Month: October 2013

Have heard a lot about Koeran style fried chicken, with a few places popping up in the South Bay. The buzz has been the best one is Bonchon Chicken, which started in LA and has expanded here.  We decided to check out the Sunnyvale location

You can either do dine in or take out. The dine in area was not big, consisting of about 8 tables and a bar/counter  that could serve 30-35 people.

The place was packed on a Saturday night and there was what appeared to be a reasonable waiting list for most restaurants. What we did not realize was the wait would be a while. There were time when a couple of tables opened up, but there was a lag between when diners left and when the table was bussed and ready for the next set of diners. It seemed there was no one person tasked with ensuring the tables were turned in a proper manner (like a hostess or maitre d’ role) . I sensed the same thoughts in the other people waiting for a table. This is not to knock the servers, who were being very attentive to diners already seated, but rather a procedural or operational defect that should be looked at. Theresa said this would be a good project for an operations management class.

After a lengthy wait, we were finally seated and we quickly ordered a “large” combo of wings and drum sticks, with the two different flavors, which were soy garlic and hot garlic fried chicken with a side of the kimchee cole slaw and white rice. as an appetizer, we ordered the zucchini fries.

Unlike the wait for a table, the food arrived fairly quickly, with zucchini fries arriving less than 5 minutes after we ordered, with the rest of the food coming shortly after that.  The zucchini fries tasted exactly like fried mozzarella sticks, except with zucchini in the center.  It came with 2 dipping sauces, which were sriracha flavored and ranch, I think. nothing outstanding about it, but would go great with a pitcher or beer.

The fried chicken is unlike traditional American style fried chicken, which tends to be overly breaded or if flavored, drenched in sauce. The sauce seemed to be incorporated into the dry outer crust of the chicken.  The hot flavor was not very hot. In fact there I could not detect much difference in heat level between the two flavors.  The chicken was also not greasy on the outside, again, unlike typical American style fried chicken, which means you don’t needs stacks of napkins to keep your fingers clean.

The kimchee cole slaw was average, with nothing especially memorable, tasting like regular cole slaw with the addition of some kimchee marinade.  We like the pickled daikon more than the cole slaw, as it provide some nice acid and a tiny bit of sweetness to balance out all the fried food.

Prices are really reasonable given the amount of food you get, which explains its popularity. I would suggest doing takeout rather than dine in, which can take a while on busy nights.

It’s been a while since I had gone to The Counter, primarily because the first location was in Santana Row, which is typically super crowded during meal times.  A new one opened in Mountain View in a less busy location, so decided to hit that up with Theresa and her co-worker.

The concept:
Design your own burger, meaning you are given a list of things you can top your burger with. Each diner is given a clipboard with a check list menu. If you ever filled out a survey or insurance forms, you will be familiar with this part.  Choose a burger size, cheese, sauce, toppings, and bun. The list includes the standard pickles, sauteed onions, mustard, and cheeses, but also include some more exotic toppings like cranberries, jicama, and bean sprouts.  Bun choices are varied.  There are also “Market Selection” options, which are seasonal items in each category.

The base beef is angus beef that is hormone and antibiotic free. You can choose between 2 sizes of burger, 1/3 lb and 2/3 lb. The weight of the burger is AFTER cooking, so plan accordingly.  For those overwhelmed or rendered paralyzed from indecision, there are also several pre-defined burger creations on a separate menu to choose from.

Regardless of the sauce you choose, it is always served on the side, which i like a lot because i prefer not to have my burgers (or sandwiches for that matter) drowned in a sauce that overwhelms the other elements.  The base burger patty was cooked well and fairly juicy/moist, although I found Smashburger to be “juicier”.

Verdict:
The Counter is ideal for those looking for a fully customized burger and should satisfy a wide variety of burger lovers’ preferences.  On the spectrum of burgers,  i would slot The Counter above Smashburger and Red Robin (and certainly way above the burgers you get at larger chains like Chili’s), but a notch below a place like Holstein’s. The Counter’s pricing certainly reflect that, as does the table service dining experience. For Bay Area residents, I would suggest the Mountain View location, as you won’t have to deal with the Santana Row crowds, parking, and traffic.

Smashburger is the latest trendy fast casual burger joint serving a more “upscale”  burger. The differentiation from an In n’ Out or Five Guys is the cooking process. They roll up the burger in a ball and “sear” the outside before flattening during the cooking process, resulting (at least according to its marketing), a juicier burger. The also offer better buns and toppings than a McD’s, Burger King, or Carl’s Jr (e.g. arugula instead of iceberg lettuce, sauteed mushrooms, fancier buns).  Smashburger also tweaks their menu within each region, and being in California, the one we went to offers avacado, “truffle mayo”, and ciabatta buns as options.  Sides include shoestring fries, with “Smash Fries” which are flavored with some rosemary, sweet potato fries, onion strings, and flash fried carrot sticks and green beans.  Milkshakes come in the standard chocolate and vanilla, but also come in flavors like oreo cookie and nutter butter.

Food is made fresh to order, and if you are dining in, runners bring the food to you when it’s ready. Despite arriving a bit later in the evening on a weekday, there was still a fairly long line to order and all the seating in the store was taken. Since this is the first store in the area, I suspect furvor will die down as time passes and as other locations open up (similar to when Chick Fil-A first arrived in the Bay Area).

Theresa and I ordered the Bay Burger and the Truffle Mushroom Swiss burger, with a side a Smash Fries and a Nutter Butter shake.

Bay Burger

Truffle Mushroom Swiss

Smash Fries

 The burgers were very juicy, as advertised, making additional sauces or condiments unnecessary. Buns were nicely toasted and the ingredients worked well together. The Smash Fries were surprisingly good, with the hint of rosemary, and not overly greasy or dry. The shake was made with Haagen Daaz ice cream and was on par with other shakes at fast casual burger joints (like Red Robin) and better than Five Guys or other fast food joints.

If you are a burger person, Smashburger should be on your list to try and perhaps put in your regular rotation. The market for “upscale burger” seems to be getting more and more crowded, but I would rate Smashburger in the upper tier, mainly because the ingredients and cooking methods make a tasty juicy burger.