Editorial Review of
Neighborhood Burger
The perfect gourmet burger joint strikes a balance
between an urban casual atmosphere and luxurious fine dining. Neighborhood
Burger, San Diego's
response to fast food made epicurean, has achieved such a balance. Service
might be plainly dressed in an almost blatantly laidback manner, but is
nonetheless friendly and polite. Seating is loosely arranged around a bar, even
if you're just ordering food rather than one of the 27 choices of beer they
have on tap. The burgers, on the other hand, are an elaborate deluxe; a juicy
slab of meat sits atop a freshly baked roll, not your usual burger bun. If you
order the sautéed mushrooms and Swiss cheese, it even comes with a
free side of extra sautéed mushrooms. In fact, the Neighborhood Chef
is so selective that ketchup is not even available at the restaurant as it
"would not go well with the burgers." But not to worry, the
alternative ketchup/mayo/relish combination sauce happens to taste far
better.