Bobby's Burger Palace

    On a recent stroll through the mall I was pleasantly surprised to discover that Bobby Flay's culinary empire had reached Long Island in the form of his burger joint named what else, but Bobby's Burger Palace (BBP for short).  Located in the space formerly occupied by another eatery, it's tucked away in a side corner on the first level of Roosevelt Field Mall.

     Upon entering, patrons are herded right away by "ropes" to a path of sorts towards the cashier that passes directly in front a giant replica of their menu. To the right of the row of registers is a small display of some of Bobby's cookbooks as well as sauces and ketchups on sale, just in case anyone wants to take home a bottle or two. The main dining area's lay out and decor give the place the vibe of an after office hours bar for young professionals rather than a fast food burger joint. It's well lighted, airy, with a relaxed atmosphere that's not hectic or crowded, although the latter could be due to it being slow at the time. The kitchen is partly visible from the tables where one can see and smell the orders being cooked.  I liked their version of counter seating that was done with a long, curvy kind of counter top unlike the usual boring straight counters lined with stools.

     The menu is a pretty straightforward selection of several kinds of burgers, some other sandwiches, salads, the usual sides, and beverages. Their beverage selection has an alcohol menu that includes wine and beer, as well as spiked milkshakes. I was quite tempted to try one of those but held back since I was the designated driver that day. Their food items are definitely on the pricier side compared to fast food burger places, which I guess they are aiming to be a more upscale version of.

     We had a bit of a wait at the cashier before someone came to take our orders, as no one was manning the register. Good thing one of the staff saw us and asked us if we were being helped. Not a deal breaker but definitely not good customer service in my book. The rest of our experience with the service was much better though.  The servers we had  were fast, friendly, didn't hover and quick to please. Once we had placed our orders we were given a number which we took to our table.  Our food and drinks came in just a few minutes, which I liked. I did notice though that neither the burgers nor the fries were piping hot when we got them. For this first visit I had the Dallas burger, described on the menu as a spice crusted burger with coleslaw, monterey jack cheese, bbq sauce and pickles. My husband had the Palace Classic Burger which is their take on the classic cheeseburger. It has american cheese (he loves american cheese), lettuce, tomato and red onion. We shared an order of their french fries that came with the BBP Fry Sauce and each had a dark chocolate milk shake, his with whipped cream on top. I liked their portions, not too large and not too small but just right. The burger was done properly and wasn't dry, the bun soft and just the right complement to the fillings. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to taste all the flavors properly since I had a cold.  But my husband and I both agreed that they were burgers done right. The shakes were nice and thick, not too sweet.  However, I was a bit (un)pleasantly surprised by the fries, which I felt were rather over done and tasted like ordinary home made fries. I was expecting something of higher quality considering they're supposed to be a step above fast food fries. The sauce was good though. Too bad we didn't notice the beer battered onion rings right away or we would've had those instead.

     Overall I was satisfied with my first experience at a Bobby Flay eatery and would definitely go back and try the other things on their menu. For a decent burger in a bit more upscale atmosphere, Bobby's Burger Place gets my vote.

© Margj Castillo, In Review, 2010 - Present.