- From Eater PDX
[Welcome to Snap Judgment, a new regular Blogtown feature wherein I’ll be dropping by places both old and just opened for a one-dish fly-by, and developing an opinion based on that singular experience. Basically, it’s the complete opposite of what I do each week for Last Supper. I don’t expect to get it right all the time. I do expect you to correct me.- PAC]
The only Micah Camden joint I’ve ever reviewed is Fats, and I was notably cranky (as was Camden based on the voicemail he left me after that particular review). But, it’s important to note I didn’t pan the food. In fact I feel I was pretty fair when you get right down to it. No love lost.
With the opening of Camden’s Little Big Burger [122 NW 10th], I’m going to concede that he has indeed created and empire. And after sitting down in this joint for a tallboy, a burger, and some French fries, I can honestly say my expectation were completely blown out of the water.
The important parts: Little Big Burger is all about its namesake. The menu is exceedingly short. You can get a burger, a burger with cheese, a veggie burger, French fries, a soda, a float, a beer… And that’s about it, folks. But there have been tons of places that have built an amazing reputation on few options. In-N-Out Burger comes to mind. In fact, Camden could have a rival here if he ever wanted to franchise this shit.
The less import but still important parts: The space is impressively cool. The graphic mural on the wall is striking and aggressive, as if a “normal” fast food chain had been dynamited and its remnants strung out along the wall. The service is quick and friendly, though being so new I think they’re still trying to find a rhythm with the POS situation. Also of note is the big selection of canned micros.
Some concerns: Lines here could be a serious issue; from the sounds of it their opening day was absolutely insane. But, like I said, they are pretty quick. I was in around 1 pm; there wasn’t a line and my food arrived promptly. I’m more concerned with the noise level. Even being just “kinda” busy, the place was very noisy. Also, with the front-and-center open kitchen, I’d like the line cooks to tell jokes or something. Admittedly, that may be going to far. (I’d forgotten my phone so I was a bit bored until the food arrived.)
The food situation: Yes, about that food! Goddamn. The burger at Little Big Burger exceeded my expectations. No shit, the thing is slider-small, it says so right on the front door, but it is delicious. From bun to beef it’s an excellent morsel and despite its size I did not feel cheated. Picklopolis pickles help the situation, as does the Cascade Natural Beef patty. I ordered mine with blue cheese, and they certainly didn’t skimp. The truffle fires are also quite good, and I believe they rival those coming out of Violetta’s small kitchen (which is saying something).
Agreed on all parts except the size of the burger. At $3.75 for a cheese burger, I should have to put the thing down once while eating it. In-N-Out’s Double Double hovers around $3, so a burger with size and quality can be achieved for less.
Tallperson, comparisons to In-N-Out in terms of price really aren’t fair – I shudder to think of what Camden’s paying for rent on that space.
In fact, if I have any doubts about it at this point, it’s a sneaking suspicion that he won’t be able to make his nut with food that cheap. He’ll have to make it up on volume – not sure if outdoor tables are part of the plan, but encouraging take-out would probably be advisable.
Yeah, I’d agree – you can’t really compare this to a huge fast food chain, for prices. $3.75 sounds great! This whole thing sounds great – I want to go!
But PAC, I’m not in the food service biz, so the acronym POS meant something else to me, and not Point-Of-Sale. Unless that IS what you meant?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m only complaining about the price-to-size ratio. The thing is damn near slider-size, which is too little for $3.75. And I’m only comparing it to INO because that’s honestly what the burger compares to, which is a compliment ’round these parts.
All-in-all, the place is still great.
Yeah, the INO comparison hit me almost immediately. And Reymont, I did mean Point-of-Sale. What’s POS in your industry, just curiously (crossing my fingers for something dirty!)
POS often means HIV+ I think? Well, it’s usually spelled POZ so maybe I don’t know what Reymont means.
What? It means Piece Of Shit! As in “That old truck is a real POS.” I really didn’t think that was an usual usage, either….sheesh!
While the burgers are great, it takes two + fries for a decent meal. That’s over $10 for what is still a small meal.
Burgers were great. Only complaint was the patties were seriously undercooked. Like RAW. I like rare, this was raw. And kind of gross.
I totally agree with TallPerson and I’m glad somebody else has pointed this out. $3.75 is too high for a tiny burger, no matter how good it tastes. There are enough other places in the Pearl to get normal-sized burgers in a comfy environment with waitstaff that I don’t see the point of paying that much for a micro-burger in a Subway-decor style joint. Just my 2 cents.
I disagree on these being overpriced. I had two on my first visit the other day and $7.50 is not a lot of money for plenty-o-food. A burger of comparable quality would cost $9-12 at most pubs, bistros, etc. I’ve never been to in-n-out, but can’t imagine the ingredients are of this caliber. BTW, I had the blue and to chevre and liked the chevre better. Mine were on the med-well side, but still quite tasty. Loved the fries.
The burgers are 4oz — that’s 1/4 lb for those of you who didn’t know what POS meant. Hardly a slider. That’s bigger than most drive-in or fast food burgers.
Sure, pereiracycles, you pay $9-$12 elsewhere but it’s for a FULL-sized burger WITH fries and it’s a sit-down place with waitstaff who come take your order, not just a walk-up counter.
Oh man, haha. @ Reymont… that should have been so obvious! What dunces. I guess since I read it as point of sale also, I just really couldn’t understand what other acronym it would be.
I read it as Point-of-Sale, too.
Just went there for lunch with my daughter. We both could not eat all 3 bites. It was so salty. We returned my burger to get another. It too was to salty. We spent $11 on 2 burgers, 1 fry, 1 drink. And left hungry. Burgerville beats this place hands down.