San Francisco Treat with Bacon and a side of poutine |
The main thing with The Works is that you are pretty much guaranteed to find something on the menu that appeals to you, as long as you like burgers. Not only do they have 6 different patty choices including (but not limited to) beef, elk and portobello caps, they have 71 different combo toppings and many different sides to choose from.
Tower-O-Rings |
For our appetizer we ordered the “Tower-O-Rings” which are breaded (not battered) onion rings. They come piled high with two dipping sauces; we got the Chipotle mayo and the Buttermilk Ranch. The rings were super crispy – crunchy even – and quite large! It’s a pretty generous portion for an appetizer when you consider that you’ve already had half a milkshake and have a burger and side on the way. We couldn’t quite finish the tower but I imagine that it would have been a perfect size for 3-4 people, instead of 2.
After looking at the menu and what seemed like a billion topping combinations, we finally settled on our burger picks. I got the San Francisco Treat on a beef patty, which came with real Kraft dinner & cheddar cheese (not Rice-a-Roni). I blame Diners, Drive-ins and Dives for making me add bacon to my burger (as well as a side of poutine). My boyfriend got the Blues Burger on an elk patty, including blue cheese and double smoked bacon, with a side of their spicy die-cut chips.
Poutini Martini |
I ordered the Poutini Martini as my side, which is a standard poutine with onion rings. The image I had in mind when I ordered this was of small, crispy bites of onion rings mixed into the poutine. What I received, however, were large pieces of onion rings (basically one of their rings roughly broken into 4 pieces) thrown onto the top of the poutine. While they did use real curds (5 points for that), I was disappointed in the lack of said curd (minus 5).
Blues Burger with Die-Cut Chips |
Overall, The Works is a good burger joint and they are definitely a player in the ongoing best-burger competition. They are constantly coming up with new toppings and combos and that is precisely why I think they will do well in Jackson Square. The shakes were great, the onion rings were crispy and unique and with a few tweaks to their buns and poutines, they could really have something amazing! I will be sure to check them out once they are up and running in Hamilton. Oh and be sure to come super hungry and to spread out your milkshakes and onion rings!