FoodMetroManila

Here’s a tip about me (not that anyone is interested): Whenever I’m in the Alabang office, I almost always eat at Recovery Food and buy coffee from Starbucks in the Molito Complex. Lately, I’ve been walking past a restaurant under construction called Burger Geek. Then one fateful night in October, as I was once again heading over to Recovery Food, I was treated to a wonderful surprise! Burger Geek was finally open!

I didn’t eat there immediately, I had a craving for some Tapa de Morning with brown rice, but I made a mental note to try it out some time. Then some fortuitous events transpired and I was not able to report to the Alabang office for a couple of weeks. Didn’t really mind that but Burger Geek was always on my mind during this time.

And then finally, on October 27, 2015, I was able to hit up Burger Geek – not once, but twice! (Crack of lightning, invoking Susan Roces).

It’s a small space but it does not feel cramped. The interior design was fairly simple but very comfortable despite just having wooden seats. One wall was a solid black number with brick facing effects; the other had a clever design of a periodic table of elements. Instead of elements it showed the elements of a burger place.

Their servers all wear Burger Geek shirts and hipster glasses, very nice touch I might add. They’re also very polite and will quickly tend to your needs. I ate here first during lunch and by the time I was back by dinner, one of the servers recognized me and greeted me with a “welcome back sir”!  Made me enjoy the place even more.

Each table had the burger geek logo on it and I absolutely love that detail. They also had two condiments in each table: Ketchup and Mustard. You also have access to a thick wad of paper napkins which is always a good sign in a burger place. It means you’ll be treated to a juicy and messy burger!

Its Burgers, Sides, and Shakes here at Burger Geek. It hasn’t caught on here in the Philippines (Army Navy has tried but was not every successful with it), but Americans attest to the fact that a good burger is best paired with a thick milkshake. It’s a plus if you can also get great sides, the best of which being fries. All that with a quirky theme for a burger place and we’re set to go! Let’s talk about Their Burgers, Sides, and Shakes!

Side – Fries, Onion Rings, and Mac and Cheese

Fries

I like some crispy fries, but the crisp on these bad boys was phenomenal!

Originally wanted the tater tots but these were not available. Perhaps if they officially open? The fries, however, were a wonderful surprise. Some fries fried to a crisp will be dry and hard. These were absolutely not! As I said previously, we were dipping this in the sour cream that came with the onion rings. I would like to make a suggestion to Burger Geek that the fries also come with the same dip?

Onion Rings

I was not very happy with these. Burger geek’s way of cranking up the fryer for extra crispiness did not work well for the onion rings. It had a wonderful crispy crust but the onions themselves tasted burnt.

The sour cream dip that came with it was really good though and the super awesome server gamely gave us a refill of it. We were also dipping the fries in them.

Mac and Cheese (with bacon bits!)

This was ordered by one of the guys I was with during dinner. He didn’t want to share this with any one of us so I was not able to get a taste. But judging from how he gobbled it down quickly and didn’t say a word about it after, I am confident that he found it to be delicious.

Shakes – Salted Caramel and Chocolate

Salted Caramel

Yes, it looks just like a vanilla milkshake. It tastes like vanilla but a lot sweeter. The mason jars give the good ‘ole milkshake a classy touch.

Chocolate

Every bit as good as you’ll expect from a classic chocolate milkshake. Don’t need to fuss about it. It’s imperative you order a milkshake when eating burgers here at Burger Geek!

The Principal

Part of Burger Geek’s draw is the fun names they have for their burgers. Keeping in line with their school-theme, their burgers are named as “the geek”, “the principal”, “the class president”, “the cheerleader”, “the prom-queen”, and so on. All burgers come with potato buns. The taste may be weird at first, but you’ll get used to it. It works well holding in all the juices.

“The principal” is just what you would expect from the typical school principal: Very basic, looks boring, but probably has a fun side that’s not for all to see. This burger is the cheapest of them all because it’s just a patty, topped with lettuce, tomatoes, and the special.

It’s a smashed burger which makes for a great crust and (if done right) a juicy patty. If you’re in a pinch and just want to try burger geek, I’ll suggest you just get The Principal. You’ll still be able to enjoy the burger goodness at less than 200 Php.

The Geek

This is the default cheeseburger. Take the Principal and put a slice of “American Cheese” on it and you have the geek. The guy that got this really liked it though he just likes burgers in general. However, I don’t really believe that a slice of cheese warrants bumping up the price to 215 Php.

B+

What does B stand for? BACON! Extra-Crispy-Bacon!!!

The Geek with very crispy bacon on it, to be concise. Do I need to write about? Well okay. Some nitpicking… The bacon gets the same treatment as the onion rings and fries. It’s really crispy. It’s at a point of crispiness that it actually does not taste like bacon anymore. Perhaps Burger Geek can revisit their strategy on cooking bacon?

Ruminations…

I have only tried the basics of their “class” of burgers. The class president is next on my list and I’ll be talking about that on my Instagram. However, the few that I have had were pretty solid. The fries are awesome but the onion rings need some work. Another side that’s getting a ton of buzz is the umami corn. The shakes are on-point (on-fleek!) and they have some premium shakes that I want to try with the class president on my next visit.

Overall it was pretty fun eating at Burger Geek. They’re also open late in the night so you can enjoy some great burgers and shakes before retiring to bed. Note of caution though, the burgers and the sides are not advisable to be consumed by persons with heart conditions. But if you’re healthy or sort of healthy, go ahead! Indulge! I did and I will some more!

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