Recently, I attended a Yelp event at Charbar. I saw some old faces and met some new Yelpers. Since it was a Yelp event, the infamous chef behind the restaurant, Jessica, and Candace, the director of marketing at Charbar come out to say hello and chat. This was a more social night then when L and I go out. We usually scarf our food down and are out of the restaurant within an hour.
On a Thursday evening, the place was about three quarters packed to capacity. Upstairs, there were stockbrokers celebrating with shots. On the other end of the spectrum, there was a more demure party of accountants. In between these two groups were us, a bunch of Yelpers feasting away.
On a budget, I stuck to an Argentina Shiraz ($9) and the Burger Gaucha with beef fat fries ($18) and a side of ahi picante aioli ($2.00). W ordered a bunch of appies, D ordered a steak and a side of beets, and S ordered a pizza and a vegetarian ceviche.
I have a real problem with over-eating. This never happens when I eat vegetables or fruits, just deep-fried food and anything mayo based. In other words, I have no self-control when I eat delicious foods. As a result, I asked our server to pack half my burger and fries into a take-out box.
The portion of the burger and fries is too much for one person, so cutting the meal in half was a great idea. However, the beef fat fries were so delicious, with its thin delicate exterior and super silky filling, I went into my take-out box to devour more of them. I really like Charbar’s burger and fries. This double decker beauty makes my mouth water. It’s the antithesis of Burger 320. Thick, creamy sauce on top of a juicy beef patties. Slippery tomato and lettuce that oozes out with the avocado and crisp bacon between two soft, squishy buns. Another thing I really like about the food here – you can taste the trademark Charbar charbroil flavours in a lot of the food, such as the meats, grilled bread and vegetables.
Jessica came over and dropped off a huge complimentary dessert for us to try. Soft vanilla ice-cream, a fresh waffle cone and a pool of warm Lindt chocolate. The chocolate made this dessert. I’m going to try and recreate this dish at home.
Thanks W for organizing this Christmas get-together at Charbar. I really like that there’s something for everyone here and affordable options for those who want to go out to a nice restaurant and still show fiscal restraint.
