Sonoma Chicken Coop

OK, once again…ordering a burger at a place with chicken in the name could be the first sign of danger.

And this time that line of thinking is correct.

There are several Sonoma Chicken Coops in the San Jose area, this review is based on the Campbell location.  However, as their food is very consistent across locations, it is probably pretty applicable to all locations.

I’ve eaten at the Coop numerous times, and always had a good time and a good meal.  Plus it’s locally owned and the owners like to support groups like Team In Training and such (so bonus points!)

My expectations for this burger were somewhat high, based on the other meals that I’ve had at the Sonoma Chicken Coop.  The only burger on the menu is a double burger, and it’s price very reasonably and includes fries…I’m thinking  “SCORE!!!!!!!!!!!”

TASTE – Surprisingly bad.  This is quite possibly the worst burger that I’ve ever paid more than 2 dollars for.  I was so surprised that this was so bad, that I actually tried it on a second visit, and it was just as bad.  The meat patty is fried and flavorless…it’s just a lump of warm, brown, greasy, flavorless mush.   The cheese is undecipherable to taste beyond that patty mess.  The bun is fine, and the veggie are served on the side and are quite fresh.  It’s a fairly big burger, which would be great if it were good, but a large of amount of a bad thing doesn’t make a bad thing good.  Score: 17

SELECTION – This place has literally everything…except more than one burger to choose from….and except for a good burger.   Score:10

CREATIVITY/X-FACTOR – The creativity of this place as a whole is “off the charts good”, but the only one burger they have is pretty boring.  It’s a fun noisy place that kids love…so there are some x-factor points there (and for the aforementioned community involvement).  Score:8

RESTAURANT – The place is huge and clean and modern, and has its own brewpub!  The folks who run this place do a very good job of keeping things moving along smoothly.  Clean bathrooms, good parking, etc. Score: 9

EXTRAS/FRESHNESS/ETC – The size of the burger is a bonus, the kids menu is good, the other menu items are good, the fries are average….. Score:4

SERVICE – The staff is excellent.  There is often a large line and it moves quickly.  The folks who work there are very helpful, patient and friendly.  Score:4 (it’s not table service, so I couldn’t give them a 5 for ordering at a counter)

OVERALL SCORE   52 out of 100.

Mike’s Pizza

Perhaps getting a burger at a place named “Mikes Pizza” is asking for trouble…along the lines of one of those unwritten rules of life which is: never order the fish at a steakhouse.

Located in an out of the way industrial area of San Jose (yet very convenient to both 880 and 101), Mike’s Pizza is probably a place that you haven’t heard of before.

I wouldn’t go so as far as to call it a “hidden gem of Silicon Valley”, but it’s in that direction.

If I could sum up Mike’s Pizza in one word, it would be “Good”.  It’s not great, it’s not very good, it’s not average, it’s not above average…it’s good.  It’s the kid who gets straight B’s on his report card, it’s the Oakland A’s who are good enough to make the playoffs, but not good enough to win in the playoffs, etc, etc.

I’ve visited Mike’s Pizza several times before, and always had the cheesesteak…(which is also “good”).  They bill themselves as the “house  famous philly cheesesteak”.  Someone in marketing really needs to help them with a better tagline.  As a side note, if you want a cheesesteak in San Jose, Amato’s on Saratoga Ave is the place to go.

TASTE – Good.  A nice patty, a quailty bun, fresh veggies, and a nice sauce.  Really this is the baseline for what a “good burger” is.  It is not exceptional in area, and it doesn’t dissappoint in any area.   Except the fries….the fries are mediocre at best.  Score: 47

SELECTION – The have the “typcial” selection of burgers, and quite a few sandwiches, pizzas, a full bar, etc.  Overall a pretty decent selection, much more than you’d expect given the name of the of the place.  Score: 8

CREATIVITY/X-FACTOR – Hmm, it’s not creative, but it’s not “uncreative” either.  It’s just the baseline of ‘if you are more creative than Mike’s, I’ll call you creative…and if you’re less creative than Mike’s, I’ll call you boring.  Score:7

RESTAURANT – The place is located in an industrial park area.  It doesn’t look like much on the inside or the outside.  It has a bar that I’ve heard gets busy in the afternoons (I’ve only been there at lunch time, so far).  The place overall looks more like a tavern with restaurnt bench seats installed…it’s sort of mismatched that way.  Score:6

EXTRAS/FRESHNESS/ETC – Food is good and fresh, and the prices are normal (or less).  The fries are mediocre.  Also, in place that does have good food, someone should be supplying better mustard than just French’s. Score:4

SERVICE – The is no longer a “Mike”, the place is owned and operated by Anil, who is a very nice guy.  The staff is good at what they do.  But it’s not really a “service focused” place, and that’s okay with me. Score:4

OVERALL SCORE   76 out of 100.

