The Experience: Gotham West Market opened up on 11th Avenue back in November. The block-long space is home to El Colmado (tapas), the Cannibal (charcuterie), Ivan Ramen, Blue Bottle Coffee, Court Street Grocers (sandwiches), and Little Chef (sandwiches, soup, salad), among other attractions like a bike shop and a Brooklyn Kitchen. Obviously, I brought a crew there for burgers, so Genuine Roadside was my destination.
Genuine Roadside is true to its name, serving greasy diner food with as much flavor as you’d need to get to your next destination, in reasonable enough portions that you wouldn’t be uncomfortable on our journey. The grillmasters and cashiers are incredibly friendly, and helped me and my fellow Burgermeisters decide which burgers would be best for our appetites.
Burgers Ordered: The Everyone Loves Fancy Pants Burger, the Spicy Smokehouse Burger, the Super Duper Stack Burger
The Taste: The Everyone Loves Fancy Pants Burger is topped with with caramelized onion jam, swiss cheese, arugula, and a secret sauce. The onion jam was sweet and delicious. The arugula added a bitter dimension to the burger that complimented it well. The patty was found to be a little small, so this particular burger is for those with smaller appetites, or those leaving room for fries.
The Spicy Smokehouse Burger was in fact smokey thanks to the combination of chipotle barbecue sauce and smoked cheddar. The jalapeño mayo gave the burger a good balance of spice, and the bacon added a fun crunch. This burger gets top marks in a big way.
The Super Duper Stack Burger is stacked as high as its name is long. The double beef patties were delicious. The classic combinations of American cheese, pickles, and special sauce were just delightful. The burger, as expected, was very messy, and hard to put down after picking it up thanks to grease drip.
I ordered a Mexican Coke because it was available, and I have to impress upon Coke lovers that Mexican Coke just doesn’t taste different enough from the American to justify the price increase associated with drinking sugar and Mexican water. As far as other sides at Genuine Roadside go however, the fries were very tasty.
The Verdict: Genuine Roadside was the third Gotham West Market restaurant I’ve sampled, and the third that I liked quite a bit. Court Street Grocers and Ivan Ramen were both stellar, and the Brooklyn Kitchen gave me some Chip Clip fodder. All in all, this place is a great reason to trek out to 11th Avenue.
Genuine Roadside is located in Gotham West Market at 600 11th Avenue in Manhattan, New York.
