Battle of the Bacon Cheeseburgers!

February 3, 2020February 3, 2020 / life-of-burgers / Leave a comment

Since starting Life of Burgers (almost 6 years ago!), I’ve been all about the burgers that were original and unique, and that used a wide variety of toppings and flavours to impress the tastebuds. This meant that a lot of the time, when choosing a burger, I would overlook the more simple and classic ones, in pursuit of the next great creation.

While I always appreciated the beauty of a burger that didn’t need to push the limits to be great, I have never really given them the attention that they deserve. Until now.

I’ve decided that a good chunk of my burger feasting experiences over the next while will be dedicated to eating Bacon Cheeseburgers all over Halifax, and finding the one to rule them all! I’ll be taking detours along the way if a must-try burger pops up, and of course for Halifax Burger Week, but my main focus will be on these simple beauties.

To pick which places/burgers would qualify as contenders, I decided on a list of “allowable toppings” so there was no question about whether or not they were eligible to be included.

Obviously, each burger has to have at least a beef patty, bacon and cheese. I’m also allowing different types of bacon and cheese (e.g. back bacon, Monterey Jack, etc.) to allow some variation (bacon/cheese offered as an add-on is ok). Other toppings that will be allowed are:

Tomato
Lettuce (or “greens”)
Pickles
Onions (grilled/fried/caramelized onions are ok, but no battered ones)
Ketchup
Relish
Mustard (dijonnaise included)
Mayo (different flavours of mayo are ok)
Burger/House/Secret sauce that is made specifically for the burger

Burgers don’t have to have all these toppings, but if it has something that isn’t listed here, it won’t be able to play (that means no onion rings and aioli this time around!).

I’ve set the boundaries of Halifax/Dartmouth/Bedford for restaurants (it’s totally possible that I venture further in the future!), and after scouring MANY menus, I’ve made a list of 55 restaurants that have a qualifying burger on their menu.

Restaurants will be randomly put into nine different groups (six per group, except for one that will have seven) and each group will face off in nine rounds. The winner from each round will go to the finals, as well as one burger that almost won its round that I feel should still have moved on, for a total of ten finalists. I will then try all ten finalists again (just to be sure that each one continues to bring the greatness), and from that one burger will be crowned the king of Bacon Cheeseburgers!

And that’s it! Be sure to follow all the beefy updates on Instagram and Twitter, and show your love and support for the burger that you think will crush the competition!

Halifax Burger Week 2019 Wrap-Up

April 10, 2019February 3, 2020 / life-of-burgers / Leave a comment

Big, spicy flavours, creative meat combinations, and non-burger dishes in burger form were just a few of the trends that appeared for the 2019 edition of Halifax Burger Week, and with over 140 options this year, dedicated burger fans had their work cut out for them if they wanted to experience all the tasty choices being offered!

While the numbers haven’t been officially announced yet, from the amounts slowly trickling in from restaurants on social media, it appears that this has also been another great year in support of Feed Nova Scotia. I have no doubt that the total donation this year will be a HUGE help in supplying food banks, shelters, and meal programs across the province with items to help those in need. If you are still looking to donate, or you want to volunteer, I strongly encourage you to check out their website and see how you can help!

I managed to get my hands on 31 of the burgers that were offered this year, and even though there were a few that I didn’t get to, I do feel like I hit most of the spots that were getting a lot buzz throughout the week.

There were a lot of really delicious, well thought out burgers this year, and despite A LOT of mind-changing and deliberating, I finally settled on my Top 3 burgers of the event, along with ten Honourable Mentions that also deserve some time in the spotlight. Read on to see which burgers were top of the class for Halifax Burger Week 2019!

Halifax Burger Week 2019 Preview – Part 4

March 27, 2019April 10, 2019 / life-of-burgers / Leave a comment

It’s FINALLY Halifax Burger Week eve, and soon restaurants across the city will be packed full of people looking for that next great burger, all while contributing to Feed Nova Scotia.

Over the last few days, I’ve been sharing some early looks and insights into some of the burgers being offered this year (you can find the previous burgs in Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3), and I have three more for your consideration before the festivities get underway. Check out the the burger options from Black Sheep, Relish, and Vandal Doughnuts!

(Also, if you haven’t checked out all of the #HFXBurgerWeek giveaways I’ve been doing over on Instagram & Twitter (@lifeofburgers), be sure to go take a look and win yourself some Burger Week burgers!)

Black Sheep

Halifax Burger Week 2019 Preview – Part 3

March 26, 2019March 27, 2019 / life-of-burgers / 1 Comment

In two days the burger flood gates will open, and the city of Halifax will be chowing down on ample amounts of burgs of all shapes and sizes. It doesn’t matter if you’re a seasoned veteran or a Burger Week newbie, picking from 140 burgers is a daunting task, and I want to try and make your decisions a little easier.

I’ve already covered seven other burgers in Part 1 and Part 2, and in Part 3 I have four more for your viewing pleasure. Here’s the 2019 Burger Week burgers from The Barrington, Krave, Antojo, and RumbleFish!

The Barrington

Halifax Burger Week 2019 Preview – Part 2

March 25, 2019March 26, 2019 / life-of-burgers / 2 Comments

We are now three days out from Halifax Burger Week, and you can almost hear the stomachs growling in anticipation.

I’m assuming by now that you’ve put somewhat of a list together of burgers that you want to check off your Passport (because only a crazy person would go into a 140-burger Burger Week without some sort of game plan), but just in case you need some further inspiration, I’ve got you covered with the Preview Series once again!

