B.A.D. Burger: EVill's New 24-hr Breakfast Diner

Breakfast day or night on Ave A

It's finally here (said with a naughty grin).

A gut-busting menu of double patty burgers, big breakfasts, creamy milkshakes, and homemade desserts all available 24/7. Eat in or delivery. And free WiFi. That's the beauty - and  danger - of B.A.D. (breakfast all day) Burger, the new East Village outpost of the Williamsburg original.

After months of delays, doors opened last week.

A genial staff is eager to please and acknowledges there are kinks to work through in the opening weeks. The dining room is just as cheery as the team. Tunes, bright red benches, and b/w checkerboard tiles keep the vibe fun.

Shroom burger

So how's the food? It's a work in progress. The good news is the beef. Kobe beef ground in house yields quality, flavorful patties. The Shroom burger ($10), two 4-oz beef patties (or one 8-oz) topped with a portobello mushroom and creamy peppercorn sauce, works. But the Signature BAD with chimichurri sauce and jack cheese ($8) could stand to lose the cheese entirely.

Tasty pickle chips with chipotle mayo

We realized after the fact that lettuce, tomato and onions are available on demand only. But it would help if the servers offered them upfront.

The limp hand-cut fries needed another minute in the fryer. And the buns are on the soft, squishy side, not ideal for holding up a big burger. Pickle chips ($6), on the other hand, are perfectly fried morsels of battered goodness.

I applaud the easy-on-the-wallet prices. And the wide selection of vegan and gluten free options. And even the 18 homemade dipping sauces for a buck apiece, especially the mango chutney, a gingery blend that perks up the fries.

Coconut cake (b) and Red Velvet cake (f)

If you've left room for dessert, you'll have a full selection of fresh cakes, pies, sundaes, and even a choco-banana chimichanga to pad the waistline. Go ahead. You know you want to. The creamy coconut cake ($4) was moist; the Red Velvet cake ($4) was dry.

In a few weeks, I'm sure B.A.D. will have found its groove (a wine and beer license is on the way too). Cause I'm coming back for some apple, walnut, cinnamon pancakes.

171 Ave A
Between 10th + 11th Sts.
212 477 7727

Miss Lily's Escape to Jamaica for Lunch

Try a jerk pork burger today. Yeah mon.

Miss Lily's is now open for lunch. That's good news if you want to avoid the hoards of beautiful people cramming in at night. And just want an escapist mid-day break to the islands. You will be transported. You will be well fed. You will leave recharged, maybe with a little reggae sway in your step.

It's hard not to be seduced by Serge Becker's (La Esquina, The Box) latest red-hot venture in the Village. Yes, the staff is beautiful in the diner-cum-bar, but so is the food. Truth be told, we went in prepared to try the signature jerk chicken, but got swayed by the Other White Meat. The jerk pork burger ($13), aromatic with allspice, was just excellent. The juicy, spicy patty is made even tastier with pickled onions, creamy avocado and mango chutney. A standout NY burger for sure.

A chilled afternoon

Wash it all down with a bottle of Ting, an all natural soda made with 100% Jamaican grapefruit.

Jerk chicken next time. Or maybe oxtail stew. Hmmm, curry lobster roll, anyone?


132 W. Houston
Between Sullivan + MacDougal Sts.
646 588 5375

The Burger Joint: One Messy Classic

Pass the napkins

The last place you'd expect to find a greasy burger joint, not to mention one of the city's finest, is in the lobby of chic Le Parker Meridien hotel in Midtown. But that's what makes this odd couple work beautifully.

Burgers, not signage, are taken seriously

Only in New York.

Walk through the hotel's glass front entrance and follow the scent of grilled meat to The Burger Joint. You won't have to go far and you won't see any signage.

Continue just past reception and take a left down the tiny hallway flanked by a set of floor length velvet curtains. Look for the beckoning neon burger on the far wall. And step inside a not-so-secret little NYC burger institution.

The menu is very limited and step-by-step ordering instructions marked on the wall are Soup Naziesque. Better know what you want before ordering. Burgers, fries, sodas, beer and shakes. Not so complicated.

The cheese burger with 'the works' ($7.35) is one hot greasy mess. But it goes down oh so good. Its dense, juicy beef patty is sandwiched between the standard pickles, onions, tomatoes, mayo. The fat is already seeping through the paper wrapper with your first bite.

Fries ($3.67) are hot and crispy. Shakes ($5.05) are thick and creamy.

"No burger for you!'

Movie posters, framed reviews and graffiti all adorn the booth-lined walls. Music is blaring. Burgers are sizzling. And there is always a line. So order, eat, and scram. But you'll be glad you did.

The Burger Joint at Le Parker Meridien
119 W 56th St near 6th Ave
Thurs - Sun, 11am - 11:30 pm
Fri - Sat, 11am - midnight
212 708 7414

Bottomless Ribs

All-u-can-eat ribs await

Hurry! Only three more Wednesdays are left to enjoy RUB's $25.95 all-you-can-eat ribs special. The Chelsea BBQ joint's sixth anniversary deal comes with two sides and unlimited sodas each Wednesday through May.

What a deal.

Slabs of St. Louis cut (the bigger, meatier sparerib) or baby back ribs (the smaller and leaner cut) are accompanied by heaping servings of delicious sides. Try the seasoned thin onion strings that melt in your mouth, or tangy greens with pork. The interior is nothing to write home about but the service more than makes up for it. Staff is accommodating and they keep it coming until you're ready to explode. 

But don't do that. Save yourself for the the Secret Monday Night-only burger special, which I hear is amazing and first come, first served.   

208 W 23rd St (between 7/8th Aves)
212 524 4303