12 Burgers - August 21, 2010

Last week's burger rave took our group to the northeast corner of Preston Road and Belt Line Road to visit 12 Burgers which was recently named one of the top burgers in Dallas by the Dallas Morning News. 12 Burgers is located in small building that appears that have been a Taco Bell or Taco Bueno in past lives. The restaurant features an open kitchen with a flat top grill to cook burgers and fryers to cook up fresh cut fries and other appetizers such as hot wings, onion rings, cheese sticks and stuffed jalapenos. We were greeted at the register by a friendly employee who took our orders. I ordered a bacon cheddar burger with grilled onions and mayonnaise which was priced at $5.45 on the menu and for another $2.75, I upgraded to a combo which included fries and a drink. We were given a number and after getting a drink, I waited about ten minutes before the following burger was brought to the table:



An overlly thick layer of mayonnaise coated both the perfectly buttered and toasted top and bottom buns. The hand formed half-pound patty was covered with melted cheddar and two small slices of bacon. Lightly grilled onions were then heaped on top of the bacon. Taking my first bite, the burger was overpowered by the flavor of the mayonnaise so scraped off most of it and then went back to eating the burger. In the future, I would make a point to order light mayonnaise. The flavors of the burger were pretty good but were missing something. The patty was lightly seasoned and cooked to just above medium but it needed a little more seasoning and since it was made from a leaner blend of beef, it wasn't super juicy but it had enough fat in the meat to keep it from drying out. The cheddar cheese was a mild variety and was melted nicely on top of the patty. The grilled onions were only slightly cooked and didn't have the caramel color found on other burgers. The flavor of the bun was fairly neutral so it did not detract from the flavors of the meat and cheese on the burger. The bun also held up well to every bite. Finally you could taste that the fries were fresh cut every morning but they did not have much flavor.


Overall, I thought that 12 Burgers prepared an average burger but I applaud them on using fresh ingredients for their meat and fries. The burger could have used a little more fat in the meat and more seasoning and the mayonnaise should have been used a little more sparingly on the hamburger. I can see the potential in these burgers but there is still work to be done.


Ratings (1-25):


Bun - 20, perfectly toasted, soft and fluffy inside


Meat - 18, well cooked, needed more seasoning, bacon was used sparingly


Appearance - 19, nice looking combination of meat, melted cheese and grilled onions, golden brown bun looked really nice


Taste - 18, flavors didn't blend together as well as expected, fresh ingredients don't always mean the tastiest burger


Overall - 75