The Burger Bar, Mandalay Bay

The Burger Bar, Mandalay Bay, Lunch (4/23/08)

So which came first, the idea for Jay and me to eat at Burger Bar or Giada's Weekend Getaways which showed her and her incredibly huge mouth inhaling a burger at said bar?

Does it really matter?

All I know is that when I saw the menu choices and the monster beef-patty she ended up creating on that particular episode one thing became crystal clear: we had to get ourselves some burger action in Vegas. So I did what I always do ... started googling and oogling and droogling. Imagine my joy upon discovering that the Burger Bar was located in Mandalay Place, which is the upscale shopping area located near the back of Mandalay Bay's casino near the House of Blues. Not only would we not have to leave the hotel ... we wouldn't even have to go outdoors ... a lazy-ass vacationers dream!

You'd probably like to know a little something about Hubert Keller's patty pad, right?

It's not your typical burger joint, that's for sure. The Burger Bar is touted as the ultimate burger experience, where the finest varieties of beef, turkey, buffalo, vegetarian, and vegan products are combined with a dizzying array of delicious toppings and fresh, fresh buns. Diners have the option of creating their own custom-burgers or ordering from a selection of chef's burgers among which is the Rossini, a $60 gourmet taste-treat made with Kobe beef, saute'ed foie gras, shaved truffles, and Madeira sauce. It was a bit much for us (especially me) but I'm sure someone out there simply adores it.

The menu is quite extensive and rather than list it all here I will take the lazy way out and urge you to examine Burger Bar's on-line menu and dream of the ultimate burger you'd create for yourself! The restaurant was a popular dining choice, and every time we wandered past it there was a wait for a table - on the afternoon that we finally created some space in our schedule for this experience we waited about 20 minutes to be seated, and I believe we arrived close to two o'clock in the afternoon.

There were plenty of four-topper tables scattered around the place, a long bar with lots of seating, and a wall of cozy booths with high wooden backs that provided a real sense of privacy from diners in booths on either side. We were lucky enough to be seated in a booth and were quickly introduced to our waitress, who was very friendly and efficient. To start, Jay and I each requested a large glass of refreshing water and a pint of Kronenbourg 1666. Burger Bar has a nice selection of draft beers, including Bass, Becks, Boddingtons, Guiness, Harp, Spaten, and Stella Artois. Bottled beers included Sam Adams, Corona, Heineken, Grolsch, Pete's Wicked Ales, and Red Stripe. You just don't know how wonderful it was to see a beer menu that offered such a wide variety of domestic and imported beers while completely snubbing Anheuser-Busch. When one lives in Stinktown and ventures forth to eat, it is not always easy to find beers outside the AB sphere of influence ... although, last weekend we found a place that offered a really tasty Scotch Ale that we tried for the first time and it was excellent!

Back to the matter at hand.

Please keep both glasses filled ...


I did not need to spend much time with the menu - I knew from the moment I scanned the restaurant's website that I was going to order the $16 American Kobe Beef Burger. Here's the actual menu description: this American Kobe Beef from Snake River melts in your mouth, tender with an unmatched flavor, this is the most expensive beef in the world for the most discriminating palate. I ordered mine cooked medium, served on a plain old boring bun with American Cheese and Bacon and traditional Skinny Fries. Fresh tomatoes, lettuce, onions, and a zingy, zesty dill pickle were all included on the side.

Mmmmmm, Kobe Beef!


Jay ordered the $16 Buffalo Burger which the menu describes thus: raised in Wyoming, this buffalo meat is lean, low calorie, low fat, and low cholesterol - extremely rewarding with a great taste. He ordered his cooked medium, on a Ciabatta Bun with Cheddar Cheese and Jalapeno Bacon to offset the healthiness of the meat. My daring darling ordered the restaurant's specialty Sweet Potato french fries to go along with his burger.

Bison Burger with Sweet Taters ...


I thoroughly enjoyed my choice. It was cooked perfectly - pink all the way through, and tender, juicy, and bursting with flavor. The cheese was melted over the top of the beef, and then covered with two slices of bacon cooked just the way I like it; firm but not crispy. And the fries were delicious - hot, salty, and lightly crisp on the outside and steamy and pulpy on the inside. They were delicious and could only be further enhanced by cheap yellow mustard!

You wanna see the inside of my Kobe Beef burger???

Go on, have a bite - you know you want to!


Jay equally enjoyed his choice - his beef was leaner than mine and perhaps not quite as tender, but it was still very juicy and flavorful. I tried a bite of the buffalo and it definitely had a distinct flavor that I'm not completely sold on, but Jay really likes it and that's what matters. I also tried one of his sweet potato fries - I'm not a fan of sweet potatoes unless they're mushed up with lots of butter and brown sugar, so I didn't care for these. Jay, however, thought they were excellent and highly recommends that you order them the next time a meal at Burger Bar presents itself for the taking.

So, you wanna see the guts of Jay's buffalo burger?

All forms of roaming animal make for a succulent meal.


There may be those among you who will be disappointed to learn that we did not order dessert. Since we knew that we would be "troughing" at Le Atelier later in the evening we played it safe and stopped at the full tummy marker rather than pushing the needle to replete (that would come later). And to be honest, we didn't find the dessert options all that appealing, but I will list them here so that you can make up your own minds.

Chocolate Burger: Warm donut, chocolate ganache, passion fruit, strawberry, and mint.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Burger: Warm donut, peanut butter mousse, raspberry jelly, and kiwi.

Creamy Cheese Cake Burger: Warm donut, cheese cake, and caramelized pineapple.

In the end, Jay and I think that the Burger Bar completely lived up to the hype. The food was terrific and the selections were varied and inventive. Certainly pricier than most burger places but worth the money and worth the wait!

Get thee hence to Burger Bar!