3 Squares Restaurant - Maple Grove, MN - Blue River Burger

For my Dad's birthday he wanted to have a good burger so we went to 3 Squares again.  I decided to order something that was not a special (the last burger is no longer on the menu).  I went with this bad boy.  I will say you clearly will need to like Blue Cheese to get this (as it is a blue cheese burger) but if you do like blue cheese this is a great burger!  It was cooked to order and did come with a little pink as I requested.  The blue cheese did not overpower the burger taste (as many blue cheese burgers do) so that was yet another bonus to this burger.  I would definitely suggest this burger and am sure the other burgers they offer are delicious!

Price: $10.95

Burger: 9/10

Bun: 8/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Overall: 9/10

Website

Clive's Roadhouse - Blaine, MN - Cheeseburger with Provolone Cheese

This was the first time I had ever been to this location of Clive's.  I have gone to the Champlin location many times though.  I will say that once I walked in I was greeted by the staff and welcomed with open arms.  I was there to grade papers and they let me sit for 30 minutes without ordering any food yet and only a Soda.  To the burger, I let the waitress choose my cheese (she chose provolone) and went with the basic cheeseburger.  This was a very average burger if you ask me.  It was good and I would definitely order it again but I would not make a trip just to get this burger.  It had enough juiciness and definitely seemed like it was never frozen beef (which they put on their menu).  I would say it is a safe order for sure.

Price: $8.95

Burger: 7/10

Bun: 7/10

Atmosphere: 9/10

Overall: 7/10

Website

Sunshine Factory Bar & Grill - Plymouth, MN - Bacon Cheeseburger

I decided to give the Sunshine Factory another try for a couple of reasons.  1) I worked there for a summer for Sunday brunch a long time ago so I thought I would give it another chance and 2) One of my students would not let go of the fact that I did not like her favorite burger.  Well, I gave it another chance.  It looked like they had changed buns to me, this one did not look as thick and didn't have as over powering of a garlic taste to it.  BUT the bun was ridiculously hard.  It was so bad about 3 bites in I just took it off and ate the burger.  That was a great idea because the burger and the bacon together were very good.  So, the downside is the bun.  If you like hard buns this may be for you.

Price: $9.95

Burger: 8/10

Bun: 3/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Overall: 6/10

Website

Yard House - St. Louis Park, MN - Black Truffle Cheeseburger

The first thing I noticed about this burger was that the edges of the burger looked burnt.  I still am not sure if it was the tomato bacon onion jam on it or what it was but it definitely was not burnt burger.  The burger itself was cooked to a good medium pink and was juicy like a Med burger should be.  The truffle cheese was awesome and really tasty.  I would say this was overall a good burger but I think I would try something less "fancy" the next time I was there to get a true test of how their burgers match up to everyone else.  The really interesting thing about this place is that there are 3 pages in their menu of tap beers so if you are a beer connoisseur this would be a great place for you to check out!

Price: $12.95

Burger: 6/10

Bun: 7/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Overall: 6/10

Website

3 Squares Restaurant - Maple Grove, MN - Matt P's Honey Apple Burger

I have been here a couple times before but never got the burger until now.  I asked the bartender what I should order and he told me about a contest the employees had to make the best burger.  This was the winner and so I am not sure if this will be a permanent staple of the restaurant or if it is temporary.  Either way, it was fantastic.  It had roasted apples that added a bit of sweetness to the burger along with a honey aioli sauce that did the same.  The gouda cheese was a nice mixture with those as well.  The burger itself was cooked to a perfect Med and was slightly pink with just enough juiciness.  I would definitely try this again and am hoping that this is not just a temporary burger on the menu although it was definitely a more spendy burger than a lot of other places.

Price: $14

Burger: 9/10

Bun: 8/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Overall: 9/10

Website

Bumper's Restaurant and Sports Bar - Burnsville, MN - Bumpers Burger

This was a long ways to go for this burger (for me at least).  I would say it was a solid tasting burger but nothing too mind blowing.  The burger was a 7 oz Angus Burger, so it was decent sized.  The bun was really good though, I am thinking they doused it butter and garlic and then put it on the grill for a bit, very nice touch.  Unfortunately, you have to order fries separately (I do not remember if I got a discount with the burger...) which adds to the price.  I would definitely get it again if I was in the area but would most likely not drive 30 + minutes again just to have the burger.  Although it is a bigger place, the workers and customers clearly have relationships and has the feel of a small town bar.  This may have just been a lunch thing but it seemed like nearly everyone but me knew each other (but they did have some conversations with me as well).

Price: $6.79

Burger: 7/10

Bun: 8/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Overall: 7/10

Website

Blarney Irish Pub & Grill - Minneapolis (Dinkytown), MN - Garlic Bacon Gruyere

I was here before the Vikings preseason game with some friends (Laura, Alex, Sam and Emily).  The burger intrigued me from the ingredients listed (arugula lettuce, Gruyere cheese, garlic aioli) all making it seem like a classy burger hidden at a college bar.  Well the burger was tasty for sure.  It was cooked Medium (they did not ask how I wanted it but that's how I would have ordered it anyway) and had a little less juice to it then I would have liked.  The garlic definitely took over the taste of the burger a bit though.  I would say this is a solid burger to order if you are ever at Blarney but not something to make a trip just to get.  Overall a decent but not great burger.

Price: $9.75

Burger: 7/10

Bun: 7/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Overall: 7/10

Website