Dairy Belle

Dairy Belle’s have been around for seemingly forever…and they look like they’ve never seen an update/remodel/paint job in that time.

I happened to be in East San Jose at the bank, at lunch time, and there was a Dairy Belle that was cross-corner from there.  It looked like a total dive.  But in the interest of science, I ventured over there.

The place seriously looks like it is straight out of 1978.  When was the last time that you saw a menu board with those “press in letters/numbers”, I don’t know the proper name for them, but they just bring me back to my childhood.

My expectations were low.  Very low.  I went pretty basic, cheeseburger combo meal (when in doubt go with what works).

TASTE – Surprisingly good.  The relish sauce that they use is very good, and very much a throw back to the 70s (and earlier).  I’m sure that it was loaded with more fat calories than you could count.  The cheese and meat were very good, the bun was slightly above average.  A nice melding of flavors.  The meat was fried, not grilled, which has it’s own set of pros and cons, I prefer grilled.   It’s a fairly big burger, and quite a messy one.  Score: 47

SELECTION – Hot dogs, hamburgers, corn dogs, basically everything that you could get at the fair, or a little league game (I haven’t been to a fair or a little league game in 20-some years, so that is more on my throw back memories of the late 70’s/early 80s).  Score:7

CREATIVITY/X-FACTOR – It probably couldn’t be less creative.  But in a retro way of “keeping it real”, they do that very well.  Score:7

RESTAURANT – The place is small, and dirty and look like nothing has really been cleaned too well…at least that’s the first impression.  The kitchen area actually looks to be clean.  Based on the exterior, I wouldn’t even venture near the bathroom. Score:2

EXTRAS/FRESHNESS/ETC – Food is surprisingly good and fresh, and the prices are normal (or less).  I don’t like having to pay a quarter for a refill. Score:4

SERVICE – The staff is friendly and courteous…but is not really involved…it’s counter service and they call your number…no “have a nice day, Mr. Hamburgler”, and you have to ask for napkins if you want more than the one that they give you.  Score: 3

OVERALL SCORE   70 out of 100.

Mc Donalds

You’ve all been there.

You all have your own opinions about McDonalds.

Do I really need to rate it?   Well they did originate the “hamburgler” name.  And the McDonalds on N First Street is near my office, so it’s convenient.  But actually this review is based on the location near Lawerence and Homestead.

TASTE – Dissappointing.  I’ve eaten a McDonalds nearly all of my life.  I know that consistency is something that they strive for.  Maybe it’s this location, maybe I’ve just had too many better burgers…but really this burger was in a word “bland”.   Really it’s hard to remember what it tasted like…basically it fulfilled the physical need to put something in my mouth at about noon.  Score: 20

SELECTION – The actually do have a fairly decent selection at McDonalds, and that new “southern sandwich” is one of their better offering, but I’m not rating that sandwich, I’m talking about the “double cheeseburger”.  Score:6

CREATIVITY/X-FACTOR – 50 years ago, they might have been considered creative, but now McDonalds is such an establishment, that really “creative” means doing what McDonalds isn’t doing.  That’s really not fair to them to bring my pre-conceived notions into this, as they do have new things from time to time, and having a location nearby is a positive for someone who wants to go there.   Score:7

RESTAURANT – The restaurant is clean and bright.  It’s very visually appealing.  It’s also busy, but the line moves quickly (Ray Croc dream in action!).   Score:7

EXTRAS/FRESHNESS/ETC – Freshness?  Nope.  Saltiness?  Yep.   The fries are there to be eaten, but completely unmemorable.  I know that some people really like McDonalds fries.  I just don’t get that.  They are just way over salted…but they do have a nice flavor from the cooking oil.  Strange that I would like and notice the cooking oil taste more than the potato taste??????.  Score:2

SERVICE – It is a counter service place, it goes quick.  They were actually friendly and courteous.  Score:3

OVERALL SCORE   45 out of 100.

Sliders Diner

I had heard good things about Sliders, but never actually been there.

The strip mall location just never appealed to me…I mean seriously, does that make you think about a great burger?   After visiting Sliders, I can say, that I was wrong for years.

Also, the name is a bit misleading, since they serve regular sized (and larger) burger, but no sliders.

Don’t be swayed by the teriyaki chicken, which looks great.

I decided to jump in head first into my first experience at Sliders with the first Bison burger of my life (at least the first that I can recall).

