The Best Burger Chase

The last comparison shop I did was on the best barbecue, so this time I went for the tastiest burgers. Ordinarily, I would use three subjects to get a proper comparison study but I have so much to say about both of the restaurants that I simply won't have room for a third in the column due to allowable copy space.

Let's start with The Recipe Box. I entered and was immediately met by a server who gave me a choice of three areas to sit. I chose the counter because it's close to the kitchen and I like being in the middle of the mix where I can look around the room when I'm by myself.

It's a busy little mom 'n pop place located in the Bloomingdale Plaza at the corner of John Moore Road and Bloomingdale Avenue. I wouldn't exactly call this a burger joint as I would a home-style eatery. They boast about their open-faced sandwiches and fresh chicken salad, just like back home.

The sign behind the register reads: Life's short - eat cookies. I expected my grandma to come out of the kitchen at any moment. From the kitchen I could hear things like, "That chicken needs to be diced a little smaller" and "The pot roast has another 20 minutes" and then there was the funny head waitress who stated as she entered the kitchen, "This looks like a nice place to open a restaurant, don't you think?" I liked the sarcasm. It means she cares!

The servers were a busy threesome who handled the front of the house like pros--all smiles and warm personalities. I would go back just for their attitude. Be careful with dinner plans--they only open for lunch and breakfast.

To the food. Before I even sat at the counter, the waitress asked me what I wanted to drink and within a minute I had an iced tea sitting in front of me while I read the menu--nice. In order to be fair, I will order the exact meal at both restaurants. I asked for a medium cheeseburger and cole slaw and it soon arrived despite the fact that there was almost a full house. I expected a longer wait for such a small place, bu,t hey, I'm not complaining.

The burger was seasoned well and cooked just a tad on the medium-well side but I can live with that as long as the meat isn't dried out. It was a frozen burger but cooked well enough that I enjoyed it and the slaw was made well with a nice combination of sugar and vinegar--I might have added a little more mayo but I'm not going to fault their style.

The lettuce and tomato were fresh, the bun was grilled with a butter crust and that's important. If you see brown bread on the top and no sign of crispy wet around the edges, it means it was dry-toasted and I'm not a fan of that method--no taste. I'll come back again some day for the pot roast. It smelled delicious but as far as burgers go...

Let's get to Big Belly Burgers, located across the street on the right side (behind the BB&T bank) at 109 W. Bloomingdale Ave. (Phone number is (813) 685-1911).

I have got to honestly say this is the best burger I've eaten in a long time and the Greater Brandon Chamber of Commerce agrees, as the plaque on the wall states. I was immediately met by a very friendly stranger named Kimberly who brought me into the middle of passing conversations, and this was the first time I had seen this woman.

Besides being the general manager, a cheery smile and twinkle in her eye set her apart from the rest of the room. At least that was my perspective since the other girls were too busy taking care of some very happy customers to even deal with me, and that's a good thing.

I overheard several people talking about their meals and, to a person, each agreed how their food was perfect. This is what I had to listen to as I waited for my burger and slaw, and I was getting hungrier by the second just taking in the surrounding banter.

It didn't take long and I was holding the juiciest burger I had held in decades. Kimberly forgot my napkins, so I had to ask for about 30 of them as I watched my cheese ooze from beneath a perfectly toasted bun. I only say that about the napkins to bust her chops a tiny bit--it was a comic moment between us and I liked it.

Back to the food--the burger was a perfect medium with a pink center that I bet if I put my bio-therm to it, it would be 145 degrees. Ask any cook you know and they will tell you what that means. The lettuce was so crisp that it turned upwards despite being subjected to burger heat and the cole slaw would compare to Bubbaques.

For those of you who read my barbecue story; you know that is high praise, indeed--and that's the first time in my life I have ever used the term "indeed" in a sentence!

This place had everything going on with a 55-inch flat screen getting raffled away during the Superbowl with all the proceeds going to the American Cancer Society. There always seems to be something going on, according to all the posters on the wall.

I would tell you all about the Superbowl specials but that was yesterday. They do have something coming up on the 26th of February called the Big Belly Challenge where the video will be posted on Facebook and YouTube. Evidently, you have to eat a burger that, according to hand gestures, would be about a foot tall. You would have to be half-snake and unhinge your lower jaw to eat this thing, if their dimensions are correct. There will be a car show and a disc jockey along with a $100 gift card and trophy to the winner. Drink and food specials also will be available and, for a $20 entry fee, you will receive a shirt, photo, food and be entered into the gift card competition.

It seems everywhere I looked there was some kind of promotion happening including live trivia pursuit challenges, "finish a burger and fries" thing where you win a shirt, and they are checking into a dart league.

I was so taken in by this place's charm that I am considering dusting off my old trophies, taking my old darts out of retirement and getting back into the game. Anyone want to join a league with me?