Back Yard Burgers

                I was out of town for a couple of days working on a documentary and one of the locals, knowing that Josh and I do this burger blog, suggested that I try Back Yard Burgers. Having never been there I gladly accepted and that was our lunch one day.

                Back Yard Burgers is one of the growing number of not-so-fast fast food places. The not-so-fast, or as the folks at this chain call it, “fast-casual” is intended to be offer up a fresh, high quality meal that gets to the customer quicker than a typical sit down restaurant.

                Back Yard Burgers was founded in 1987 in Mississippi and now boasts nearly 100 locations in 17 states, mostly through the mid-south. Unfortunately there aren’t in our immediate area but to find the one closest to you, check them out on line at http://www.backyardburgers.com/.

                Walking into a Back Yard Burgers you won’t see anything earth shatteringly different than other restaurants. You walk up to the counter, place your order and pay. They then hand you your drink cup and a small plackard to place on your table telling the person who brings out your food which table you are.

The Burger

                Back Yard Burgers advertises fresh 100% Black Angus beef burgers (as well as a variety of other typical restaurant offerings) that is grilled fresh. Standing at the counter placing my order I could see the fire dancing through the kitchen off the gas grill. When they say back yard, they seem pretty serious (though obviously I prefer using wood and charcoal when I grill in my back yard, which would be a little tricky inside a restaurant). This is a good thing.

                I ordered the Classic Back Yard Burger with cheese and my favorite garden and condiments. It arrived at my table almost the same time as I sat down after filling my drink. On the surface this seemed like a great deal but as I thought about it I realized there was no way they could have cooked our burgers fresh. That meant that the burger must have been sitting around the same way it does at the other fast food restaurants.

                With trepidation I bit into it and realized that if this burger had been sitting around it hadn’t been for more than 30 seconds. It was hot, right off the grill and was obviously fresh, not frozen Black Angus as advertised. And the grill, oh you can taste the grill. This is a delicious burger. Add to it the tasty waffle fries and this is a very good place to grab a burger. It’s probably a good thing that there aren’t any around this area or I might find myself eating there more often than I should.