Place: Dave & Busters
Location: Vaughn, Ontario
Type: Chain
Web Site: www.daveandbusters.com
Atmosphere: Upper class sports bar
Burger: The Double Cheeseburger
#of Pattys: 2
Type of Cheese: Cheddar
Special Sauce: None
Toppings: None
THE PLACE
I don't know how to describe Dave and Busters as a whole, so I'll describe it in pieces. First there is the entertainment area filled with games that cost too much, that dispense tickets, but not enough that you could get anything any good at the ticket redemption place, so either you spend a ton of money to get something that, let's face it, you could have bought for a fraction of what you've spent or you look at that model airplane that costs fifty tickets more than you have but you are out of money.
Then there is a dining area that wants to be fine dining but is nothing more than a sports bar. Sure it looks like you could get creme brûlée but really you can get iced cream and brownies and, of course, cheesecake just like the cheesecake you get anywhere else.
Are you getting the feeling I hated going to Dave and Busters? I really did. But I'm not going to let that get in the way of my cheeseburger, because no matter the place a cheeseburger is so common and easy that even a place that is putting on airs can make a half decent one with it's eyes closed.
THE BURGER
Boy was I wrong.
Let's start at the beginning. I had a choice of the cheeseburger or the double cheeseburger and if one of something is good then two of something must be fan-freaking-tastic.
Boy was I wrong.
Let's take a look at it. It looks kinda ok. I mean the patty looks a little too brown but the cheese is nice and partially melty and the bun is good and toasted. So the meat is probably alright. Looks can be deceiving.
Boy ... Yeah, you saw that coming didn't you.
And the problem is that the picture is exactly, 100% correct. The bun is lightly toasted dream. It held up wonderfully, no finger dents here. The cheese was delightful. Even though I'm pretty sure the description includes the words "processed cheese food" I've never been a cheese snob.
It's the meat. It was flavorless. And I'm not using metaphors here, I literally tasted nothing but bun and cheese. It didn't help that the meat was dry, over cooked and most likely under seasoned. Really it was like eating water, except water at least elicits a response from the flavor centers of your mouth. I honestly, cannot fathom how this is possible. How do you make a meat patty without any flavor? I cannot wrap my head around this. Even the worst cheeseburger has some flavor. It may not be a good flavor but it is flavor none the less.
The fries ... I'm not sure but they could have been the same string fries I get at the grocery store. It certainly looked and tasted like they might be.
So how do I rate this? Poorly cooked and flavorless meat, which is the "burger" part of the equation, plus a nice slice of cheese and a good bun. I'd give it a 6.6 if the meat wasn't such a big part of things, and this meat took away from everything else.
So here is how I'm going to do this. I'm giving this cheeseburger a 1 out of 5, and it's based completely on the cheese and bun. Everything else was just terrible, including the service. The slow slow slow service.
I hate Dave and Busters and I will never go back, not even to review any other burger they have.
