Steamed Hams

After several days of vegetarian meals, I decided to grab a burger for dinner on Friday. I'm kind of over these gourmet burger spots (Burger Priest et al). But I remembered there was a burger joint that opened at College and Dufferin. It was the 1st non-Vietnamese (or Portuguese) spot on that block before hipster-friendly Me and Mine and well-reviewed Persian Tavoos. Unfortunately, it never got the traffic of those other two.

It could be the utilitarian menu (burgers and breakfast) or set-up (flat grill and condiment station up front). The head-scratching name Tat Burger didn't help. It is obviously owned by recent immigrants; children can be heard in the kitchen. The selection was cheap. My super-burger combo ($9.25) was one of the priciest item on the menu. Unlike the sad battered fish (for fish and chips) sitting under the heat lamp, the burger patties were grilled to order. I opted for only some basic toppings because one, I wanted to taste the flavour and two, the burger was already enormous.

These were probably not free-range organic beef for that price, but they sure made it up in volume. I could barely get mouth around the two stacked patties and buns. They had good flavour and a nice grilled taste. Toronto food bylaws probably scared them into making it very well-done, but the meat was still rich and not dried out. The fries were run-of-the-mill diner offerings: a bit greasy, a bit soft.