Glancing through this thread, it is interesting to note my agreements and disagreements with the commentary. I guess that is just that, the qualities that make up everyone's best burger differ quite a bit. In agreement with Santander, I must say the the Skylark serves up a mean burger. The burgers are always cooked to perfection (except for the fateful spring of 2010 when their cook was "in a really bad mood" as the bartenders told me...), served up in a basket with a side of extra crispy tots. Definitely the most consistently delicious burger that I have had in Chicago... it doesn't hurt that the Skylark is also one of my favorite happy houring bars.
Anyways, because of our love for the Skylark burgers, we have started the Burger-Off using the Skylark as our gold standard. We are only 3 burgers in, but I figured that I would post the scoreboard and our results so far. And as we add Burger-Off challenges, I will definitely try to remember to post them on LTH.
#1 Skylark vs. Burger Bar... Skylark 1, Challengers 0
#2 Skylark vs. Revolution Brewing... Skylark 2, Challengers 0
#3 Skylark vs. Owen & Engine... Skylark 2, Challengers 1
SKYLARK VS BURGER BAR
At Burger bar, I ordered a burger with horseradish cheese, sauteed onions, pickled onions, fried onions, lettuce, tomato and avocado. Medium rare, as always. The sauteed onions were just ok, but the fried onions were delicious- thin & crispy. The pickled red onions were good. The shoestring fries were lighter than tater tots, so that was a nice change. The horseradish cheese barely satisfied my craving of crappy, processed cheese as it was an odd flavor/texture. The burger was good... not great. The bun was a little too big & dense, the patty was a little too big for my preferences. The patty was good in flavor, but I missed a certain oomph- like a grilled flavor or smoky flavor. Bottom line, I prefer the Skylark burgers which are a few bucks cheaper too boot.
Skylark 1 - Competitors- 0
SKYLARK VS REVOLUTION BREWING CO
At Revolution, I ordered a burger with mushroom, fried shallots and gorgonzola. After the first few bites, I thought, hhmm this burger is OK... I'll enjoy it, even though the flavors of the toppings did not come through. A little salt fixed that somewhat. As I got into it about halfway, I decided it was one of the worst burgers I have ever had. The patty was huge! It was also shaped exactly like a hockey puck- compressed meat into an exact shape with sharp lines. I believe the biggest problem was in the cooking technique. Our theory is that they make these huge compressed patties, cook them in a combi-oven, then wait for the orders to come in. Then they throw them on a grill to warm them up & to get grill marks on the meat- the grill lines may as well have been drawn on. There was no true maillard reaction, which is what gives a burger that delicious crust and meaty flavor. I won't be back to Revolution, Skylark beats them to the curb in both flavor & value.
Skylark 2 - Competitors- 0
SKYLARK VS OWEN & ENGINE
As mentioned in my review of Owen & Engine, they have a great deal on burgers Tuesday nights [a burger, beer & bourbon for $14...!] Oh boy, is it worth it. First of all- it is a big, satisfying burger served with plenty of delicious fries with a malt mayonaise. The burger is served on a really soft, tasty bun that holds up to the dripping meat juices. The burger was cooked perfectly, with excellent meat flavor and a really nice caramelized crust. If we lived closer, I am sure we would be there at least once a month for the deal. While I still love my Skylark burger, O&E kicked it's ass.
Skylark 2 - Competitors- 1
Burgers are delicious!