Kronnerburger - San Francisco, CA

The Kronnerburger on Challah Bun with white cheddar sauce.

Kronnerburger is a pop-up burger place in the old Bruno's bar on Mission Street in San Francisco. There is actually no sign on the door, but they do have a temporary sign at the door when Kronnerburger is open from 6-late. We arrived right after they opened and had the place all to ourselves. The old bar is very dark and cozy. Edgy rock music, tastefully curated, played loudly. We were greeted cheerfully and shown to our table.

We ordered up and almost immediately received the best poutine I have ever had. Maybe ordering poutine is cheating on fries, but I have fallen in love with it recently. The version here called "Fries with Beefcheek gravy and cheese curd" was $10. You can add bone marrow for $4 more. I could not stop eating the crispy fries with the luscious gravy and soft melted curds. Amazing.

The poutine tastes a lot better than this photo would indicate. 

We also got onion rings ($6) that audibly crunched when you bit them. Battered lightly and sliced thin, they held up well to the spicy chili aioli that accompanied them. I think this is the best fries/onion rings combo I have ever had.

The burger came. Billed as rare and salty, it did not disappoint on either count. The challah bun was heavily toasted and fit perfectly to a somewhat modestly sized burger. I would guess 6 ounces or so.  The white cheddar mayo sauce was sloppy and tasty, holding its own to the salty beef patty. The red onions were sweet and nicely grilled. Crispy pickle slices and crisp lettuce rounded out a very nice burger.

Audibly crunchy onion rings.

Just to finish with aplomb, we ordered the ice cream burger ($6), chocolate ice cream sandwiched between two very thin chocolate chip cookies. I liked this better than others of this ilk. Usually the cookies are too thick and overwhelm the ice cream. This has just the right balance between cookie and ice cream.

Ice Cream burger finishes off a great repast. 

The place is very dark, so my photos here don't do the food justice. You will have to go and experience for yourself!

Kronnerburger
2379 Mission Street (Inside Bruno's)
San Francisco, CA 94110
415-656-9871
kronnerburger.com

Burger 4.5 spatulas out of 5
Fries 5 spatulas
Onion Rings 5 spatulas

Jesus provides the only light at the table. 

Burgers and Brew, Davis, CA

The Bacon Cheeseburger at Burgers and Brew in Davis. A lively place day and night for a burger. 

Burgers and Brew is my daughter’s favorite burger place in Davis, CA. I went up to visit her at school on a Sunday at lunchtime. The small cottage was packed. They have turned the porch into outdoor dining. But this was a very cold day at Davis, so they had plastic draped over the openings and heaters straining in vain to keep the place warm.

It didn’t make the line short. Lots of people were waiting in line to order their burgers. Every table was packed. We placed our order and found a table. Our onion rings ($4.25) came out first. They were hot and battered. Slightly undercooked but crunchy, the onions on the inside were sweet.

A full house enjoys their burgers and brew. 

Next came the burgers. Sara had a cheeseburger ($7.50) and I had the Bacon Cheeseburger ($8.75).  The burgers are a half-pound of Niman Ranch beef. The patties seemed freshly and gently packed. The beef was tasty, but a little cooked past the medium I had ordered.  The bun was a handsome, lightly toasted sesame bun fit nicely to the burger. Fresh green-leaf lettuce, two tomato slices and red onion slices were joined by mayo on the burger. The two strips of applewood bacon were crisp and salty. Cheddar cheese was melted, but I couldn't really taste it. 

I found the burger to be very satisfying and (except for being overcooked) very nicely prepared but somewhat unremarkable. The fries were crispy and hot, medium size cut and lightly salted and peppered.

The crowd continued to keep the place packed as we finished our burger. It was a pleasant place for a burger. Sara pointed out they are open until 3 am on the weekends, which really seems to be appropriate for a college town.

Burger 3.5 out of 5 spatulas

Fries 3 out of 5

Onion Rings 3.5 out of 5

Burger and Brew

403 Third Street

Davis, CA 95616

530-750-3600

www.burgersbrew.com