2013 Burger Cup: Back Alley Bistro vs. The Big Smoke

The Beijinger Burger Cup is back for another year and this your chance to vote for your favorite burgers before we arrange a face-to-face cook-off in August to determine the winner.

This year, we begin with Burger Battles: a series of face-offs pitting Beijing beef patties against each other. These will not necessarily reflect the ultimate match-ups in our Burger Cup bracket, but give burger fans and burger chefs an idea as to how the product may fare in the final competition.

Visit our website often for Burger Battles, updates on the Cup, and more on how you can participate in voting and other burger activities. Voting in the Burger Cup begins July 15.

For Round Nine, we go to the Hot Corner on Xingfu Zhonglu for a cross-street food fight: Back Alley Bistro vs The Big Smoke.

Burger Battle Nine: Back Alley Bistro vs The Big Smoke

Back Alley Bistro: One of the most recognizable names on Beijing's international culinary scene, Chef Jeff Powell struts his stuff here in his aptly-named eatery. Sometimes, that strutting is literal, as he shuffles between his two neighboring establishments, Back Alley Bistro and Frost Coffee, Nails and Cocktails. Powell enjoys a fine reputation among his fellow restaurateurs, many of whom become his customers on days off.

The Burger: I had this burger on a hot July day just before Independence Day, and it immediately evoked memories of backyard barbecues. Cooked right on the grill outside, the Frost Burger is a beef patty with a slice of cheese nicely melted on top. Instead of a standard sesame bun, it comes on what I would call an English muffin, giving the burger even more of a homemade feel. Lettuce, tomato, onion and pickles all come on the side. Served with salad, the burger also comes with ketchup, mustard, hot sauce and mayonnaise in squeeze bottles.

It was delicious. The burger was a perfect medium, and its flavor wafted over the table quite a bit ahead of its arrival. Powell could have tried to do something fancy or "gourmet," but instead, he presents a wonderfully cooked burger and lets the customer decide what does or doesn't belong on it. For RMB 42, it's a steal.

Price: RMB 42.

The Big Smoke: It's only appropriate that Back Alley Bistro and The Big Smoke are across the street from each other, as they are mirror images in more ways than one. Opened by another Beijing restaurant veteran, Kris Ryan, The Big Smoke is also one part of two premises housed in the same building: rotisserie chicken joint Uncle Otis is down the alley, accessible through a long corridor inside. Ryan told me some time ago that he opened it simply because "how much more pizza can I order?" He saw gaps in both the dining and take-out markets and decided to move in.

The Burger: When I went for lunch, there was only one burger on the menu: the Blue Cheese Portobello Burger. It's a big one: a half-carnivorous, half-vegetarian couple would be very happy with this, as it could easily be split. The cheese-coated mushroom, breaded and fried, could be eaten separately. I went for a few combo bites for the taste, then decided to divide and conquer. Along with the mushroom, the burger is served with lettuce, tomato and chipotle mayonnaise, more of which is served on the side. It all comes on a sesame seed bun, with a choice of sides. I went with the truffle oil french fries, the best I've had so far as part of the Cup.

I almost wish the burger patty and the portobello mushrooms were served as a pair – it would be the best meat/non-meat combo around. Both stood well on their own, and each side complemented the other. They were just a tad too big to eat as one.

Price: RMB 68

The Verdict
Draw

This was the toughest decision so far, in part because the two are so different. Back Alley Bistro's burger is just like dad used to make. It's all flavor, no pretension. Good meat, smells great while it's cooking, customize it any way you want it, and a terrific value. Big Smoke's cheese-mushroom-burger melange works together well and would also work well separately. Their fries are the best. Standing on the street corner and deciding whether to eat left or eat right, the diner wins either way. This is a tie our readers will have to break when Burger Cup voting begins next Monday.