TASTE – TOP NOTCH!  On of the best tasting burgers that I have ever had.  Maybe Bison is the way to go?  I’ll have to try a regular hamburger here as well.  It’s good enough that I’ll be back before the end of the month.    They also have a condiment/topping bar.  It’s a nice touch, the cheese sauce is not to be missed (great on fries!).  The burger was excellent.  The bun was nicely toasted.   It’s hard to say whether the meat, the cheese, the toppings, or the bun were “the star”…everything blended so well together.  Score: 58

SELECTION – On top of the normal stuff, they have Ostrich and Bison….and a topping bar.   And teriyaki.  Score:10

CREATIVITY/X-FACTOR – If Bison isn’t an X-FACTOR, I don’t know what is.  Sliders is a surprising gem of place.  Located in a strip mall between a liquor store and a “dollar store”, this place could not be more out of place.  The top notch condiment lends greatly to the creativity as well.  Score:9

RESTAURANT – The it’s small, but clean…the restroom was out of order, and they have CNN on, (a negative in my book).  Score:6

EXTRAS/FRESHNESS/ETC – Food is good and fresh, and as I mentioned I’m not bison expert, but the price of that (and every thing else) was very normal.  The combo meal is the way to go. Score: 5

SERVICE – The staff is friendly and courteous…it’s an order at the counter and they bring it to you style place, so it’s not like there was a lot “service” but what they offer is well done.  Score:4

OVERALL SCORE   92 out of 100.

A NEW HIGH SCORE!

Clarke’s

Clarke’s is legit food.  The location, the building, everything just screams Old School.  But not “old school” in the fake, retro throwback jersey sort of way…old school in the the way that it is so good that it never needs to changes, like in a Yankees pinstripes sort of old school way.

There are at least 30 burgers on the menu, plus hot dogs, ribs, etc.

The prices will shock you.  They are not old school.  They are “private school”.   I’m not a cheapskate, by any means, but given the ambiance of this place, the prices are a surprise…but there is always a line, so it seems that the Mountain View lunch crowd doesn’t mind.

TASTE – Being that this is an old school place, I went with the “Clarke’s Burger”.  Just your basic hamburger…I added cheese.  They have a couple choices of cheese, and I like that.  They also have a condiment/topping bar.  It’s a nice touch, but when it is crowded, it can be a major hassle as well.  The burger was excellent.  The bun was soft and fairly fresh.  The meat was the star, with a delicious charred flavor to some quality beef.  Score:54

SELECTION – There is a huge range of selections at Clarkes.  But it is all pretty similar.  Score:8

CREATIVITY/X-FACTOR – Well some of the creativitty is on my part for putting the condiments/toppings on myself, but kudos to Clarkes for having a condiment bar with quality choices.  Score:8

RESTAURANT – The restaurant is like out of a 50s movie, it’s just sort of background and not the reason that anyone is there.  Score:6

EXTRAS/FRESHNESS/ETC – Food is good and fresh…but PRICEY Score:3

SERVICE – The staff is always friendly and courteous…the sign about 50 cents for a refill is sort of annoying, but its nice that they give you free refills any way.  Score:4

OVERALL SCORE   83 out of 100.

A change in scoring….

In order to be “more transparent” about my scoring, I am now going to include scores for each category, in addition to the overall score.

This will take a bit of revisionist history (and some digging through old notes) to repost each review.

I’ve also re-calibrated the scoring abit in a couple of catergories.

Red Robin

I’m not sure where Red Robin comes from.  When I was a kid in Seattle, I thought that it was a local chain.  But the world was a lot smaller back then.  At least my world was.

It’s a little bit different here in Silicon Valley…the Seattle ones seemed to have more of an emphasis on the bar.

After checking the Red Robin website…I was right, it did start in Seattle…but is now headquartered in the Denver area.  It looks like the chain is doing quite well, and good for them.  They seem to have a good product everywhere I’ve been.

There are at least half a dozen burgers on the menu that I could go for at any given visit…it is always a tough choice.  For the purposes of this review, I went (for the first time ever) with the Blackened Bayou burger.

TASTE – Very, very, very good.  This is well conceived, well executed burger.  The cheese, meat, onions, peppers, and cole slaw all go very well together.  Did he just say cole slaw?  That might not be what they call it, but that’s what it seems like.  For something labeled “Blackened Bayou” I thought that it should have had a touch more heat.  Then again I did down quite a few of those “bottomless” strawberry lemonades.  Score:51

SELECTION – There is a huge range of selections at Red Robin.  I mean HUGE.  And the write ups of each of the burgers are great…it makes you hungry just reading the menu.  Burgers come with bottomless fries….AND they have this seasoning on the table, that I never see people in California using, but the fry seasoning is excellent.   Red Robin has a full bar…the bottomless strawberry lemonades are a deal.  The onion ring appetizer is a good way to keep from getting too hungry before your burger arrives. Score:10

CREATIVITY/X-FACTOR – VERY high marks for creativity.  Seriously, the selections on this menu give me the hardest time in making a decision of any burger joint that I know.  Usually something will pop out at you, but at the Red Robin, it always seems to be a couple things that jump out at me.  X-factor= kids like the stuff on the kids menu, AND they have veggies for a side dish for the kids.  Score: 10

