DuMont Burger

by Celia Sin-Tien Cheng
January 16, 2006

DUMONT BURGER
314 Bedford Ave
(S 1st & S 2nd Sts)
Brooklyn, NY 11211
718-384-6127

Whoa! News alert! Celia has found a burger that she loves. Yes. Loves. Do you know how many nights of sleep I have lost in the past three years, not knowing when I’d be able to find a burger I could safely say I liked in its entirety? Well, let me just say that I’ve been sleeping very well lately. My quest for good burgers will never end, but DuMont makes a perfect burger that satiates my craving. I tried the burger at both the original DuMont Restaurant (on Union Avenue, also in Brooklyn, on the L train Lorimer stop) and at DuMont Burger, and, while both are excellent, I think I would prefer to go back to DuMont Burger, a smaller space that is slightly more modern than the original. And hey, it’s next door to Bonita (click on Bonita to read the review).

DuMont Burger is a bar with a short menu, serving mostly sandwiches and salads. The burger comes in two sizes, regular or mini. The difference is in the size of the beef patty. While the mini looks very cute, for hardcore meat-lovers like myself, I would recommend going for the regular. The burger is served on a grilled brioche bun with bibb lettuce, thick-cut tomato, red onion and pickles. The onions are pickled with a deliciously subtle anise taste. The choice to use brioche bun over regular sesame bun, bibb lettuce over iceberg and pickled onions rather than raw, makes it seem a bit fancy, but it’s really not. It’s just a careful selection of higher quality staple ingredients behind this tasty combination.

I was impressed by the whole package, but the beef patty was the real winner. My medium rare request came out perfectly: pinkish red on the inside and grilled to a perfect crisp on the outside. I had heard a rumor that they soak the patty in special sauce to make it juicier. When I tried to inquire, they were a little secretive about it but told me that they do use butter to grill the burger. Whatever secret ingredient they use, it makes a TASTY burger! I added Cheddar and a side order of avocado on my burger, and I was in blissful heaven by the end — I nearly licked the plate. The sandwiches are served with a choice of salad or fries. I tried both, but I think next time I will stick to the salad — yes, a rarity for me, the absolute potato-lover, but the fries were not nearly as tasty as the burger and fell short in flavor even compared to the salad.

With DuMont Burger and Bonita only a block away from each other, I might just have to move to S 2nd Street in Williamsburg. But for now, I’ll count my blessings since I am only a 5-minute train ride away.

Also in American, Burgers, Pub, Williamsburg