Since reading Avenue magazine’s “25 Best Things to Eat in Edmonton” back in March, I’ve suffered from Phantom Taste Syndrome (i.e. I swear I could taste Sugarbowl’s lamb burger even though I’ve never actually had it). I blame the onset of this syndrome on Gail Hall & Peter Markiw’s drool-worthy description & photograph of the burger which was featured in the Avenue article.
I had tried to cure this problem on previous weekend brunch visits to Sugarbowl,** but as brunch is served until 3pm and the burger is on the regular menu, I was never successful in satisfying my lamb burger curiosity… until last night.
In the great company of baconhound, fojoy, & Dine and Write who are foodies, bloggers, & all around amazing folk, we ventured out to Sugarbowl yesterday evening for some drinks, local food catch-up, vacation food chat, and of course to eat some good food.
Dine and Write had the yam fries and bacon mussels. Baconhound and fojoy had the Jerk Chicken burger, Lamb burger and shared with us some of their corn bread (with bits of corn kernel throughout… mmm). But there was only one option for me – I was finally going to cure my PTS for the lamb burger once and for all.
Lamb Burger
The lamb patty was served on a kaiser bun with garlic aioli & house-made grain mustard. Lamb can taste gamey if not done well but this wasn’t gamey at all – it was well seasoned, well paired with the aioli/mustard combo, and grilled just right for a subtle char flavour. As if all that wasn’t enough to create the perfect lamb burger, two highlights for me were the creamy goat cheese and the amazing J-Factor (i.e. Juiciness Factor).
I’d like to know Sugarbowl’s secret to getting all that juice in the patty. The picture below gives a bit of perspective on the burger’s juiciness but really doesn’t do it justice. You can however see the thick creamy layer of goat cheese, which we all thought was a great match to the burger. When the burger first arrived to our table, I was a bit skeptical of the goat cheese:patty ratio. My internal monologue was saying, “That much goat cheese would surely overpower the lamb!” But with the flavourful patty and sauces, this was just the right amount. This burger was definitely the favourite dish at our table and deserving of being in the top 25 foods in Edmonton.
Juicy Burger!
The greens were the only part of the burger that I didn’t give much thought to… they offered a bit of freshness but I probably wouldn’t notice if they were missing from my next lamb burger… and yes there will be many next lamb burgers from Sugarbowl in my future.
NOTE: Love that we each blogged about the night, shows different perspectives on the same meal. Check out Baconhound’s post and Dine and Write’s post.
(Photography credits: Thanks to Phil, Robyn, & Liv for the reminders to take pictures before devouring the food)
** It should be noted that while I was disappointed during previous visits to Sugarbowl by not being able to try the lamb burger, I was able to try the Huevos Rancheros and the famous Cinnamon Buns. Based on the online reviews of Sugarbowl that I came across, it seems like their cinnamon buns have achieved a status of idolatry in Edmonton. I thought these massive mounds of cinnamon-sugared dough were exactly that – large, very doughy, and cinnamon-y. They were good and would satisfy my cinnamon bun cravings but with fond university memories, they don’t hold a candle to Solly’s cinnamon buns in Vancouver (especially when topped w/ Solly’s cream cheese icing).
I was pleasantly surprised by the Huevos Rancheros. Granted I’ve never had Huevos Rancheros at an authentic Mexican establishment but compared to what I have had, the dish at Sugarbowl offered fresh flavours and great texture. The tortillas buried under a mountain of black beans, salsa, gooey cheese, & eggs were still miraculously crispy. The 2 eggs perched atop this mountain of goodness were perfectly soft-poached. It was also served with sides of sour cream, guacamole, and salsa. Would definitely go back for more.
Huevos Rancheros
foodkarma 
That lamb burger really was ridiculously delicious.
And the company was equally as fabulous.
Thanks for a great evening.
Nicely written! Next time I’m ordering the lamb burger…
I agree, that lamb burger was wicked juicy! And the more goat cheese the better.
Of course the company was great. Looking forward to doing it again soon.
And it seems everybody’s pictures came out better than mine. I got a couple blurry ones. Booo!
Nice write-up, and thanks for the link.
Yes! Definitely look forward to next time… I may try to bring my human camera then so we don’t have to remind each other to take pics.
oh my gosh!! I now want a lamb burger!! Wow, i can’t believe how big the patty is and how juicy it looks! yummy! 🙂 thanks for posting!
Thanks for checking out the post Elsie, I love the look of your twitter, reminds me a lot of HK. Reading your blog, I see you visited Wasabi – one of my fav Calgary places for sushi. I love their avocado tempura (I have a weakness for avocado).
Have you tried Sushi Club (Kensington) or Misato (near West Hills)? Moving from Vancouver to Calgary I was always hungry for sushi and those 3 were my favs in the city for fresh fish and great ingredients.
The people at Sushi Club were so personable, they know most of their regulars… after 2 visits, they knew me and my orders. They get their fish in on Wed and Thurs so the best day to go is Thurs dinner.
I like Misato’s Calgary roll with all the fresh fish. Although it’s a bit pricey, it’s also very authentic.
Whoops – I got my sushi places mixed up. I’ve never actually been to Wasabi, I got it mixed up with Wa’s which is one of my top 3 sushi places in Calgary.