RESTAURANT – The restaurant is neat and clean in a corporate manner.  It’s probably just a little over the line in my book for being “too cookie cutter”.  Score:7

EXTRAS/FRESHNESS/ETC – Food is good and fresh.  The got all of the customizations on our groups order correct….and the kids liked the kids menu food (always a bonus!).  The bottomless fries and drinks are a nice bonus…but sometimes are slow to arrive.  Score:3

SERVICE – The staff is always friendly and courteous…and they’ve always seemed to be really good with my child.  Sometimes they seem too nice.  I suppose that clapping and singing “Happy happy birthday from all of us to you…blah blah blah” can do that to a person.  Score:4

OVERALL SCORE   85 out of 100.

Carl’s Jr.

If I had an award for “Best Hamburger of a Genre”, I would have to give it to Carl’s Jr. for the best fast-food burger.  But my quest is not limited to fast food, and so I shall solider on to eat more burgers (and get around to blogging about a couple I’ve eaten and haven’t posted about).

I don’t know what fast-food chains call the people who develop their products, (maybe New Product Development People?), but Carl’s Jr. has theirs working on overtime.

They’ve got chili burgers, jalepeno burgers, 6 dollar burgers, prime rib burgers, breakfast burgers….it’s enough to give me a heart attack before ordering!

At the very clean Carl’s Jr on North 1st Street, I was a bit overwhelmed at the number of “special burgers” there were.  So I went against the tide and got the Famous Star.  It’s the classic burger that started it all…well at least I think it was, maybe not, but I’m not far enough into reading Fast Food Nation to know for sure.

TASTE – Carl’s burgers have a real nice char-broiled taste to them.  It really makes them stand out above the fast food crowd.  The Famous Star is a pretty basic burger, meat cheese, bun, lots of sauce, fresh veggies.  It’s a well put together burger.  The bun is on the weak side.  Score:47

SELECTION – As mentioned above there is a HUGE selection at Carl’s.  I couldn’t begin to count or remember the number of burger choices.  I specified “criss cross fries”.  I’m not sure if that costs extra.  It might.  It used to.  then it didn’t.  Then I think it did.  Now?  I don’t know.  Score:8

CREATIVITY/X-FACTOR – Overall Carl’s should get high marks for creativity.  What I ordered was the least creative thing on the menu.  I’m so not like me today.  There is a reason that this is the place that had the ad tag line “Don’t bother me, I’m eating”.   Score:8

RESTAURANT – The restaurant is clean and bright.  It’s very visually appealing.  Carl’s Jr Inc should be glad that I’m not basing this review on the Saratoga Ave. location.  Actually, I have enough past history with eating Carl’s burgers, that I’m sure some of that will taint my always unbiased score for both better and worse.   Score:7

EXTRAS/FRESHNESS/ETC – Everything seems to be quite fresh and of good quality.   The bun wasn’t great.  The fries are there to be eaten, but completely unmemorable.  Sad that they put so much time and effort in to making a distinctive burger, but then are so lackluster about the fries.  Score:2

SERVICE – It is a counter service place…but yet they bring the food to your table…and bring ketchup.  All in all, the employees at this Carl’s Jr seemed genuinely happy to be there.  Score:3

OVERALL SCORE   75 out of 100.

Main Street Burger

Main Street Burger in downtown Los Gatos is a great mix of contemporary and retro. The place has a “vintage 50’s” feel to it (I wasn’t alive in the 50s, so I’m sort of guessing there). But the menu is very up with the times, as are the prices.

The burgers are out of this world!

TASTE – Phenomenal. The California Burger with guacamole and jack cheese. Was “knock your socks off good”. It is a 1/3 pound burger, with fresh, high quality meat. The guacamole has just a bit of heat to it, so it keeps your tongue on the edge of it’s seat. The bun is a very soft and flavorful. The burger, bun, cheese and veggies blend in the perfect combination. This burger is quite substantial, but after I finished it, it was so good that I seriously considered ordering another.  Score:58

SELECTION – Main Street has about half a dozen burgers, plus each can be ordered as beef or veggie or turkey.   Score:9

CREATIVITY/X-FACTOR – This marriage of flavor is what the X-factor is all about.  Score:10

RESTAURANT – The restaurant has a great throwback feel. Personally I don’t like the high stools to sit on, but it fits the decor. The staff is very friendly. The restroom was out of order.  Score:7

EXTRAS/FRESHNESS/ETC – Fries are not included…but they are good. The sweet potato fries were a bit of dissappointment. Mine were alright, but my wife’s were really over cooked. The prices are pretty high. But you are paying for high quality, very fresh, mostly local products.  Score:3

SERVICE – It’s counter service, so it’s hard to mess up…but the staff provides good service.  Score:4

OVERALL SCORE 91 out of 100.