Wednesday, October 12, 2016

A&B Burgers: From Brunch To A New Fall Menu

From Sticky Buns to Sticky Wings....

During the last couple months, there have been some changes at A&B Burgers, from the beginning of their Sunday Brunch to the start of their new Fall Menu. I've raved about A&B Burgers before, from my initial review of A&B Burgers to my more recent review of their Cajun Dinner. What are my thoughts on their recent changes?

Let's begin with Brunch. Their new Brunch menu includes about 8 Starters, priced $4-$15, and includes items such as a Smoked Salmon Platter ($11) and Roasted Cauliflower ($8). There are also about 10 Entrees, priced $9-$16, including choices such as Chicken & Waffles ($15), Cajun Style Andouille Shrimp & Grits ($12), French Toast ($10), and Huevos Rancheros ($10). Overall, the menu offers plenty of choices at reasonable prices, whether you are craving a breakfast option or something closer to a lunch choice. In addition, they serve a number of Brunch Cocktails, priced $10-$12.

For Starters, I'd highly recommend the Sticky Bun ($4), a warm brioche sticky bun topped with a honey pecan glaze. A large, soft and gooey bun with lots of cinnamon flavor, crunchy pecans, and a sweet and tasty glaze. It's big enough to share and is a great, and sweet, way to start off your brunch. The A&B team is highly skilled at creating delicious pastries and this won't disappoint.

The Pork Belly Bacon & Eggs ($10) has two eggs (cooked as you like them), seared confit pork belly, toast and a hash brown pancake. Our dish arrived without the hash brown and we failed to realize its omission until after we returned home. The over easy eggs were cooked perfectly, with a gooey yolk and the whites fully cooked. And the sizeable pieces of pork belly were also perfectly cooked, with a crisp exterior and silky, salty meat and fat.

There was a choice of Sourdough or Brioche toast, and you'll see the large slices of sourdough above. Again, toasted just right, and an excellent accompaniment to the eggs, with plenty of toast to sop up the yolk.

Their take on Southern Biscuits & Gravy ($11) offers a large, homemade herb biscuit with old fashioned pork sausage gravy. This is a great choice for comfort food as the weather gets chillier. The large biscuit was fluffy and soft, with a crunchier top, and was covered in flavorful gravy with ample pieces of spicy sausage within it. A very satisfying dish.

Onto the new Fall Menu, which has plenty of old favorites, like the Smoked Gouda and Sweet Sopressata Mac n' Cheese (pictured above), as well as new dishes such as the Maple Bacon Burger, Turkey Gobbler Burger, and Pumpkin Black Bean Burger. I will note that I tried the Side of Fried Pickles again and they were much better than the last time I tasted them. The coating of the pickles was crisp and not soggy like on a previous visit.

The Korean Sticky BBQ Wings ($10) are ginger and garlic braised wings in a house made Korean BBQ sauce. With a crisp and crunchy fried coating, these wings were meaty and flavorful, with a nice blend of spices, a hint of heat, some pleasant sweetness and lots of messy stickiness. I've enjoyed their other wing dishes, like the Louisiana Fried Chicken, and this dish is equally as delicious. Great bar food and perfect for watching the Patriots on a Sunday afternoon.

Speaking of comfort food, the Shepard's Pie Burger ($14) is a spin on traditional Shepherd's Pie, consisting of a burger, topped by mashed potatoes, grilled corn and with gravy on the side. I like the fact the gravy was on the side as you can then decide how much gravy to use, and whether you will be able to hold this burger in your hands, or it will be so messy you have to eat it with a fork and knife. The burger was the same high quality as usual, and the creamy potatoes and corn worked well with the beef, adding some texture to the sandwich. It was a combo that worked very well and I'd definitely order this burger again. I may even try to make it home.

The new Dessert Menu has three options, including Pumpkin Icebox Trifle, plus you can get Milkshakes, including some Adult versions, such as Chocolate Salted Bourbon.

Above, what looks like a strange little burger, is Kat's Burger ($9), a house-made cinnamon ice cream sandwich topped with candied bacon and cranberry sauce (though we asked for it without the cranberry). This clever dessert is visually stunning and tasty as well, with a nice cake "bun", great candied bacon, and creamy ice cream with lots of cinnamon flavors. It is sized for a single person and isn't a dish made to share.

My favorite of the two desserts was the Apple Dumplings ($8), two good-sized, puff pastries filled with cinnamon apples and with house-made whipped cream and vanilla syrup. The flaky pastries were light and buttery, almost like a superb croissant, and the apples were cooked just right and the filling was spiced well, without being overpowering or unbalanced. Though I was fairly full after lunch, I couldn't resist this dish, each mouthful bringing plenty of pleasure. And this dish is easily large enough to share with someone else.

A&B Burgers is about more than just delicious burgers. So why not check out some of their other options as well?

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