
Adrift is a little joint in Anacortes with a high-priced menu and a reputation for great food. My partner in culinary critique and I decided this would be our next stop on our cheeseburger journey.
The place itself is dutifully decorated with all manner of maritime art and knick knacks, including spectacular full-body tattoo designs, and the tables are covered in bright sheets of copper. The booths are made of high-end, well sanded plywood with bookshelves cleverly built in. You look around and know that care has been put into the styling of this sea-faring establishment.
We were both very excited about The Skagit Burger, made with Skagit-raised grass-fed, premium natural beef. Kurt ordered a crab scramble. When the food came to the table, I could barely contain my excitement. The burger was THICK, obviously hand-formed, and it sat on a lovely toasted bun. Next to it sat a pile of artfully seasoned fries. My mouth watered just looking at this amazing plate of food.
Kurt was also visibly excited by this vision of loveliness.
But some food is just unrealized potential. Some food disappoints. Unfortunately, this burger, for me, fell into this category. While the burger was thick, it had very little flavor. While the bun was toasted, it was not toasted enough to create a texture contrast. While the balsamic glazed onions were made in house, they disappeared on the burger, leaving me to wonder what would have happened if they had simply used raw onions and pickles instead of this awkward trend of a tweener. (A tweener is something that is a combination of two things, but has no real defining characteristics of its own. It gets lost and is actually less than the sum of its parts.)
The scores were as follows:
KURT:
SARA:
While the burger itself was 12.75, I ended up paying two extra dollars for a slice of cheese, which drove the value score down in the end. Additionally, while the fries were well-seasoned, some of them were not cooked through, which left me wondering why they didn't cut their fries more evenly. The other question that came to my mind was, where was the tomato? I mean, I understand that at this point, most tomatoes are mere shadows of what tomatoes once were, but this burger needed it. It needed the crispness of a good pickle, the sharpness of a fresh onion.
I wanted more from this burger, as did Kurt. We both felt that just a couple of tweaks could have elevated this promising plate into the top three at least. For the record, Kurt's scramble was one of the best we have had in a long time. The eggs were perfectly cooked and the flavor of the ingredients complimented each other perfectly.
Looking around the restaurant, I know the people running Adrift have it in them, they have all the ingredients to make an amazing burger.
The place itself is dutifully decorated with all manner of maritime art and knick knacks, including spectacular full-body tattoo designs, and the tables are covered in bright sheets of copper. The booths are made of high-end, well sanded plywood with bookshelves cleverly built in. You look around and know that care has been put into the styling of this sea-faring establishment.
We were both very excited about The Skagit Burger, made with Skagit-raised grass-fed, premium natural beef. Kurt ordered a crab scramble. When the food came to the table, I could barely contain my excitement. The burger was THICK, obviously hand-formed, and it sat on a lovely toasted bun. Next to it sat a pile of artfully seasoned fries. My mouth watered just looking at this amazing plate of food.
Kurt was also visibly excited by this vision of loveliness.
But some food is just unrealized potential. Some food disappoints. Unfortunately, this burger, for me, fell into this category. While the burger was thick, it had very little flavor. While the bun was toasted, it was not toasted enough to create a texture contrast. While the balsamic glazed onions were made in house, they disappeared on the burger, leaving me to wonder what would have happened if they had simply used raw onions and pickles instead of this awkward trend of a tweener. (A tweener is something that is a combination of two things, but has no real defining characteristics of its own. It gets lost and is actually less than the sum of its parts.)
The scores were as follows:
KURT:
- Flavor: 5.5
- Juiciness: 9
- Bun: 8
- Vegetables: 5
- Source: 9
- Synergy: 6
- Value: 6
SARA:
- Flavor: 5
- Juiciness: 9.5
- Bun: 7.5
- Vegetables: 4
- Source: 9
- Synergy: 4
- Value: 4
While the burger itself was 12.75, I ended up paying two extra dollars for a slice of cheese, which drove the value score down in the end. Additionally, while the fries were well-seasoned, some of them were not cooked through, which left me wondering why they didn't cut their fries more evenly. The other question that came to my mind was, where was the tomato? I mean, I understand that at this point, most tomatoes are mere shadows of what tomatoes once were, but this burger needed it. It needed the crispness of a good pickle, the sharpness of a fresh onion.
I wanted more from this burger, as did Kurt. We both felt that just a couple of tweaks could have elevated this promising plate into the top three at least. For the record, Kurt's scramble was one of the best we have had in a long time. The eggs were perfectly cooked and the flavor of the ingredients complimented each other perfectly.
Looking around the restaurant, I know the people running Adrift have it in them, they have all the ingredients to make an amazing burger.
Know someone who lives in The Skagit and wants a tasty burger? Then share this bad boy!! We are going to be eating tons of burgers this winter, it would be a shame for anyone to miss out!!