Burger Brief: The Local Bar and Grill's Dry Rub Avocado Burger

Kyle Mullin | Sep 12, 2015 1:00 pm | Add a comment | 1795 reads

Burger Brief takes a look at some of the contestants in the Beijinger's 2015 Burger Cup. Now down to the cream of the crop in our Final Four, we talk to Kenn Bermel of The Local, whose venue is still in contention for the honor of Beijing's Best Burger.

Name: Kenn Bermel
Nationality: USA
Number of years in Beijing: About 16 years
Venue: The Local Bar and Grill
Name of signature burger: The Dry Rub Avocado Burger

Tell us about your signature burger. What makes it the best burger in Beijing?
It's the best because of the quality of the ingredients: 100 percent imported Aussie beef, seasoned with our mildly spicy dry rub, topped with lettuce, house salsa, cheese, and half a ripe avocado. We don't have a single supplier – my partner's mother regularly goes to various markets and stalls early in the morning to find the best avocados. If we didn't have her help, we wouldn't be able to do it.

The burger buns we use are made in small batches by a friend of my chef – this makes sure they are fresh, buttery, and not sweet.

What does the burger come with?
Our burgers are served with a small salad and a choice of fries, onion rings, or sweet potato fries.

What drink from your menu goes best with the burger?
Beer margarita, hands down. The tequila and lime pair well with the spice and avocado, and our beer margaritas are served in a big glass goblet. Our burgers are huge – 1/2lb before cooking – so they deserve a huge drink to go with them.

What other burgers do you have on the menu?
We've also got our original cheeseburger, otherwise we have our awesome Buffalo chicken sandwich that some like to call a "burger" because it's served on a burger bun. Where I'm from, it's only a burger if the meat is ground up and packed together – our chicken sandwich has a totally intact chicken breast on it – not a burger!

Aside from your own restaurant's burger, what was the best burger you’ve ever had?
My father's an avid hunter, and the wild deer in upstate New York are very well-fed, so the venison is top notch. My mother grinds the meat with beef fat, and my dad grills them in the backyard. If you had one and I didn't say otherwise, you'd think that they were really good quality beef burgers.

Like this burger? Vote to push it through to the Finals via thebeijinger.com/2015burgercup or catch up on the stiff competition through the rest of our Burger Briefs.