We are now only 1 week away from the beginning of one of my favourite times of the year! Halifax Burger Week is back again for it’s 5th year, and the awesome team over at The Coast has rounded up over 95 restaurants to participate in the most burger-filled week Halifax has ever seen!
There is a wide range of burger choices for you to choose from this year, ranging from beef to lamb to veggie, and even kangaroo, and with all these patty options comes a HUGE variety of original topping combinations. With this massive amount of burgers to choose from, picking which ones you will try can be a difficult task, but I’m here to hopefully make your decisions a little easier with the Halifax Burger Week Preview Series – 2017 Edition!
I’ve had the pleasure of trying a lot of great Burger Week burgers so far, and I’m going to showcase each one in this series so you can get an early look at some of the meaty (and not so meaty) greatness you have to look forward to come March 23rd. Starting things off with Part 1 are burgers from Durty Nelly’s, Krave, and Cheese Curds!
Durty Nelly’s
Burger: Local grass-fed beef, pulled lamb, bacon-fried egg, Guinness cheddar, roasted garlic truffle aioli, arugula, tomato and caramelized onion on a sesame seed bun
Price: $17 with $1 going to Feed Nova Scotia
In the past, I have had a few different burgers at Durty Nelly’s, and each one that I have had has turned out to be a great, well-rounded meal. Based on these past experiences, I was fairly confident that their contribution for Burger Week 2017 would not disappoint.
After the first bite, it was clear that my assumptions were spot on. Not only does this burger have a great beef patty (made with local beef), it also has a generous serving of tender pulled lamb, which gives the burger a nice, mild flavour that I really liked with the stronger cheddar. The garlic truffle aioli was subtle, but there were a few bites were it really stood out with that beautiful roasted garlic flavour.
My favourite component was the bacon-fried egg, but I have always thought that an egg can make almost any burger better, so I may be a bit biased there. Overall, everything that is put between this sesame seed bun came together to create a really tasty, and filling, burger that is not to be missed during Burger Week!
I recommend washing this burger down with a pint of Knotty Buoy from Spindrift Brewing. This crisp pilsner really balances out all of the meaty components of the burger, and it goes down nice and smooth!
Krave
Burger: Bacon Jam Cheeseburger – Grass-fed beef patty, ground in-house, topped with real cheddar, pickles, Krave sauce and sweet & smokey bacon jam on a butter toasted bun
Price: $6.99
If you have not yet experienced Krave’s Bacon Jam Cheeseburger, you are either new to Halifax or you hate burgers (if it’s the latter, you are definitely in the wrong place). Luckily, the guys over at Krave have brought back the crowd-pleasing burger again, not only for Burger Week, but also for the whole month of March!
Sitting between their always-great buttered toasted bun, you’ll find a delicious patty, made from beef that is ground in-house, along with pickles and cheddar cheese. Where the burger steals the show, however, is with its sauces. This burger not only has their creamy Krave sauce, but it also goes above and beyond with the sweet & smokey bacon jam, which is always a big hit during Burger Week. They only bring out the bacon jam for this event, so make sure you add this one to your must-try list!
Definitely grab a glass of the Krave Lager to go with your Bacon Jam Cheeseburger. Brewed locally by Propeller, I love including this tasty signature brew with most burgers I try at Krave!
Cheese Curds
Burger: Southwestern Sweet Heat Burger – Six-ounce beef patty on a bed of sautéed jalapeños with guacamole, pulled pork, melted cheese curds, crispy onions and sweet BBQ sauce. Served on a brioche bun with a deep-fried dill pickle on top
Price: $8.95 with $1 going to Feed Nova Scotia
After taking a break from Burger Week last year, Cheese Curds is back with a big ol’ burger that is going to have people talking!
With a regular menu that is full of big and creative burgers, it should be no surprise that Cheese Curds didn’t hold back for their Burger Week entry. Sitting on a tasty brioche bun, this is a meaty burger that is packing some heat. There is tons of pulled pork sitting on the beef patty, which does get a bit messy, but it is definitely worth it. There is a lot of sauce happening on this burger (the sweet BBQ sauce works great with the jalapeños), and it is countered by a great crunch from the crispy onions.
My favourite part of the burger was the melted cheese curds. They added a really cheesy layer to the burger that you just can’t get with a standard slice of cheese, and it coats all of the juicy meat in gooey greatness. I have a feeling that this burger is going to be very popular during Burger Week!
Burger: Curry infused lentil and bean patty wrapped in a Chinese spring roll skin, topped with pickled carrots, pickled red onions, cilantro and mango chutney, served on a rustic bun
Price: $7.75 with $1 going to Feed Nova Scotia
Burger Week isn’t just for the carnivores. There are some great choices this year for those that prefer their burgers meatless (or for those that need a break from the meat sweats), and Cheese Curds has decided to also offer up their veggie burger as a choice for the week.
Not only do they create a delicious lentil and bean patty, that is full of fresh flavours, but they take it one step further and wrap the patty in a spring roll skin to give it a huge crunch. Topped off with a pile of pickled carrots and red onions, a bit of cilantro, and a deliciously sweet mango chutney, this burger is a great, lighter choice for Burger Week, and it can definitely hold it’s own among the huge list of meaty options you have this year.
Which burgers are you looking forward to trying during Halifax Burger Week? Follow me on Twitter and Instagram to let me know where you’ll be chowing down, and to keep up with future installments of the preview series!
