Since my wife and I reside in frigid Minneapolis, I decided to make a list of some local spots to try. I constructed the list based on both recommendations and research. Not all of the restaurants are completely burger-focused, but a fair number will be.
We started with a place called, “Vincent, A Restaurant,” located in downtown Minneapolis. The place wasn’t hopping, but I didn’t expect it to be for a weekday lunch with the weather in the negatives. Knowing what we wanted, I immediately ordered the Vincent Burger and my wife ordered the Housemade Mini Pekin Duck Breast Burgers. During our short wait, we received a fresh baguette with butter. The butter was hit with a little salt which was a nice touch. The burger came out in a nice presentation. It was served open-faced with lettuce, tomatoes, and raw onions.
There was a house-made aioli that was spread on both sides of the char-marked buns. When I took my first bite, the meat took me a bit by surprise. The smoked gouda and braised short ribs listed on the menu had passed my mind until it came pouring out the inside of the meat. Minneapolis loves their Juicy Lucy’s. No complaints here, though. The meat was still cooked to about a medium, and the Gouda didn’t overpower, but created a very rich taste. The short rib added some extra fat, which certainly made it juicier that your typical 80/20 beef burger. The aioli wasn’t anything extraordinarily special, but the waiter said paprika is added to give it a little kick (to me it just added color to an average aioli). The shredded lettuce, tomatoes, and onions were the only thing that kept this burger in the generic category. Along with the french fries which were similar to those that can be found in the freezer section at your local grocery store.
