Sometimes you just need a good burger

A few quick things before we dive into the meat of this post: More ways to connect with The Hungry Lady!

1. I'm on Instagram. You can follow me @LauraEliz1021.  Fair warning....this is my personal Instagram account, so you may also encounter non-food things.  Like pictures of Carolina Stadium.  
2. I'm also on Untappd, also @LauraEliz1021.  So if you're interested in my beer habits, just follow along.
3. And, as always, you can find me on Facebook and Twitter.  Or you can email me. 

Moving on.  About a month ago, A, L, and I were hanging out - probably watching some baseball - and we decided to head out and grab some dinner.  We weren't in the mood for any of our usual haunts, so we decided to try out the relatively new Burger Tavern 77, located where Yo Burrito used to be (earning it the nickname "Yo Burger" from A).


Before we headed out, I did something that I rarely do.  I checked the reviews on Urbanspoon. Usually I like to go in to a new place totally blind so I'm not influenced by anyone else.  I think the only reason I checked these was because I was on a mission to find an online menu, and hoped Urbanspoon had one (they didn't).  Most of what was said wasn't too positive.  The overall consensus seemed to be "decent food, slow service."  I was prepared to take that with a grain of salt, since most of the reviews were from the first week BT77 was open.  There are always some kinks to work out, so I expected it to be a bit better than the reviews implied.


I was right.  We had great service and the food was awesome.  The only drawback was that it was absurdly smoky in the restaurant. Our thought was that maybe one of the fans or part of the ventilation system in the kitchen wasn't working properly.  We were there on a Sunday night, so hopefully it was just a temporary problem and they couldn't get anyone out to fix it on a Sunday.


Onto the food!  Obviously, we ordered burgers.  BT77 has 6 or 7 predetermined choices or the option to build your own burger from a ridiculous number of toppings.  None of us opted to build our own burger.  Instead, both A & L ordered the Charleston burger, featuring smoked pimiento cheese and pecan bacon.  Delicious.  L's choice also initiated a long conversation about how the chef managed to get the smoky flavor in the cheese.  We even asked our server to see if she could pry the secret out of the chef, but with no luck.  The combination of the smoky cheese and the bacon was extremely well balanced.  Good choice.

Did I mention the crazy number of fries that come with each burger?

I had to be the odd one out, and order something different.  I went with the Memphis burger, which has smoked bourbon BBQ sauce, aged cheddar cheese, onion straws, and bacon.  What could someone possibly not like about this burger?  Answer?  Nothing.  I loved this.  And it was super filling.  The flavor of the BBQ sauce was perfect.  My burger was cooked exactly as I ordered it - a nice medium.  I was supremely pleased.  Plus, the accompanying french fries were great.

It was a little messy, but look at those toppings!

 Bottom line?  These were some excellent burgers.  They had good flavor and excellent topping combinations.  Plus, they were really filling.  We had really good service too (and it was our server's second day).  The only drawback to our experience was the haze of smoke surrounding us.  I'd love to go back sometime soon - BT77 has an area for outdoor dining as well, which is perfect for this time of year.  While I don't think these are the best burgers in Columbia, they are certainly pretty high on the list.  I expect that as BT77 is open for longer, things will get even better.

Final Rating

You can find Burger Tavern 77 on Facebook.