Ok burger fans, are you ready for an old fashioned throw down?

Followers of Iron Chef Bobby Flay know his m.o. well. He has serious restaurants in Manhattan, and is a staple on the popular Food Network, including Boy Meets Grill and Throwdown, where he goes into a town and tries to outdo the reigning sheriff in whatever field, steaks, cupcakes, chili, Philly cheese steaks. Sometimes he wins and sometimes he loses. How did he do here on Long Island with his Bobby’s Burger Palace? You’ll find out!

Merrick: This place is a small storefront on a main street but offers up some big time treats. Appetizers include the usual suspects like wings and tenders, but how about something a little different, like homemade Guacamole served with tortilla chips. Or thick cut Black and Tan Beer battered Onion Rings. These bad boys are delicious and plentiful. And who could pass up an appetizer called “ZOP”…battered fried zucchini, buttermilk onion rings and cheddar filled jalapeno poppers served with 3 dipping sauces.
Ok, ok, enough of the small talk…on to the beef. The burgers are big time, enough for any challenger to take the gold cup. The original is a mammoth 9.5 ounces, oozing juices and cooked perfect. Or perhaps you want to try the Rodeo, with bbq sauce, melted cheddar cheese and onion rings. Want to go ethnic? Try the Chad with melted gorgonzola cheese and spicy buffalo wing sauce.
Make no mistake about it, Burger 9 Point 5 knows how to serve up a good meal and good prices. Great selection of food , and if you drop in for lunch, a combo is only $5.99 and includes burger, choice of fries, knish or corn and a fountain beverage. Watch out Bobby, this place is breathing down your neck.
Burger 9 Point 5 is located at 139B Merrick Ave, Merrick. (516) 543-4141; burger9point5.net.

Johnny Rockets

Roosevelt Field Mall; Broadway Mall and Tanger Outlets, Deer Park:  Johnny Rockets is an International restaurant chain that recreates the old style ice cream parlor/luncheonette complete with faux old advertising signs, a slick décor and lots of fun for all.

We sampled the Tanger Deer Park location on a recent Friday, and the place was packed with moms and their kids and local workers from the area stores.  We got there just as the staff was doing a little show tune number, an event that seems to happen on the half hour. Great for casual entertainment and it seemed to be enjoyed by both the young kids and the seniors.

Smith Haven Mall, Lake Grove:  Bobby Flay is a super cool guy who has a great TV personae, fun to watch, witty, humble at times, and extremely talented. The question then is, how did the Iron Chef mess up so bad?
I had waited to go to the Burger Palace after Newsday wrote that the fries were frozen and several blogs reported uneven dining. Finally, the time seemed right, the fries had been re-invented. I wish the rest of the Palace had been.
It would seem that someone with Bobby Flay’s experience and financial backing would put together a dining experience that was truly fun. Burgers, like BBQ is all about having fun, burgers are the ultimate comfort food.
The Burger Palace is the most sterile restaurant I’ve been in for a long time. Think Jetsons-like décor with very modern lines and colors, and nearly barren walls….nothing to look at, nothing to drool over, just orange and avocado walls and counters and walls and counters. Well, nearly nothing. If you consider huge pieces of artwork of two strips of bacon or avocados exciting, this is your place.
You place your order when you enter, take a seat, and the food is brought to your table. At 6:45 on a Tuesday night, dinner time, there were 6 customers in the place. It stayed that way for most of the time I was there.
I had this month’s special, the Cheyenne Burger, with smoked cheddar, onion strings (very aptly named) and bacon strips. When the burger arrived, I had to check under the cheese to make sure it was really there. It probably was about 4 ounces, maybe 5. The burger was very tasty, the strings were miniscule, one big fat onion ring would have been preferred, and the bacon was rubbery.
The fries were homemade and delicious, but would have enjoyed the accompanying dipping sauce more if half the fries had not been little stubs, hard for dipping without dipping your finger as well.
Other burger choices include the Dallas Burger, spice crusted with coleslaw, jack cheese, bbq sauce and pickles and the Miami Burger, pressed with ham, Swiss cheese , pickles, mustard and mayo.
On each table is a rack of sauces including jalapeno hot sauce, burger sauce, yellow mustard.  Whoa…..yellow mustard on gourmet burgers? Has the Iron Chef not heard of mustard with horseradish or even spicy brown? These would have been a better choice.
As I finished my burger, I lusted after the burger I had recently at Fatty Beltbuckles. a monster , dripping juice, overflowing from the bun. I ordered it at a BBQ joint because the guy next to me had one and I had to have one too. It looked that good.
The fountain selection is unbelievably pedestrian…Coke, diet Coke, Sprite, Fresca, Coke Zero, Cherry Coke. Wow, the Coke salesman must have made a score here. Hey Bobby, how about wondering over to the competition for some inspiration. At Five Guys you can get Dr. Pepper, Birch Beer, Orange (what restaurant doesn’t carry orange?), Fruit Punch for the little guys. Sure you can buy a bottled Boylan’s but are they re-fillable?
The burger was $7.50, the fries $2.50 and the Boylan $2.50. It came to $13.50 for a burger meal. Way too much for what you got.
Hey Bobby, come out to my neck of the woods sometime and I’ll take you right up the road from your place to the Good Steer, where the burgers are nirvana.  Or even better, maybe I can get a couple of the local guys together and we can head over to your place for a Throwdown.
Bobby’s Burger Palace is located at the entrance at 355 Smith Haven Mall, Lake Grove; (631) 382-9590; bobbysburgerpalace.com.

