By Erum Rizvi

<[email protected]>

Bub’s, Five Guys, Red Robin—if there is one feature the Carmel area has in spades, it is burger restaurants. The quality of the restaurants, however, is as

varied as the number. Carmel Burgers, the new burger shop at the corner of Hazel Dell Parkway  and 131st Street, offers customers gourmet burgers worth every dollar. Despite the quality of the food,  however, the customer service was well below expectations.

Mainly catering to young adults and children, Carmel Burgers exceeds expectations of a good quality burger. With a menu that offers plenty of variety, customers are sure to find a burger to their liking.

Along with the main portion of the meal, the restaurant offers some variety with its sides, which include french fries, salads and onion rings. The price was definitely a plus. Carmel Burgers prices all burgers between $5 to $10 with sides ranging from $2 to $3. An average meal with a burger and fries costs around $8.50, which is considerably less than a meal at competing burger shop Red Robin, where meals average $14.

At first sight, my meal, the Carmel burger with fries, seemed like an average cafeteria-style meal with a standard presentation. However, at first bite, all previous views on a normal burger were eliminated. The fresh taste and texture of the burger was delectable and rich with flavor. The fries I ordered were a great companion to my burger as they were seasoned and crisp. As far as service is concerned, Carmel Burgers is a hybrid between restaurants like Five Guys, where customers order and receive their food at the counter, and Red Robin, where servers take orders and deliver food to your table. At Carmel Burgers, customers order at the counter from a cashier, but a server delivers the food and checks on them from time to time.

It was with this service that I experienced the most trouble. First, as for the true perfect partner for any burger, I would have liked to enjoy a milkshake with my meal or possibly ice cream for dessert, as advertised on the menu; however, when ordering, the cashier claimed the ice cream and milkshake maker had “blown-up.” At first, I was sure he was cracking a joke, as I did not know it was possible for a dessert machine to explode, but the cashier assured me that the staff was “well-qualified” when he stated that the manager had “accidently malfunctioned the machine by pressing the wrong buttons.”

Speaking of qualified employees, I experienced a language barrier with the cashier when ordering, as he did not seem to understand my simple order. He asked me four times what exactly I wanted, until he had to ask another employee to take over. Additionally, our server took a little over 30 minutes to come to our table after ordering and claimed he “lost” my order ticket and therefore had to run into the kitchen to whip up my burger and fries.

Luckily, the food was tasteful enough to allow me to overlook these inconsistencies. Still, while the restaurant is relatively new, those types of problems could prove to be detrimental in the long run if they are not fixed soon.

Despite the weak service at Carmel Burgers, the major factor, the food, was great and the atmosphere an even greater complement.