GRUB: DBGB – burgers & beer with a touch o’ Boulud

GRUB 411:

• DBGB: 299 Bowery; (212) 933-5300
• Price: $$½
• Type: burgers w/ a touch of French class
• Service: Adequate.  No exuberant personalities there, from the hostess, waiters to the busboys.  Nobody seemed really thrilled to be working there.
• SeoulDiva Tip: Make reservations in advance. FAR in advance.
• SeoulDiva Rating: ♥♥♥♥ / ♥♥♥♥♥

FULL REVIEW

There’s been a lot of hype about DBGB, but the reviews have been mixed.  After reading a not-so-kind review of Daniel Boulud’s trendy new “low-key” restaurant from my boys @ Immaculate Infatuation, I didn’t know what to expect.

We arrived for a 7:45pm reservation, got told to wait at the bar, and didn’t get seated until 8:10pm.

The menu was robust with many options.  At first glance you can tell DBGB favors the carnivore, offering a full page of sausage options to drool over.  Here are some snapshots of the full menu:

• Appetizer Menu
• Plateau de Fruits de Mer & Charcuterie de Gilles Verot Menu
• Sausage Menu: Sweet and Spicy Options
• Sausage Menu: Smokey & Cheesy Options, and Tête au Pieds
• Mer & Terre Menu
• Terre Menu (continued) & Burgers
• Draft Lager Menu
• Draft Ale Menu

Overall, it was a delicious meal.  I could definitely see myself frequenting this high-class burger joint, but after all the hype has died down a bit, and it’s not the restaurant du jour.

I was fortunate to dine with 3 others, so hang on for a good (slightly long) overview of our meal.

APPETIZERS:

• ICEBERG & BLUE; tomato, walnuts, bacon bits & herbs. My friend, who always orders a lettuce salad app, said this one was particularly tasty.  Unlike most places, DBGB cut the lettuce into manageable pieces — as opposed to dumping a quarter-head of lettuce onto the plate.  SeoulDiva Says:  ♥♥♥½ / ♥♥♥♥♥

• SPICY CRAB CAKE: pickled radish, avocado, vadouvan curry sauce. It looked a little on the “soggier” side, but I think this is because it was very generous on the crab meat.  Personally, I prefer my crab cakes more meaty, with less “filler” like breadcrumbs.  My friend said it was delicious.  SeoulDiva Says: ♥♥♥♥ / ♥♥♥♥♥

• JIM’S MATZOH BALL SOUP: @erinmccaffrey felt like she needed to pay homage to her culture, so she ordered this as an app.  She said it was a great comfort food dish.  The matzoh balls were also fluffy and light.  One thing that didn’t make this a homerun — there was this green, unidentifiable oil floating on top.  We couldn’t figure out what it was, but @erinmccaffrey said she could have done with “less oil, more broth.”  SeoulDiva Says: ♥♥♥½ / ♥♥♥♥♥

• FRIED EGG “BOURGIGNON”: duck confit & cracklins, portobello, red wine and spicy greens. I saw a picture of this dish on the DBGB Website, and nearly crapped my pants.  #1) I have an unhealthy obsession for eggs.   I can eat eggs all day, every day.  #2) My inner foodie was excited to have eggs in a way I’ve never had before.

• The egg itself was beautifully cooked.  But I couldn’t figure out how they did it: boiled the egg perfectly, breaded & deep fried it, and then cut off the top ¼.  Presentation was beautiful and I love not knowing HOW they did it.  The egg sat on top of a portobello mushroom that had the middle removed with a round cookie-cutter.  On the side, were pieces of sauteed portobello with the duck confit (which was not too gamey – YUM)  & cracklins.  The sautéed side was a tad too salty, but the dish was overall genius.  SeoulDiva Says:  ♥♥♥♥½ / ♥♥♥♥♥

ENTRÉES:

• LEMON & ROSEMARY ROASTED CHICKEN BREAST: ratatouille provençale & baked garlic head. My friend doesn’t eat any dairy (including butter), so he had to choose wisely.  He said the dish was flavorful – the chicken was juicy and well prepared.  The ratatouille was savory, but he said it was a little mushy — perhaps the dish had been sitting too long.  The garlic head, however, went untouched.  SeoulDiva Says: ♥♥♥♥ / ♥♥♥♥♥

• THE YANKEE: 6 oz. beef patty with iceberg lettuce, tomato & vidalia onion on a sesame bun, essex st. pickle & fries. Two of my friends ordered the same burger.  Of the 3 types on the menu, this is the most “classic” version.  For $14, the burger portion seemed a little malnourished.  But, maybe the key to cooking a good burger has to do with the shape: the small, bulkier-sized patty was roll-down-your-chin juicy.  SeoulDiva Says: ♥♥♥♥ / ♥♥♥♥♥

• THE PIGGIE:  6 oz. beef patty topped with Daisy May’s pulled pork, japaleño mayonnaise & boston lettuce on a cheddar-cornbread bun with mustard-vinegar slaw and fries. After that long description, is there really much more to say?  (Except they left out the part about it being accompanied by a pickled Jalapeño!  YUM!)  Daisy May’s happens to be one of my favorite BBQ places in the city.  (you know how I feel about ribs! YUM!)  I didn’t see how this burger could be anything but heavenly.  (also, @andrewandrew recommended it, and what they say…I do!)

• The burger was everything I could want it to be…and more.  The bun wasn’t a cornbread-concoction, however.  It just looked like a regular hamburger bun with a little cheese sprinkled & crisped on top.  The pulled pork gave a delicious saltiness, while the slaw gave a tangy contrast.  And the pickled jalapeño on top was the BEST — spicy and deliciously crunchy, it was the perfect accessory to each bite.  SeoulDiva Says: ♥♥♥♥½ / ♥♥♥♥♥

DESSERTS:

• CHESTNUT MOUSSE WITH BLACKCURRANT: This was a perfect example of “Always go with your gut.”  I was debating between this dessert and the soufflé.  The waitress told me she preferred the chestnut.  #dessertfail.  I thought the description was totally off the mark.  It should have read “Chestnut Cake”.  It was essentially chestnut filling sandwiched between 2 layers of cake.  Unfortunately the cake was dry and tasteless — it was probably old and possibly not made in-house.  And there must also have been a shortage of blackcurrant, because they LITERALLY only gave me 9 berries.  NINE.  SeoulDiva Says: ♥ / ♥♥♥♥♥

• PEAR SUNDAE: We saw a bunch of people ordering this when I arrived.  I thought it read a little weird when I saw it on the menu.  Pear is a delicate, light-flavored fruit.  When you pair it with super-sweet things like marshmallow, oatmeal crumble and ice cream…I think all that sweetness would drown & overpower the pear flavors.  Another very odd thing: the homemade marshmallow was a unappetizing, lime green color.  I guess it would be necessary to color the marshmallow to distinguish it from the other beige-y components…but GREEN?  Blech.  SeoulDiva Says: ♥♥ / ♥♥♥♥♥

• CHOCOLATE BROWNIE / ESPRESSO SUNDAE: This is your typical, gratuitous chocolate sundae.  Brownie bits, whipped cream, chocolate syrup…tasty, no doubt.  The “sophisticated” factor came from the fact that it was bitter dark chocolate.  But still, it wasn’t particularly remarkable.  SeoulDiva Says: ♥♥½ / ♥♥♥♥♥