For Part 2 of the series (you can take a look at Part 1 here) I have an early look at the burgers being slung by Durty Nelly’s, Harbour City, The Auction House, and Stubborn Goat, for Burger Week 2019!

(Also, if you haven’t checked out all of the #HFXBurgerWeek giveaways I’ve been doing over on Instagram (@lifeofburgers), be sure to go take a look and win yourself some Burger Week burgers!)

Durty Nelly’s

Halifax Burger Week 2019 Preview – Part 1

March 24, 2019March 25, 2019 / life-of-burgers / 3 Comments

Annnnd we’re back! It seems like only yesterday we were trying to fit Black Sheep’s beast of a burger in our mouths, and waiting in line for forty-five minutes at Vandal (my biggest regret of last year was trying and failing to get my hands on that Wake N’ Bacon!), but somehow Halifax Burger Week has snuck up on us again, and my body is ready.

There is around 140 options this year, which makes me a little nostalgic for the 59 burger year that was 2015. Not because I don’t love being surrounded by a plethora of delicious burgers, but it was just easier to decide which ones to try (I actually tried them all that year but that’s a whole other story). Luckily, restaurants were kind enough to fire up the grills a bit early for me so I could try out some of them ahead of schedule, and report my findings back to you!

For Part 1 of the 2019 Preview Series, I cover what HopYard, Little Fish, and Tempo will be cooking up, come March 28th!

(Also, if you haven’t checked out all of the #HFXBurgerWeek giveaways I’ve been doing over on Instagram (@lifeofburgers), be sure to go check them out and win yourself some Burger Week burgers!)

HopYard

Burger #63 – The Smoke Burger (Durty Nelly’s)

January 14, 2019January 14, 2019 / life-of-burgers / Leave a comment

Way back in 2014, when Life of Burgers was still pretty new, I paid a visit to Durty Nelly’s one evening where I found a burger that thoroughly impressed me. It was called the Whiskey Smoke Burger, and between the onion rings, the whiskey apple BBQ sauce, and the Guinness honey mustard, it quickly became one of my favourite burgers in the city.

However, it is normal for restaurants to change up their menus from time to time (which can be either really great or a swing and a miss), and unfortunately the Whiskey Smoke Burger didn’t make the cut during one of these changes and I had to say goodbye to a burger that treated me right.

While that one may be gone, it just so happens that there is another burger on the menu that has many similarities to the old one, with a few changes. I stopped by to try The Smoke Burger, hopeful that it would be just as good as the one I had 4 years ago.

Stats

From the menu: “Smoked garlic aioli, bacon, smoked cheddar, BBQ sauce, lettuce, pickle, onion rings”

Burger #62 – Le Nordique (Relish)

October 31, 2018October 31, 2018 / life-of-burgers / Leave a comment

It’s been fairly quiet here over at Life of Burgers, due largely in part to an extremely busy work schedule. Working 70 hour weeks for the last 9 months was great for the bank account, but it didn’t really allow much time to get my hands on some tasty burgs.

Luckily, the film season is slowing down now for the year in Nova Scotia, which means I’m ready to make up for some lost time and get down to some burger business!

To get me back on track, I swung by Relish and ordered up Le Nordique, and a Centurion poutine to accompany it!

Stats

From the menu: “The Rookie (roasted garlic mayo, lettuce, tomato, beet relish) with Swiss cheese, back bacon, dijon, and caramelized onions”

Halifax Burger Week 2018 Wrap-Up

April 6, 2018April 9, 2019 / life-of-burgers / Leave a comment

Another Halifax Burger Week has come and gone, and this year was the biggest one yet. A whopping 125 restaurants took part in this year’s festivities, which has quickly become one of the largest food events in Halifax!

This year was full of big new burgers, some classic favourites, and a whole lot of variety. There were patties of all shapes and sizes, made from a wide range of different products, and despite there even being some creations that don’t really fall into the definition of what a burger is, a great, meaty (or not-so-meaty in the case of the amazing veggie burgers) time was had by all!

Not only did Haligonians hit the streets hard in search of that next great burger, they also came together and raised a staggering $113,101 for Feed Nova Scotia (that’s over 160,000 meals!). You crushed it Halifax, and I’m beyond impressed!

While I did miss out on a couple of burgers I wanted to chow down on this year (not for lack of trying – I’m looking at you Vandal Doughnuts!), I did get my hands on a lot of great entries, and yet again I had the difficult task of trying to pick my faves. There were some they clearly stood out above the rest, but overall there wasn’t many burgers I tried this time around that I wouldn’t go for again if I was given the chance.

Read on to find out my top picks of Halifax Burger Week 2018, as well as some Honourable Mentions!

Were there any burgers that you absolutely loved? Let me know over on Instagram and Twitter!

Top 3

Black Sheep – The Whole Farm

Halifax Burger Week 2018 Preview – Part 3

March 21, 2018March 31, 2018 / life-of-burgers / Leave a comment

Happy Halifax Burger Week eve! Tomorrow the streets will be filled with burger-hungry Haligonians wandering from restaurant to restaurant in hopes of finding that next great burger.

You’ve got a lot of choices this year, so it’s time to take a look at another three that you should probably put to the test on your burger adventures over the next 7 days!

Get ready for the pre-Burger Week stomach growls as you learn all about the burgers from Primal, Harbour City Bar & Grill, and The Barrington Steakhouse!

If you missed the other instalments in the Preview Series, check out Part 1 and Part 2 for six other tasty burgs!

Primal