1.28.2011

Is Boston's Best Burger at The Paramount?

For the past three weeks, Burger Friday has been planned with  The Paramount in Beacon Hill being named the destination for the week's search for the best burger in Boston.  But it seems Mother Nature had other plans as the last couple of Friday's have been saturated in snow, ice and freezing temperatures, forcing us to postpone burger day.  When finally a day with little snow arrived, I was psyched to finally get to sink my teeth into a burger!

The Paramount Burger
Anticipation ran high.  I had heard so much about The Paramount itself, as well as its burger.  It had been recommended to me and referred to me time and time again and there's been a lot of buzz about this place.  Fresh off of a couple weeks without a Burger Friday, I had high hopes for this cute little urban cafe located right on Charles Street.  

Cute little atmosphere

I wouldn't consider this burger a total wash, after all, it was cheap (clocking in at just $11 including bacon, mushroom and caramelized onions to top my burger off and a side of fries).  The size was exceptional as well, with the patty totally fitting into the arms of a soft, fresh and lightly toasted bun.  I also really enjoyed the thin pickle slices that adorned my burger and provided a subtle tang to each burger bite.

Now for the negatives.  Right off the bat, the cheese wasn't melted.  Instead, a sad and sweaty piece of yellow cheese laid on top of my little pile of mushrooms and caramelized onions.  In my book, not melted cheese is a major offense! Moving away from that, the meat itself was overcooked (even though no temperature preference was requested by the cafeteria style kitchen) and it lacked flavor, juiciness and I found it to also have an off-putting gristly texture.  In addition to that, the fries were boring and lacked crispness.

The culprit: Unmelted cheese
Maybe it's my own fault.  Maybe I expect too much but when trying to find the perfect burger in Boston, it should be just that.  Perfect.  I'm expecting cheese running down the sides of a juicy and flavorful patty that is sandwiched in between some sort of freshly bread.  While this was a decent burger for a good price, it's not something I would go out of my way to get again.  I'd stick to the breakfast menu instead as that seemed to be the most popular choice.  At 2:00 in the afternoon, pancakes and eggs of all styles were the main things coming out of kitchen.

Where to next?  Keep the recommendations coming!

Paramount on Urbanspoon

10 comments:

Stephanie @ The Cookie Battle said...

Two places I HIGHLY recommend for amazing burgers...Yardhouse and Met Bar. Both have a large selection of different burgers (Yardhouse has an extensive selection of veggie burgers and gardein burgers).

I agree with you...not melted cheese...FAIL.

Elizabeth said...

Haha, sweaty cheese indeed is not melted cheese. Quite the offense I'd say.

MichellePC said...

Your post is not making being a vegetarian easy! ;) Good luck on your quest!

Delicious Dishings said...

I don't think it's too much to expect your cheese to be melted. Isn't that burgers 101. I always have super high expectations for my meals out, and I get pretty disappointed when they don't live up to those expectations.

On a side note, those flowers they decorated with are very pretty.

Derek said...

great post. sorry about the sweaty cheese. such a bummer. My pick is actually in Cambridge. Bartley's burger still stands tall for me...

Kristen said...

dun dun dun another one bites the dust.

overcooked beef and undermelted cheese the perfect burger do not make. let the quest continue.

Recently I was impressed with Sel de la Terre's burger. I'd love to know how it stacks up to the competition.

burgerboy said...

now who's salty?

Anonymous said...

Paramount breakfast is way better

Fun and Fearless in Beantown said...

I've been going to the Paramount for eight years now and I've never once had the burger! I probably won't try it anytime soon after your review but I'm a big fan of their homefries, salads and dinner options!

Boston Food Diary said...

O-VER-RATED...please hear that in my best sports taunting voice :-) Paramount NEVER satisfies in my mind- there are always little things that are just not right there that add up to issues overall. Beyond that the "don't sit until your food is ready" thing is incredibly stressful.

What's Hot From The Small Boston Kitchen