Clarification appended
I am always searching for a good, inexpensive burger and luckily stumbled upon Burger, Tap & Shake in Foggy Bottom.
Owned by the local Passion Food Restaurant Group, the joint is lovingly known as BTS among the Foggy Bottom crowd. On the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and 22nd Street, BTS looks refined and modern inside and out, but is unpretentious with its burgers.
When I stumbled upon it with a friend, I checked out the Six Buck Chuck. It’s the all-American burger for only $6, except BTS uses a signature house sauce with the typical lettuce, pickles, onion, tomato and cheese combination. The signature AP sauce immediately elevates the standard burger and gives it a bit of personality.
The burger was full of flavor, but I wish I had added one or two of the special burger toppings. Pimento cheese, fried egg and Texas chili con carne are just a few of the toppings you can load onto your burger.
Like every burger place I visit, I had to get a good shake. The only thing that made me hesitate buying one was the price. BTS’ shakes are $5 and available in only 11 flavors. I tried the cookies and cream shake, which was perfectly thick and creamy.
BTS’ “Shaketails” are also a rumored hit. For the high price of $8, you can have delicious-sounding combinations like the Snowflake’s kahlua, Oreo cookies and vanilla ice cream or The Evil Empire’s Smirnoff vanilla bean vodka, Red Wing coffee liqueur and vanilla ice cream.
Gastronomical diversity in BTS’ burgers can be found in their $8 burger menu. Meat lovers who want something new can get quality beef, pork, veal, lamb, falafel, chicken and turkey patties. Compared to other burger places like Z Burger, you get more for your buck at BTS with a larger variety and unassuming flavors from toppings like cilantro raita, lemon garlic or black olive aioli with the $8 burgers.
With ingredients like these, readers might think that the setting is more restaurant-style, but BTS’ Foggy Bottom location can best be compared to Tenley’s Chipotle. It’s relaxed, fun, casual, and fast. There is no compromise between quality and pretension with BTS and each bite is beyond your typical burger and more than yummy.
Check out Burger, Tap & Shake at 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20037.
Clarification: The headline has been shortened from “JM Eats (A Lot): Beyond basic burgers” at the writer’s discretion.
