Is Boston's Best Burger At The Bristol Lounge?

Is this Boston's Best Cheeseburger?

In what is fast becoming a weekly Friday ritual, I met up with the burger expert himself, Richard, from Boston Burger Blog yesterday for some cheeseburgers.  This time, we went all out and right for what has been rumored to be Boston's best burger, The Bristol Burger, located at the Bristol Lounge at the Four Season's Hotel.  Best burger?  We'll see....

Hopes ran high and anticipation built as we waited for our burgers.  "What if this is it?" I excitedly asked Richard.  "What if today's the day that you eat the best burger in Boston?"  Richard, being a little more modest, responded casually with, "I don't know that it will be the best burger in Boston, but I'm sure it will be good".  If you've read Richard's blog, you know he's a tough critic and being considered "good" is a big deal.  But he was right, the burger was "good".  Except to me, it was the best cheeseburger that I've had in Boston.

The Bristol Burger - The Bristol Lounge

I won't go so far as to say it's the best cheeseburger in Boston because, well, I haven't had every cheeseburger in Boston and a statement like that just isn't realistic.  What I will say is that when this cheeseburger were presented to me, I swear I heard sweet music.  Or maybe it was angels singing or it could have been complete silence, I don't know. It all happened so fast.  One minute I was chattering away (about food I'm sure) and the next minute, there was a juicy, beefy burger stacked tall and regally poised on top of a cushy bun and sitting before me. Accompanying my cheeseburger on the glistening white square plate was a haystack of thinly-cut truffle fries.  Wanting to ease my way into the meal, I started first with the truffle fries.  As I popped one into my mouth, I chewed it slowly, letting my taste buds dissect the flavors.  They were seasoned well, crispy and salty with a hint of truffle flavor.  As I worked my way down to the bottom of the pile, the truffle flavor got deliciously more intense.

Truffle Fries - The Bristol Lounge

And then there was the cheeseburger.  I removed the bibb lettuce and slice of red onion from my burger, slathered some Dijon mustard onto one of the buns, stacked the two tomato slices and twin homemade pickle slivers and placed the bun on top.  And then I panicked.  How the heck am I going to fit this thing in my mouth?  Here I was at the Four Seasons surrounded by a classy bunch of people and I had to figure out a way of eating this mammoth creation without making a complete mess (or idiot) of myself.  I took a dainty little bite.  It was like a whoosh of perfectly charred cheeseburger flavor punctuated by the briny pickles.  I was in love at first bite and from that point on, I stopped caring where I was (or maybe I just forgot?) and I dug into that burger with such gusto, heartily enjoying every last bite of it.

Not to diminish the fantastic magnitude of this stellar burger, but I did have two small gripes.  The first being the tomato.  It is November and there's no way around, tomatoes are terrible right now.  They're mealy and flavorless and it's not anyone's fault.  That being said, I don't think tomatoes shouldn't be on any burger at this time because they just aren't at their best. (I ended up removing mine).  Secondly, there was a little too much bun for my liking and I ran into the issue of how to squish everything down to fit into my mouth without letting precious burger juices escape.  Obviously not a deal breaker, but I mean, look at the size of this thing!

That's one tall burger!

That aside, this burger was outstanding in every which way and it ousted Eastern Standard from their number one spot on my personal list of best cheeseburgers in Boston.  At $21 a pop, this certainly is a special occasion burger and although it's a hefty price tag, to me, at least you really do get what you pay for: a high quality cheeseburger experience and the first rate service of the Four Seasons.

Okay, so the big question, where should we go next week?  Any suggestions? Have you had the best burger?  Do you think you make the best burger?  (At this point in time, only Back Bay/South End restaurants, or those that aren't far from there may apply.  It's not discriminatory, it's just due to the location of my office and the fact that I get an hour for lunch :)