Burgers, Burgers Everywhere

Let's get something straight.  I don't consider myself an expert too often but when it comes to burgers, I am definitely well versed.  Years ago the veep of Burger King Long Island said, "You should be the patron saint of our industry."  And I am proud that a review of the famed Movenpick Restuarant in Zurich led the president of the company to send a letter to me that apologized for the food quality and service at his flagship restaurant.  "I only wish that I could stand next to each of my employees when they serve a customer," Mr. Prager said.  That out of the way, our hope here is, as always, to guide you to some shining stars and also point out the over rated or undeserving so you can avoid spending your hard earned bucks on junk.  First up is...

Five Guys Burgers and Fries    347 Hempstead Turnpike, Levittown

I really wanted to not like this place.  The walls are plastered with their awards from every part of the country; reviews of their burgers hit you in the face.  But, I have been to the mount and have seen the future of grilled beef and its name is...Five Guys.

Simply put, this burger is exquisite.  It is juicy, a $4.69 hamburger is actually a double and worth every penny.  They have the usual variations, bacon cheeseburger and so forth, but the plain hamburger is a tour de force.  And, it can be garnished with free toppings, including grilled onions, mayo, lettuce, grilled mushrooms, barbeque sauce and more, all at no additional cost.

The regular fries at $2.49 are a mountain of delicious spuds, crispy cooked Belgian style and worth every penny.  Simply put, Five Guys is the standard that all others have to be matched against.  They can be reached at 516-796-1237.

The challenger, wearing red trunks is...

American Roadside Burgers    80 E. Main Street, Smithtown

The brainchild of well-known chef John Tunney, his affection for burgers led to this outpost (there is another in Huntington Village).  No contest... we were sorely disappointed by ARB.  The hamburger at $3.22 was dry and over cooked.  Juice is something this burger could not produce.  Toppings are pedestrian, the onions are raw rather than grilled, and mustard is handed to you in a Gulden's packet.  We expected a lot better.  Fries were horrible.  Little shoe string potatoes, white and undercooked.  The kind of fries I would espect at a Burger King but not as good.  You can get the same taste at home with a bag of Pathmark fries.

The Smithtown loaction is quite sterile; there is none of the fun of Five Guys.  A semi attempt to be hip falls falt.  As was the Bosco soda we that we tried.

Kitchen staff appears to be disinterested.  The workers at Five Guys actually look like they're having fun flipping burgers.  If this is the best American Roadside can do, I wouldn't give up my day job being a famous chef if I were you, John.

