The Burger Club opened in the Vinings Jubilee shopping center back in November. I wrote a simple post about its opening and since then, that post has gotten some of the top views on this blog. So, I thought I had better visit the Burger Club and see for myself what all the fuss was about.

The Burger Club Seating area

So, I met up with another foodie to check it out on a recent weekday. At 11:45 the restaurant was mostly empty but just after noon, the place had filled up, with customers eager to taste their unique overpriced, abysmal burgers. And the overall feel is that the Burger Club is very kid-centric with the cartoon network on several TVs and an entire wall for kids to color on. Seems like a very awkward place to come sip on martinis in the evening as they brag about on their menu.

Our server was pleasant, cheerful and very helpful. She even made sure to put our milkshake in to go cups, since we ordered them at the end of the meal. The best thing about the Burger Club seems to be the servers, not the food or the atmosphere.

Glancing at the menu, I thought about building my own burger, but thought better of it when I noticed that with a base price of $7.50 for a basic burger, by the time I added my cheese, veggies and meat, I’d suddenly be over $9 without even a side as they are NOT included in the build your burger list. Sides are around $3.

Moving on to the Specialty burgers that do come with a side, I was tempted to play it safe and order the Gastropub burger, a regular burger with bacon, red onion marmalade and roquefort cheese. But I thought better of it and went for something out of the ordinary and ordered the Georgia burger with a fried green tomato, goat cheese and fried peaches. For my side, I could have ordered tater tots, fries, potato salad, mac and cheese or some other perennial favorites, but ultimately chose fries, which tasted just like Arby’s curly fries.

The Burger Club Georgia Burger

As far as high end burgers go, this one was terrible. I ordered the burger medium (slightly pink center) however once it was delivered there was no pink to be found, it was well done. And my dining companion ordered medium rare (his came out well done too). The burger was completely dried out. Even a well done burger can be somewhat juicy but this one wasn’t at all. I kept using ketchup to add moisture to the burger so I could stand to eat it.

I really wanted to find some redeeming quality in the food. So, I turned to the toppings. But truth be told, the toppings aren’t anything to get yourself worked up about either. I didn’t feel like they (goat cheese, peaches, fried green tomato) complemented each other particularly well, not to mention that most of the toppings fall out when you pick up the burger. I ended having to eat mine with a knife and fork to get a bite with all of the toppings in a mouthful. And even then it was just an extremely bland tasting burger.

At this point, I decided my spirits could be lifted with a milkshake. Out of chocolate, vanilla or peach we chose peach to share. After a couple of sips all I could taste was vanilla. I was about to flag down our server to tell her we got the wrong one when, the tiniest bit of peach landed on my taste bud. Ah, so they crush up some peach bits and throw it into a vanilla shake. Not exactly what I was expecting and I certainly didn’t think it would be halfway through my milkshake that I’d finally taste the peach. I’m just glad I didn’t pay for the leaded (with alcohol) then I really would have felt screwed by the cost.

I find that if your base (in this case it is the burger) isn’t done right then all the nice, fancy toppings in the world aren’t going to make it better, which sadly seems to be the case at the Burger Club. There are too many other places in Atlanta to go get a great burger, save your money and go elsewhere.

4300 Paces Ferry Rd NW
Atlanta, GA 30339
Website

Tags: atlanta, Burgers, Gourmet Burgers, Vinings