Princeton Edition: Big Ben's Burgers

The infamous Grillbilly's has gone the way of the Dodo. In its place, in that little blue trailer, is Big Ben's Burgers. If you recall, I actually really enjoyed Grillbilly's - though not the epitome of creative culinary excellence - it is a nice little shack that put out some tasty food.

So, when I saw that it was replaced by Big Ben's Burgers, I wasn't hesitant to give it another go. This time, though, I was flying solo, so I tried the drive-thru. It's awkward in that there isn't a place to loop around, so I drove up through their parking lot, turned around, then went through the drive-thru.

From my car, I was staring up at the menu when the doors slid open. The man working asked me if I had been there or had a menu. I said no, and he handed me a stapled menu and a pen! Score!

The first item I noticed was the Big Ben Deluxe with mayo, lettuce, tomato, onion ring, bacon and cheese for $3.59. I also ordered two slaw-chili-onion-mustard dogs. All the toppings are free, except the slaw, which is .25 more. I think I got a deal somehow because I only ended up paying about $6.36 and got more than I bargained for.

After waiting for a good little while - it's clear they cook them as soon as you order, not before - I finally was handed a smoldering paper bag full of treats. When I was able to look in my bag, I realized that I was given not one, but two burgers. They didn't get my order wrong, because they didn't charge me extra. There was nobody else in line or even near me when ordering, so it couldn't have been anyone else's. I can only assume they decided to throw in an extra for good luck.

I first took a bite of the hotdog because I was really excited for it. I had just had a "WV hotdog," and was hoping this would live up to the previous one. The slaw was not minced aswell as I would've liked. The chili didn't have that tangy sweet taste I like, but overall, it was still a good hotdog.

But for the real test - the burger. This guy had some girth to him, and I like how the cheese melted perfectly atop the burger. It was tasty. The crisp of the fried onion ring, cool tomato and crunch of the lettuce was great on a warm bun. The burger was seasoned well, too. Both of them! Unfortunately, my tummy didn't do so well later on that night - maybe it was the grease? So maybe I'll have to wait a bit before I try this one out again.






Grade: C