Vera’s Burger Shack
Multiple locations around Vancouver
See homepage for details

Hours vary by location

A Tale of Three Burgers

By Lorna Yee
Eat Vancouver Columnist
Monday, April 25th, 2006

** (of four stars)

After reading the rather interesting burger brawl on this site, I was eager for my first experience at Vera’s. I got the cheeseburger with “the works” (the usual sauce condiments, plus tomato, lettuce and onions–all at no extra charge) at the Davie location. I’ll skip the comments on the decor, since Dan and Jason have both given their opinions. The Davie store was clean, and the service was friendly enough. The kaiser bun was good and fresh, as were the veggies. I didn’t ask for my burger to be cooked medium-rare or medium, opting instead to receive what I would assume is the “typical doneness” of a Vera’s burger. The patty was cooked all the way through, and rather dry. There wasn’t too much bread for the patty, and the burger held together well as I was eating. All in all, I thought the burger was OK. It wasn’t bad. I’m not complaining. I’m sure the taste would be improved if the patty was cooked to a juicy medium-rare or medium, though I’ve read Gerald’s comments and realize that half his clientele don’t want to see pink in their burger.

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Vera’s Burger Shack
Multiple locations around Vancouver
See homepage for details

Hours vary by location

A Tale of Two Burgers

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In an attempt to establish inter-rater reliability, this week’s edition of Eatvancouver features two points of view. Expect a third next week when columnist Lorna Yee chimes in.
–

It was the best of times…

By Jason
Eat Vancouver Editor
Sunday, April 16th, 2006

UBC location: 1/2 (of four stars)
Other locations: * and 1/2 (of four stars)

When I moved to Vancouver a few years ago, Vera’s was one of the first restaurants I visited. I was pleased to find out that what my friends were telling me was true: Vera’s Burger Shack made a name for itself serving well-designed burgers, with fresh meat and toppings and hadn’t deviated from that in twenty-odd years of service. My romance with the burger shack continued, marked by casual encounters whenever I found myself in the vicinity of a Vera’s, usually the Denman or Davie locations. I appreciate a place that takes burgers seriously, uses ultra-fresh ingredients and greets me with a smile – heck, what’s not to like about that? Walk into most Vera’s locations and you can expect a pretty simple atmosphere: wooden tables with napkin dispensers, a couple of bottles of vinegar and a bottle of ketchup, maybe a few signs on the wall explaining the place, and no absence of that smiling, young ginger with a cow-print chef’s hat. The burger, again at most locations, is quite good. To break it down, you’ve got your beef patty, seasoned ever so slightly to bring out the flavor of the meat. There is a kaiser bun that just the right size as to not hide the underlying filling, but big enough to aptly house the burger and allow for hands on eating. The toppings are many to choose from, and always fresh. I don’t like to overshadow the meat so I usually order my vera burger with lettuce, tomato, chopped onion, hot peppers, pickles (sliced nice and long), hot sauce and vera’s sauce. Oh, their poutine is top-notch as well.

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Moderne Burger
Address: 2507 West Broadway
Tel: 604-739-0005
homepage

Hours:
Mon-Fri Noon-9:00pm

Everything Olde…

By Dan Fishman
Eat Vancouver Columnist
Monday, April 10th, 2006

** (of four stars)

The Chairman gave me a call the other day and told me that my output lately has been pathetic. And you know what? He’s absolutely right. So I told him it was time that we finally checked out Moderne Burger, on Broadway just West of Larch. For me, there’s really nothing better than a great hamburger, and I have heard from a few people that Moderne Burger is excellent. Then again, I’ve also heard from some people that Vera’s Burger Shack is excellent, and unless “excellent” is a new slang word for “overpriced and mediocre,” that simply is not true [note from the editor: expect Dan’s review of Vera’s Monday, in which he will expand upon this comment]. So I was very interested to see if Moderne Burger would fall under the classical or the “moderne” definition of excellent.

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Feenie’s
Address: 2563 West Broadway
Tel: 604-739-7115
homepage

Hours:
Mon-Fri 11:30am-5:30pm lunch
Sat-Sun 2:00pm-5:30pm lunch
Mon-Sat 5:30pm-11:30pm dinner
Sun 5:30pm-10:00pm dinner
Sat-Sun 10:00am-2:00pm brunch

More than just a Pretty Burger

By Lorna Yee
Eat Vancouver Columnist
Sunday, April 2nd, 2006

*** (of four stars)

Rob Feenie’s role in shaping the restaurant scene in Vancouver is indisputable. His 2004 win on Iron Chef against Masaharu Morimoto cemented his position as an internationally respected chef whose approach to cooking has impressed the likes of Charlie Trotter.

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