The tiny town of Crawford, CO sits in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison area of the western part of the state. It is notable mainly for one thing. Joe Cocker owns or used to own a ranch just outside of town. Yes, THAT Joe Cocker. He also used to own a restaurant called the Mad Dog Fountain & Cafe where he would occasionally put on charity benefit concerts. That restaurant closed down years ago but was recently re-opened as the Black Canyon Cafe. Although no longer Cocker-owned, some of the singers' gold records are still on display at the Black Canyon. Yeah, yeah, but what about the burger? The signature burger here is appropriately named the Black Canyon burger. It's a 1/2 lb. patty, seasoned with peppercorn and other spices, and topped with swiss and thick-sliced bacon. You get a choice of fries, salad or soup and, since the du jour was chicken enchillada, I ordered soup. The burger was a classic case of a good patty surrounded by such great trimmings and sides that the diner is initially fooled into thinking that he/she is eating a great burger, (almost like the meat is getting by with a little help from its friends - c'mon, you knew it was coming eventually). Upon further reflection, however, it struck me that the beef was likely a factory seasoned, pressed and frozen patty available from some restaurant supply distributor. It just had that massed produced air about it. This isn't the kiss of death but I prefer when cafes roll their own. The execution and presentation, however, were first rate and it ended up being a very enjoyable burger experience, (the soup was dynamite and likely house-made). Excellent, crispy bacon, an extremely soft and fresh bun and nicely melted swiss. If I could give it four and a half napkins, I would. I can't give it five, though, which is a shame. The small town setting, with a covered porch on which we enjoyed our burgers in the cool and breezy shade, and the friendly staff really enhanced the meal and I wouldn't hesitate to stop here again - entering through the front door as opposed to the bathroom window.

I know, I know. This place has already been reviewed here on Nation's Best Burgers. That's the only reason I knew I wanted to try it out on a recent motorcycle trip to Denver. Rather than post what I'm sure would be a lengthy comment about that review, I opted to write an entirely new review. So sue me. Things weren't looking so very good as my GPS was winding down the final few turns, directing me to the Cherry Cricket. It was blisteringly hot outside as I creeped through lunchtime traffic with all of my riding gear on. I had been on the road for 2 and a half days and was looking forward to arriving at my final destination of this first leg of my trip. The Cherry Cricket, as mentioned in that prior review, is in a downtown, business district with all of the heavy traffic that entails. To make things worse, 2nd Ave. was under construction making access to the Cricket a difficult undertaking at best. I very nearly wrote the whole thing off and slinked on south to the Marriott. But, just as I was about to throw in the towel, a sliver of a parking spot opened up and I jumped on it. I still wasn't jazzed about being here. It looked crowded and was pretty dark inside after coming in out of the midday sun. Fortunately, the host found an empty table for me right away. As I perused the menu I noticed that they serve a basic burger, in two sizes - 1/2 lb and 1/4 lb. - and then you add "toppings" from a very extensive list that includes peanut butter and chile strips. I was in no mood for adventure and simply ordered the 1/4 lb. version with smoked cheddar. The burger arrived promptly and I took a bite before even noticing that there was no mayo or sauce of any kind on it. As I chewed that first bite I saw that there was ketchup and mustard available on the table. As I reached for the mustard it occurred to me that this burger needed no such help. This was a truly juicy burger served on a buttered and toasted bun. The produce was fresh and also juicy and the cheddar was perfectly melted into the whole affair. My outlook was suddenly improving and I was now lamenting not ordering the 1/2 lb. version. Normally, the size of a burger is not important to me but I just was not ready for this treat to be gone. I was actually considering ordering another burger just like the one I was devouring but decided I didn't want to leave my bike unattended any longer than necessary. I will certainly return whenever circumstances have me back in the Denver area.

It's been a seriously long time without a good burger for me to review. I am deliriously happy to report that the drought has been washed away in a veritable flood of yummy.

To set the scene, I had been working all weekend (nothing strenuous, just the usual sitting in front of my computer trying to meet Monday's design deadlines), and on Sunday afternoon I decided I needed a beer and burger break. I remembered having visited O'Malley's a few weeks prior, and though I didn't order any food, I did enjoy a good beer while my wife went on and on about a remarkable salad ("Hey! Get yer own NationsBestSalads.com website, Baby!"). So I figured if they had good beer, and can make a decent salad, let's give 'em a whirl on a burger.

So we hopped in the Jeep, and with the top down (I love Summer in the Jeep!) embarked on our 25 mile journey to O'Malley's Sports Pub and Grill in Rathdrum, Idaho.

They have a full (very full) menu, and I was actually thinking of ordering a sandwich at first, because I love a good Reuben, but I held firm and ordered the Hawk Burger, which consisted of two 1/4 lb. patties, bacon, ham, cheese, and a special sauce.

When it arrived, I immediately knew I was in for something special.

The two patties were huge hand-pressed masses of glistening meat, drenched in a mouth-watering cascade of melted cheese. It had all the appearance of a burger made with love and attention. The condiments were on the plate, so I added the onions, tomato and a couple pickles on top and gave it a small squirt of mustard, having forgotten about the "secret sauce". My first bite was tentative and small. It's a bit hard to come to grips with a burger stacked so high; but even that small sample clued me in to the great, great flavor.

It didn't take me long to devour the whole damn thing and immediately fall into a swoon of delight.

I often talk about the best burger I've ever had: the Fat Smitty. Since Fat Smitty's is clear on the other side of the state, I don't get there very often. With my discovery of the O'Malley's Hawk Burger, I think I can say that I have found a worthy alternate close to home.

I am a happy man!

This little drive-in - truthfully just a drive-thru - was recommended to me by a friend who grew up in Walla Walla and I seized my chance to try it on a recent return trip from Salt Lake City. The Ice Burg strikes me as the kind of home town burger joint that, if you grew up eating there, theirs will always be the best burgers you've ever had. Sentiment kicks in and childhood memories crowd up against objectivity. It's a completely understandable part of human nature. Sometimes, when assessed on their own merits, the burgers don't really stand up all that well. The burger I had at the Ice Burg, however, was a really good one. While no one element stood out, all of the parts worked very well together to form a tasty treat. The bun is from a bag but was fresh and soft. The produce was also fresh and plentiful. The beef patty, while obviously press formed, was seasoned and cooked well. I would definitely eat here again.

Since seeing this place featured on that Food Network show hosted by the annoying, pointy haired guy with the cool Camaro, I had been wanting to sample the burgers at the Burger Bar in Roy, UT. My opportunity finally arose when I signed up to participate in the annual UTAH 1088 endurance motorcycle rally. Roy is just a half hour north of rally headquarters in Salt Lake so I planned to swing by on my way in before the rally.

I suppose that my anticipation of trying this burger made it difficult for it to truly impress me. Whatever the reason, I was not exactly blown away by the experience. The bun was excellent and made fresh on the premises. From there, however, the story takes a less than happy turn. The 1/3 lb. beef patty was completely overwhelmed by the size of the bun. There was precious little in the way of produce - just some lettuce and pickles. The sauce was forgettable and the cheese just so-so. This place was voted best burger in the state last year? Maybe they just weren't on their game this day.

The fries, which were highlighted on the show as being twice fried, were no more than frozen fries from a bag dropped into the oil and plated. Nothing exceptional here.

The sole redeeming part of my meal, apart from the burger bun, was the chocolate-peanut butter milk shake. I don't believe that it was made with hard ice cream but with soft serve. Still it was thick - so much so that it stood a good 2 inches above the rim of the cup - and rich and quite tasty on this 90+ degree day.