Epic burger battles
Burger royale
I fancy myself as a 'serious' foodie; a professional one, to be very honest. I am not just a guy with a legendary appetite - which I am - but I understand food too. It's my forte.
Forgive me if I sound arrogant. I am, in fact, a harmless, down-to-earth man - but with a Pokémon Go level madness when it comes to food. So, it's no surprise that random people at the office walk up to me and ask for my 'reco'. Where to go for fine-dining? Best places for kebabs? What's new in town? At first I thought it was because of my protruding potbelly and my (slightly) chubby appearance that people just assumed my love for food. But eventually, I found out that this is just one of the many reasons.
People trust my culinary judgements and instincts. So, I accepted and moved on. It's like a social service render, I say to myself.
Look, if you need fashion advice, I am not the person to talk to. If I ever give financial guidance, you would probably go bankrupt in 24 hours. And my friends never call me when their relationships are in turmoil, either.
But darn it, I can eat! And I know what I know and I know when to keep shut.
In such a smooth flow of events that I call life, came a colleague the other week in the cafeteria to disturb my peace.
It was lunchtime and I was minding my own business - nonchalantly eating one of my favourite burgers - when
he came in. And in no time, we were talking about this amazing food; but soon enough, it was revealed that his choices greatly differed from mine.
Now, I am a pretty open-minded guy with a decent tolerance for other people's opinions. But when this co-worker of mine started bickering about my burgers, I thought I had had enough.
What does he know about burgers? The places he chooses to dine in, and his opinions about food in general, shamelessly reveal that his taste buds are no better than those of a goat, which eats just about anything and everything. 'Chhagol e ki na khay!'
Calling a human being a 'chhagol' is not something I do. But he passed the threshold. You don't insult my burgers. They're the best in town.
If I am to pick the top three, I'd vouch for burgers from Takeout, Madchef and Preetom.
Let's start with 'Cheezuz' from Madchef. With two beef patties built to perfection and a generous portion of cheese, I love this burger the most with jalapeños and egg as add-ons. Madchef also makes one of Dhaka's finest poutines. With 'Cheezuz', and with the gravy version of French fries mixed with minced meat on the side, Madchef is an ideal place for pigging out.
Right from the beginning, Takeout had taken the burger world by storm. It offers some of the best in town. My pick would be 'Beef & Bacon'. There's beef patty. And there's beef bacon ('fakon' that is, simulated bacon bits). Any further arguments, good sir?
Meanwhile, if you are someone who thinks big, and lives life larger than life itself, Preetom's 'Beef Burger - Half Pounder' is the real deal. With one Godzilla of a patty, accompanied by all the burger-goodies, the Half Pounder is absolutely fantastic. Eating this giant can be a messy affair, but I reckon burgers are the American football version of food - you got to attack and be a little uncivilised when needed as you hustle towards glory.
Now, I explained all these to my dear (read: ignorant) friend, who seemed to hold a different school of thought all-together. That's fine by me, but when you push your choices and underrate those of the other man's, it's a little too much.
We began fighting for our burgers, and our pride.
Things got a little out of hand and he proposed to bring a popular food critic as a judge and put our opinions to test.
Well then be it, I said. My three against your three. And a wager was set. Winner gets treat, of his three favourite burgers.
My burgers against his. He wouldn't stand a chance!
Keep on your eyes on the Star Live Youtube channel to view the full Burger Battle and find out who won!
By M H Haider
Burger of Solace
I am no a food expert; far from it, to be honest. I cannot name more than two sauces, I do not know the different kinds of mayonnaise or even their purpose and I sure as hell will not be able to tell you whether Pepsi is sweeter than Coke!
But there is one thing I am certain of and that is food on the go. Being a tardy professional means I am constantly late to things and thus find myself eating on the road, grabbing takeaway from locations all around me. As burgers are made the fastest, over the years I have built quite a reputation (in my head) for picking the right burgers, although being a man, I am really just mimicking the choice of my significant other. However, when a colleague wanted to challenge me over my choices, I did not hesitate. I did not have a foodie reputation to put on the line but I certainly knew I would lose face if I was proven wrong.
The easiest and most filling thing to pick up on the go is Burgers and having eaten Burgers from the Diamonds are Forever era (a full fried chicken stuffed between two pieces of bread) to the Tomorrow Never Dies Era (Euro Hut, anyone?), from Mollika to American Burger, I have had them all. And it was only when the food-cart scene emerged, that the really good burgers final began to be made in Bangladesh. The Food cart scene led to the birth of Industry giants such as MadChef, Grilled, Takeout etc. But my colleague chose to discard all this history and rely mostly on what he considered his "taste". His taste, as the video evidence will testify, shows his zeal for size and not quality.
A good burger is one which maintains its patty to bun ratio. The texture of the meat is also important for burger lovers and beef bacons, caramelised onions and juicy red tomatoes are a Godsend, completing your Burger like few other things.
Here though, the tendency is to stuff your burger with a rubbery, yolky egg, which my competitor intends to do. There's nothing wrong with an egg, although one can greatly change the dynamic taste of a burger and overpower it with its own dominating flavour.
To get the best burgers and avoid the pitfalls, I chose three burgers. The first was the All-American BBQ Burger from Grilled. This burger is probably one of the best in town. A juicy patty, full of flavour, is nestled between two toasted, sesame seed buns. A generous dollop of their own sauce, pickles and jalapenos that bring your taste-bud to life and a memorable rendition of the beef bacon makes this one of the most standout burgers.
The second option is of course the Double Whopper from Burger n' Boost. A giant chunk of meat, a glorious helping of cheese that oozes out of every bite and pickles done right, this is the perfect treat for a meat lover. Eat them right off the oven and you will not regret it. Unless, you are a nobody pretending to be an expert.
The third option that I picked was Smoke's Fat Boy Grand Texas Burger. The smoked meat retains its texture and you can immediately tell the difference of Smoke's burger, separating it from the herd. The meat here is also generous. Lettuce, onion and a spicy bbq sauce make the burger achieve perfection. A true gourmet burger, few will choose not to side with this giant.
While reading the descriptions, you will find yourself smacking your lips. If you do not, you probably do not understand anything. Will his three burgers even have a prayer against my big names? Watch the video to find out and let us know what you think! Keep your eyes on the Star Live Youtube channel!
By Osama Rahman
Photo: Sazzad Ibne Sayed
Special thanks to Kaniska Chakraborty for taking his time to judge and settle this very important dispute!
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