Silver Fork Makes A Mean Burger

My better half and I were looking for someplace new to eat yesterday, so we stopped off for lunch at Silver Fork, a somewhat generic-looking diner in Seattle's Mt. Baker neighborhood. I'm generally skeptical about "extreme food" and the piling of gratuitous crap on top of hamburgers (foie gras? Really?), but at the same time I have to admit that such creations can be beautiful when done correctly. One of my all-time fast food favorites is The Hat's pastramiburger, a really good burger made better by the addition of pastrami, so after looking at the menu I figured I'd give the Soul Burger, a hamburger patty topped with bacon and a hotlink, its day in court. To make things even better, when I ordered the waitress asked "You want an egg on that?". Sure, why not?

Good choice. You can gauge the quality of a burger by the first bite... there's a balance between the meat and condiments that makes you say "yeah, that's a damn fine burger". Silver Fork's offering passed that test with flying colors: the patty was hot and juicy and contrasted well with the chill, crisp veg. The hot link was an interesting touch as well. They use a good quality sausage, not the kind that drips orange oil all over the place, which lent a nice spicyness to the burger. The bacon and egg, while not detracting from the burger, were mostly superfluous.

The only flaw in the execution, one which is shared by a number of burger joints, is that the bun didn't really hold up under pressure. If you're going to be putting lots of toppings, especially messy ones like a fried egg, on your burger you'll want a more durable vehicle than the standard white bun. What you really need is a larger roll which can absorb a little moisture and still hold together... maybe a toasted sourdough bun? Anyway, that's just nitpicking on my part. I have to say that the Soul Burger it a strong contender for the best burger I've had in Seattle. It's definitely on par with the offerings from places like Burgermaster or Frisko Freeze.