Mercury Bar

On a recent trip to New York, one where Josh stayed at home to deal with work and school, I decided to stop in and check out a couple of burgers from the Big Apple.

For full disclosure I have to admit that I'm friends with the owners of the Mercury Bar. We met Bruno and Daniella before they opened this place and were running a restaurant called the Joshua Tree. It was the summer following the attacks of 9/11 and a very young Josh walked up to Daniella (who for those who aren't familiar with many restaurants in NYC, was standing out front trying to bring people into the establishment) and said, "Hi, my name's Josh, thanks for naming your restaurant after me." We were fast friends ever since.

Bruno and Daniella have since closed the Joshua Tree (they got a tremendous offer for the building). But before that they had already opened the Mercury Bar. Located at 959 Ninth Ave. near 46th St. and on the web at http://mercurybarnyc.com/media/mercurybar.html, the Mercury Bar features the same menu and great food as the old Joshua Tree.

My family and I have eaten there many times. I've taken co-workers there and even some locals. People I know who are visiting the city I will send there. I've had most of the items on the menu but until this trip I hadn't tried the burger.

Burger

Yes, I'm biased toward this restaurant. I liked the atmosphere of the Joshua Tree better since this is exactly what it is called, a bar and so is more raucous and lively. Still, the food is always top notch. Bruno runs a very good kitchen.

The burger is huge. It is fresh, thick and juicy, cooked to order. Since it is NYC everything can be found fresh and Bruno manages to find it. The garden was as fresh as you could imagine for a cold March day. Lightly seasoned the meat was tender and savory and by the time I was about half way through I was afraid to set it down for fear that it would fall apart.

Don't get me wrong, this isn't the best burger I've ever had. It's not even the best item I've had on the menu. But if this burger were served in Cincinnati it would be one of our top 10 for sure.

If you are ever in New York, don't be shy about checking out the Mercury Bar. I always do but, as I said, I'm pretty biased.