Walking in to Big Scoop Sundae Palace is delightful. The giant lighted menu on the wall, the red and white lights, the happy and fun atmosphere created by the old fashioned booths and tables, and the hysterically strange clown sculptures behind the counter excited me and reminded me of my early childhood. In fact, I would say it even made me feel a bit more child-like than I often feel. Which is saying something.
The gigantic Big Scoop Exotic Sundae menu on the wall to the left of the front door had 24 amazing looking sundaes pictured on it, and it made me wish we were doing an ice cream sundae blog instead of a burger blog. I actually briefly wondered if they even had food there, as there was so much ice cream paraphernalia up front, but Kurt, my partner in culinary critique, assured me that they did, so we picked a table and sat down in one of the bright red booths.
The service was quite friendly, though a bit slow. I ordered the Big Scoop cheeseburger basket as our project would dictate, and Kurt ordered the Avocado burger, noting the presence of sprouts on that one. I asked him if he liked sprouts because he liked to keep it fresh, and he looked at me like I was crazy. Which, looking back, now seems like a reasonable response.
Our burgers arrived in red plastic burger baskets lined with parchment. The fries, unfortunately, were crinkle cut, and were nothing special really. The burger, for the most part, was similar; a standard pre-formed patty, a sesame seed bun that smashed down when you held it, fresh lettuce, tomatoes, and onions, and pickles that tasted like they had been in the brine a few years too long. In sum; a conventional food service burger.
Neither Kurt nor I thought it was anything special, and this opinion was confirmed when the server asked the owner who was sitting in the booth next to us where the meat came from. Food Services of America was her response, and later, when she got up, she also gave us a sideways look like we were crazy. Looking back, that also seems like a reasonable response. I have to admit, sometimes, when I ask the servers where the meat comes from, I feel like I am one of those ridiculous characters in Portlandia.
To add to this uneventful burger, Kurt realized about halfway through eating his that there were no sprouts on it. Not that it would have made much of a difference.
I was very happy with my milkshake. It far and away blew the shake I had had the week before at Red Robin out of the water. In fact, I would say that after drinking the milkshake at Big Scoop, it made me wish I wasn't full so I could have dessert. Yes, this milkshake had the power to make me want to stuff myself.
The scores were as follows:
The gigantic Big Scoop Exotic Sundae menu on the wall to the left of the front door had 24 amazing looking sundaes pictured on it, and it made me wish we were doing an ice cream sundae blog instead of a burger blog. I actually briefly wondered if they even had food there, as there was so much ice cream paraphernalia up front, but Kurt, my partner in culinary critique, assured me that they did, so we picked a table and sat down in one of the bright red booths.
The service was quite friendly, though a bit slow. I ordered the Big Scoop cheeseburger basket as our project would dictate, and Kurt ordered the Avocado burger, noting the presence of sprouts on that one. I asked him if he liked sprouts because he liked to keep it fresh, and he looked at me like I was crazy. Which, looking back, now seems like a reasonable response.
Our burgers arrived in red plastic burger baskets lined with parchment. The fries, unfortunately, were crinkle cut, and were nothing special really. The burger, for the most part, was similar; a standard pre-formed patty, a sesame seed bun that smashed down when you held it, fresh lettuce, tomatoes, and onions, and pickles that tasted like they had been in the brine a few years too long. In sum; a conventional food service burger.
Neither Kurt nor I thought it was anything special, and this opinion was confirmed when the server asked the owner who was sitting in the booth next to us where the meat came from. Food Services of America was her response, and later, when she got up, she also gave us a sideways look like we were crazy. Looking back, that also seems like a reasonable response. I have to admit, sometimes, when I ask the servers where the meat comes from, I feel like I am one of those ridiculous characters in Portlandia.
To add to this uneventful burger, Kurt realized about halfway through eating his that there were no sprouts on it. Not that it would have made much of a difference.
I was very happy with my milkshake. It far and away blew the shake I had had the week before at Red Robin out of the water. In fact, I would say that after drinking the milkshake at Big Scoop, it made me wish I wasn't full so I could have dessert. Yes, this milkshake had the power to make me want to stuff myself.
The scores were as follows:
KURT:
- Flavor: 4
- Juiciness: 4
- Vegetables: 6.5
- Bun: 5
- Source of Meat: 2
- Synergy: 6
- Value: 6
SARA:
- Flavor: 4
- Juiciness: 3
- Vegetables: 6
- Bun: 6
- Source of Meat: 1
- Synergy: 5
- Value: 7
My burger basket was only $7.59, which seemed to me pretty reasonable for what I got. I mean, it even included fries.
Kurt commented that after eating the food at Big Scoop, he would most likely not come in for food, but would absolutely return for a shake. This is the thing about standard food service fare. It really is nothing special. It is not bad, necessarily, but when you are sitting in a restaurant with red and white lightbulbs, clown sculptures and a gigantic lighted Exotic Sundae Menu on the wall, you expect something a little more special, a little less typical.
Kurt commented that after eating the food at Big Scoop, he would most likely not come in for food, but would absolutely return for a shake. This is the thing about standard food service fare. It really is nothing special. It is not bad, necessarily, but when you are sitting in a restaurant with red and white lightbulbs, clown sculptures and a gigantic lighted Exotic Sundae Menu on the wall, you expect something a little more special, a little less typical.
Share it, yo! Everyone should know how amazing these shakes are!!!
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