Lakewood's 1st and 10 - July 29, 2010

This week marked one year of our quest to find the ultimate burger and we decided to visit Lakewood's 1st and 10 on Mockingbird Lane in East Dallas. 1st and 10 features typical bar food such as burgers, chicken sandwiches, grilled ham & cheese, fried pickles, cheese fries, hot dogs and a few salad choices. When we walked in the darker bar, we were greeted and the server said we could sit anywhere that we would like and see suggested that we serve ourselves to the complimentary black-eyed peas and hush puppies as she took our drink order. The peas were tasty but the slightly spicy hush puppies were are little past their prime. They probably would have been best when hot from cooking. A few minutes later, the server brought our drinks and asked for our orders. I ordered a bacon cheddar burger with mayonnaise and grilled onions cooked medium with a side of cottage fries. About ten minutes later the following burger was brought to the table:



At first I thought that maybe she had given me the wrong burger but going around the table, we realized that all of our burgers were not how we ordered them. A cheeseburger that was ordered plain and dry was served with mayonnaise and my burger was served with lettuce, tomato, pickles and mustard. We tried to get her attention but we decided that it was not going to happen so we ate what we had been served. I was impressed that the burger was cooked to a perfect medium and after removing the extra toppings, I took a bite and tasted a very flavorful patty and sharp cheddar cheese. The mustard was spread a little too thick so it overpowered the overall flavor of the burger. I also wish that the cook had not cut the burger in half. It was nice to see that the meat had been cooked perfectly but all of the juices in the patty ended up on the bottom of the serving tray. The hamburger bun had a good flavor but the bottom bun did not hold to the amount of toppings placed on it. We forgot to specify point burgers so we received skinny burgers but I wonder if they use different buns for the larger size. If they do not, I wonder if you could actually eat a point burger with your hands. The grilled onions were thin slices of onions that had been caramelized and were placed on top of smoky cheddar cheese. The melted cheese and grilled onions were a great compliment to the patty.


Overall I think I would have been impressed with the burger offering at Lakewood's 1st and 10 but it was hard to get really excited with the screw ups in the kitchen. I realize that mistakes happen so I will probably go back during football season but when ordering I would suggest that the server read back the order and if it comes back wrong, get it fixed immediately upon serving. Also if you want the bigger patty, make sure to specify the Famous Point Burger. Finally I would also ask the kitchen to not cut the burger in half before serving.


Ratings (1-25):


Bun - 17, good taste but didn't hold up well to the toppings


Meat - 19, nicely seasoned patty, cooked perfectly, juices ran out after cutting in half


Appearance - 20, fresh toppings, good combination of grilled onions and cheese on patty


Taste - 18, good flavors, would have enjoyed more if the burger I ordered was the burger that was served


Overall - 74