White Maple Cafe, Ridgewood, Nj
What:
Beef Burger - Grafton Village cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato relish, spicy mayo, brioche bun.
Bacon Grilled Cheese - cheddar cheese, bacon, tomato jam, multi-grain bread.
Vanilla Honey Milkshake.
Comments:
Beef Burger - Grafton Village cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato relish, spicy mayo, brioche bun.
Bacon Grilled Cheese - cheddar cheese, bacon, tomato jam, multi-grain bread.
Vanilla Honey Milkshake.
Comments:
In a nutshell, the WMC's burger was top notch.
But first things first; the popcorn placed on our table along with menus and water glasses was quite different from the usual pre order offerings. Taste after taste I could not place all the flavorings on the popcorn so I had to ask... and when I did, the waiter shot me a quick answer which told me I was not the first curious patron to inquire.
The popcorn ingredients are: *nutritional yeast, cumin, salt, sugar and garlic powder resulting in a most addictive blend of seasonings. Didn't see that coming.
The burger was better than I had hoped for, from it's perfectly charred artisan brioche bun to the quality and flavor of the beef. The toppings were perfectly understated, adding flavors and textures without ever overpowering this burgers great flavor. And the flavor of the meat really was great. I can't remember what ratios of chuck, etc, etc, the manager told me, but I do remember him saying it took over a dozen tries to get it right. And right it is. I found myself rationing bites because I wanted this perfect medium rare beauty to last as long as possible.
Other than the meat, the stand-out item for me was the bun. It was a perfect, "real brioche" bun, which is a very rare commodity in this world of fake potato'y brioche imposters.
I'm not a French fry guy by any stretch, but the fries were decent, I'm guessing they may have been twice fried.
My honey milkshake was ridiculously good, although I may be biased as I secretly enjoy honey drizzled on my vanilla ice cream when I'm home.
Though I did not taste it, the bacon grilled cheese looked fantastic, although I think it may have been a bit too cheesy for my friend. (As if).
Lastly, and for the sake of constructive criticism, I think it only fair to mention to the WMC folks that the trio of deviled eggs we shared for an appy were also good, but could easily have been a knockout. They were served, alas, much too cold, and consequently had a hard refrigerator texture to them which caused the filling to separate from the egg white making them a challenge to eat. The cold also kept the delicate flavors of the fillings from being fully transferred to my taste buds.
We noticed this when our waiter came to our table shortly after we ordered and announced that they were out of one of the deviled egg flavors and that it was being substituted with a Sriracha flavor. We were fine with that, however when the dish was served, we noticed the two other flavors had the excessive coldness and fridge taste, while the latest flavor was definitely freshly made. If they had all been served like that one (close to room temp) they would have been perfect. This was by no means a major issue, however for me, a guy who likes to eat deviled eggs while they are still warm, it was disappointing.
The overall experience at The White Maple Cafe was a good one and I can't wait to get back for another burger. No, I don't think I'll be able to order anything else until I try that awesome burger again.
This burger receives a 9.7\10 on the BC rating scale.
*(Nutritional yeast is a deactivated yeast,which is sold commercially as a food product which sometimes takes the form of a yellow powder. It's strong flavor has been described as nutty, cheesy, or creamy and since it is a significant source of some B-complex vitamins, it's also popular with vegans.)
PS: Apologies for the crappy photos...
But first things first; the popcorn placed on our table along with menus and water glasses was quite different from the usual pre order offerings. Taste after taste I could not place all the flavorings on the popcorn so I had to ask... and when I did, the waiter shot me a quick answer which told me I was not the first curious patron to inquire.
The popcorn ingredients are: *nutritional yeast, cumin, salt, sugar and garlic powder resulting in a most addictive blend of seasonings. Didn't see that coming.
The burger was better than I had hoped for, from it's perfectly charred artisan brioche bun to the quality and flavor of the beef. The toppings were perfectly understated, adding flavors and textures without ever overpowering this burgers great flavor. And the flavor of the meat really was great. I can't remember what ratios of chuck, etc, etc, the manager told me, but I do remember him saying it took over a dozen tries to get it right. And right it is. I found myself rationing bites because I wanted this perfect medium rare beauty to last as long as possible.
Other than the meat, the stand-out item for me was the bun. It was a perfect, "real brioche" bun, which is a very rare commodity in this world of fake potato'y brioche imposters.
I'm not a French fry guy by any stretch, but the fries were decent, I'm guessing they may have been twice fried.
My honey milkshake was ridiculously good, although I may be biased as I secretly enjoy honey drizzled on my vanilla ice cream when I'm home.
Though I did not taste it, the bacon grilled cheese looked fantastic, although I think it may have been a bit too cheesy for my friend. (As if).
Lastly, and for the sake of constructive criticism, I think it only fair to mention to the WMC folks that the trio of deviled eggs we shared for an appy were also good, but could easily have been a knockout. They were served, alas, much too cold, and consequently had a hard refrigerator texture to them which caused the filling to separate from the egg white making them a challenge to eat. The cold also kept the delicate flavors of the fillings from being fully transferred to my taste buds.
We noticed this when our waiter came to our table shortly after we ordered and announced that they were out of one of the deviled egg flavors and that it was being substituted with a Sriracha flavor. We were fine with that, however when the dish was served, we noticed the two other flavors had the excessive coldness and fridge taste, while the latest flavor was definitely freshly made. If they had all been served like that one (close to room temp) they would have been perfect. This was by no means a major issue, however for me, a guy who likes to eat deviled eggs while they are still warm, it was disappointing.
The overall experience at The White Maple Cafe was a good one and I can't wait to get back for another burger. No, I don't think I'll be able to order anything else until I try that awesome burger again.
This burger receives a 9.7\10 on the BC rating scale.
*(Nutritional yeast is a deactivated yeast,which is sold commercially as a food product which sometimes takes the form of a yellow powder. It's strong flavor has been described as nutty, cheesy, or creamy and since it is a significant source of some B-complex vitamins, it's also popular with vegans.)
PS: Apologies for the crappy photos...