Sometimes you find food in unexpected places.  This was the case with...

Lindenhurst Bagel & Deli   167 N. Wellwood Avenue, Lindenhurst

I was sucked into the store by the sign in the window that said simply "Great Hamburgers or something like that."  And here, for a meager $6.49 we received a feast that consisted of a delicious 8 oz burger on a roll, complete with bacon, cheese, lettuce, onions, tomato, French fries and a 16 oz drink.  I've been back three times and that food has been great each time.  They can be reached at 631-957-4589.

Browns Tavern    4 The Plaza, Locust Valley 

A great find.. Okay we're a bit snooty burgering in Locust Valley, but so what.  Browns is fresh ground meat from a local meat market that is grilled to perfection with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and fries.  The burger is big, juicy and has great taste.  The place is top notch, the ambiance is great, and its perfect for a date or to take the family.  And if you don't want the burger at $9, there is always the duck with cherry sauce or the sheparads pie.  The entire wait staff is great, friendly, helpful, and very quick.  They can be reached at 516-676-5793.

Did you ever feel disappointed after getting sucked in by hype?  That's the way I felt after eating at...

Mitchells    Long Beach Road, Oceanside

Driving by, I saw the sign in the window that said, "One of the 5 best dinners...Newsday."  There is also a Mitchell's in Valley Stream.  I'll give it to you quick and to the point.  A huge miss.  Burger was small, dry as hell.  I asked the waitress if the fries were fresh cut or frozen.  After she assured me they were fresh cut, she brings out fries that are white inside, barely cooked, and exactly what you would expect from frozen fries.  Like every bad order of fries you ever had from any bad greasy spoon.  What's this you say, that have an old fashioned cherry smash.  Their idea was to have a cherry at the bottom of the glass.  The drink had no taste...hello, have you ever tasted Boylans.  One is great and the other is dishwater.  Pass on this place.

Jackson Hole    35-01 Bell Blvd, Bayside

Many places in Manhattan but reviewed in Bayside.  Big 7 oz burger, very popular, they have about 25 varieties of burger including the guacomole burger.  The burgers are steamed; the fries are standard steak fries, a downer.  The bun is totally inadequate to stand up to the big boy burger.  A gun place with good food and many choices of food beside burgers.  Call 718-281-0300.

We have just touched the top of the skillet with this offering.  Think your favorite burger spot can contend?

Let us know

 Bountiful Gourmet by Richard Branciforte

Good Times Magazine

ALL AMERICAN BURGERS
4286 Merrick Road, Massapequa
We would be amateurs if we didn’t mention everyone’s favorite drive-in, All American Burgers in Massapequa. Try the double double for only $2.35. Great fries, rings, shakes, you name it ­ this is what America was built on. The true HAMBURGER JOINT on the Island. Over 40 years at this spot it won't make you unhappy at all. The perfect place to go after the beach, or the park, or camping, or a movie, or the mall or.... you get the picture.
We told you it was the best, now tell us.

Lounge Burger
Wantagh Ave, Levittown (516) 934-0900

-Pebblz 

GRILLFIRE
13 North Park Avenue, Rockville Centre (516) 678-1290

Anyone who knows me knows I love burgers. I recently had what possibly was one of the best I’ve ever encountered at Grillfire in Rockville Centre ­ huge, juicy, and perfectly cooked. Also in Rockville Centre is International Delights, featuring a superior bacon burger for only $7.95. Try the honey mustard, it’s homemade. And don’t forget to wash it all down with any of their 60 different flavors of gelato.

We told you it was the best, now tell us.

"Grillfire presents a creative burger menu including kobe beef, turkey burgers and a 'prime-cut' veggie burger."
- Sandy

CONTE'S BURGER HAVEN
76 E. Pulaski Rd, Huntington Station, (631) 421-5846

"Old fashioned burgers... like in The 50's"
- Andy

TWO MORROW'S PUB
298 East Main Street, Patchogue (631) 475-6335