurant offers a hamburger and an eight ounce homeburger. I ordered the latter item, thinking that this might just be the better of the two. I sat down, waited about five minutes for the burgers to be ready, then picked out my toppings from behind the glass. As usual, I went with pickles, tomato and mayo.

Though the burger, labeled a “homeburger,” is presumably homemade (or at least they’d like you to think that it is by sticking the word “home” in the name), it sure doesn’t taste that way. If this is a homemade burger, then they have done an absolutely superb job at mimicking the taste and texture of a frozen patty.

I strongly suspect that it is frozen.

It’s not even a particularly good frozen burger, even by the dubious standards of an industrially-produced patty. The taste is devoid of anything even remotely resembling beefiness, with a nebulous, vaguely unpleasant flavour that I’m honestly having a hard time describing. It’s not very strongly spiced, which is normally a good thing, but here it just means that there’s not much else to hide the off-putting mystery-meat flavour.

It also has that spongy, sausagey texture that you associate with frozen burgers — but worse than usual, if you can believe it. The texture is strongly analogous to that of a hot dog; in fact, the whole thing bore more than a passing resemblance to a less salty version of a hot dog, which is just as unappealing as it sounds.

Based solely on the taste and texture, this could have been emu meat and I don’t think it would have made much of a difference. Any taste or texture that this beef once had has long since been pulverized out of it.

The bun was fresh and complimented the burger well, and the toppings were fine. But even the best bun and the highest-quality toppings cannot overcome such a horrible patty.

The fries, though unsalted and a bit on the soggy side, were reasonably crispy, with a really creamy interior and a nice flavour. They were quite greasy, but not overwhelmingly so. I think it goes without saying that they were the highlight of the meal.

UPDATE: To satisfy my curiosity, I decided to call up the restaurant and find out if they actually make any of their burgers in-house. “We don’t do that,” the man replied. “They’re frozen.” Can’t say I’m surprised.

Burger Factory

Published on April 30, 2012October 29, 2012 by Michael Nusair2 Comments

Location: 5130 Dixie Road, Mississauga
Website: www.facebook.com/pages/Burger-Factory/300863443314351

It was with no small amount of anticipation that I walked through Burger Factory’s doors; it’s relatively close to where I live, an area that is definitely slim pickings in the burger department. The idea of having a great (or even just good) burger joint near my house is pretty exciting.

I walked in, and it seemed promising — the place is laid out fast-food style, with the burger cookery in full view. The burgers are made by smashing a ball of ground beef onto a griddle, a style that seems to be in vogue right now (and a style that produces a couple of my favourite burgers in the city). So I thought, hey! This is it! A good burger within minutes of my home. What could be finer?

It’s a small restaurant. There are a handful of tables, but I think the place is mostly meant to be a takeout joint.

I ordered the burger and fries combo (they also serve a Juicy Lucy — a burger with a centre of molten hot cheddar cheese. I’ll have to try that at some point). After waiting a few minutes, my burger was ready. I got it topped with tomato, pickle and Factory Sauce (described as a mayo-based sauce with ketchup), and sat down.

I took a bite of the hamburger, and a wave of sadness washed over me — the dream of having a great burger place near my house died a sad, lonely death. This is not a good burger, let alone a great one.

For one thing, the burger was cooked beyond well done, and was thus quite overcooked. And, like the burger I recently had at Burger Stomper, it had little to no crust, despite its long stay on the griddle. Again, the griddle must have not been hot enough. Seriously, this isn’t rocket science, people. It’s not too difficult to do it well. Just go to The Burger’s Priest, watch what they do, and then do it yourself until you get it right.

The beef was also far too lean, resulting in one of the drier burgers I’ve had in a while. It’s decent quality beef; though it doesn’t exactly hit you in the face with beefiness, there are no off flavours here, and it was well seasoned with salt and pepper. But man, it was dry, and without any real caramelization from the griddle, it was kind of bland.

The sesame seed bun was a disaster. Big, bready, and stale, it was dense and overwhelming and completely threw off the beef-to-bun ratio. It had been placed on the griddle, though if I hadn’t seen it I wouldn’t have believed it — it was completely untoasted and cold (and if your griddle can’t even toast a bun, then you know it’s not hot enough). The bun was also far too wide for the burger, which meant I ran out of burger long before I ran out of bun.

The fries, too, were a complete write-off. They looked golden and tasty, but they weren’t particularly crispy, and contained an unappealingly underdone centre. I ate only a handful before escorting the rest to the nearest garbage bin.