In case it wasn’t already obvious, I LOVE burgers. Well, I love food in general, but burgers are one of several food items that I absolutely could never do without. So, when a friend pointed out that USA Today named a local burger joint one of the Top 25 Burgers in the country, I jumped at the chance to try a new burger place.
Flip Burger Bar is located in North Miami. It occupies a small corner space in a small strip that can be easily missed if you are not looking for it. Considering I have driven by there in the past and never noticed it, I can see how it could be overlooked. The restaurant itself is TINY. Not counting the bar, the restaurant seats about 24. My group of 10 had to strategically take over tables as other parties got up and left. Thankfully, this didn’t take very long.
I started off with the Homemade Mac and Cheese. It arrived at the table within a reasonable time frame, as it is made to order. It lacked bread crumbs, which is standard in many mac and cheese renditions. Since I am not a die-hard bread crumb aficionado, this didn’t bother me. At the first bite, I noticed that the pasta was a little overcooked. Since this was an extra-creamy mac and cheese, I would have preferred that the pasta be a little more firm to contrast the creaminess of the dish. It almost had the consistency of a very thick soup. The four cheeses used were cheddar, provolone, swiss, and parmesean. I was pleasantly surprised at the lack of tang of sharpness in the cheeses. It was creamy, mild, and delicious. If you’re the kind that likes to eat your mac and cheese with a spoon, then this one’s for you.
Then, came the burger…
That’s right. Take a moment and take in the sight. I’ll wait…
This was the Cheesy Bacon Burger. It had cheddar cheese, bacon, and fried onion strings. I added a side of BBQ sauce, opted for seasoned fries, and took a side of nacho cheese sauce to dip the fries in. I dipped a fry and took a bite, then promptly forgot about the burger until about a third of the fries were gone. They were amazing. Crispy on the outside, soft and light on the inside. The seasoning was not overpowering or too spicy. The burger, while overcooked (my Medium came out to be somewhere between Medium-Well and Well), had great flavor. The BBQ sauce had a slight hint of sweet, but not so much that you feel like you’re dumping a pile of brown sugar on your burger. For my taste, the bacon was overdone. I prefer my bacon with crisp edges and chewy middles. This bacon was crispy to the point that it practically disintegrated at every bite. Because of this, I can’t really report on the flavor of the bacon itself. I didn’t ask what bread they use, but I should have. It, too, was delicious. Soft enough to give in to the firm pressure applied to hold burger + condiments in place, but not so soft that it falls apart.
Overall, I would say Flip Burger Bar was a winner. While they did overcook my patty, I will write it off as a one-time mistake, as the rest of my group raved about how perfectly theirs were cooked. I would probably order the mac and cheese again, but would also like to try their other starters. I will definitely be going back, and will update on the state of my patty the next time.
More info on Flip Burger Bar can be found at http://flipburgerbar.com/.
***UPDATE 4/29/2013
So, I returned to Flip Burger Bar over the weekend. I ordered the same thing, but skipped the seasoned fries and opted for plain fries instead. I’ve gotta say, the plain fries were awesome! A bit salty, but us latinos love our salt. I ordered a side of cheese sauce, and they were to die for! Plus, incredibly crispy! Sadly, the burger was overcooked again. This time, the meat was kind of dry and crumbly. It was a big disappointment. I will give them one more chance, because their fries are great. Very few places that have great burgers have the fries to go with it. If they can get my patty right, they will win a customer for life.
***UPDATE 3/27/2017
Flip Burger Bar is now called Vega’s Burger Bar, but is still in the same location.