Burger Bash at LURE FISH BAR

My intrepid Burger Club met last night at a most unlikely spot for a great New York City hamburger: Lure Fish Bar on Mercer Street in SoHo. Little did we know that Lure's chef Josh Capon had recently won the People's Choice award at Rachael Ray's "Burger Bash" competition at Madison Square Garden last October, edging out quite a few big-name celebrity chefs. So when we discovered that this big, modern seafood restaurant had two different burgers on the menu and a specialty burger off-the-menu, we knew we were in for something good.

First, on the menu there is a Lure Style Burger - lettuce, tomato, American cheese, brioche bun. Then there is the off-the-menu surprise: the prize-winning Bash Burger ($14), a 6oz patty from Pat La Freida (premium blend), caramelized onion and bacon jam, shaved pickles, american cheese, and secret sauce on a toasted sesame seed bun. Served with french fries and 2 big fat onion rings atop the burgers. This is a seriously tasty cheeseburger, loosely packed, perfectly seasoned, and bursting with flavor.

Now when the kitchen in a seafood restaurant gets an order of seven burgers from one table, they get excited. Shortly after our order was taken, Lure's Executive Chef Josh Capon came bounding out of the kitchen to announce they were out of burgers and buns. We groaned, and he laughed: "what's going on guys?" Capon is a loud, gregarious New Yorker, and he happily boasted about the whole Burger Bash deal. But he was up to the challenge: "I'm gonna kill this for you guys!" We were promptly served, and except for one hamburger that mistakenly came with cheese, he nailed it. He appeared at the table once more, soaking up the compliments, and before he left, pointed to my burger and exclaimed "look at that: perfect!" It was indeed.