Because of a lengthy detour, we decided to go through Atlanta to return to St Louis. Don't ask me how, but it took about the same amount of time as our trip to Charlotte. This was a last-minute decision, so I thought I'd look up Atlanta's
Flip Burger Boutique to see how far out of our way we'd have to go to eat there. Turns out, not far -- less than a mile off the interstate.
Flip is the latest project from
Top Chef: Chicago contestant Richard Blais. It's a funky, modern burger joint, and it must be doing OK, because another location is about to open, and it was packed on Sunday night. The décor was modern, the lights dim, the music Arcade Fire. Chris wasn't very hungry, so we split a Caesar salad, the Butcher's Cut burger with fries and a Nutella and burnt marshmallow milkshake.
The burger was very good. Flip grinds its meat in-house, using the recommended combination of short ribs, hangar steak and brisket. The blend was juicy and incredibly flavorful, and mine was cooked properly medium, as requested. However, I would have enjoyed a better sear. It came with blue cheese, caramelized onions and red-wine jam. The blue cheese was overwhelming; the burger was much more balanced when we removed most of it. The red-wine jam was fantastic -- I hope to recreate it at home -- cutting through the fattiness of the burger nicely. The fries were crispy, if slightly underseasoned, but still tasty with the house-made smoked mayo.
The shake was awesome. Flip has several interesting shakes (including a foie gras shake I gladly passed on), but burnt marshmallow called to me. This was undoubtedly the most high-tech milkshake I've ever consumed: It was made at the end of the bar with liquid nitrogen, then the giant pile of marshmallows atop was charred with a blowtorch. Imagine the best chocolate milkshake you've ever had, studded with bits of toasted marshmallow, and topped with an island of barely-charred marshmallows, and you'll get the general idea.
I'm almost ashamed that I didn't have more to report back from the South. However, we enjoyed our trip so much, we decided we're definitely returning in the summer to sample more of the region's culinary offerings.
Kelli Best-Oliver is on a quest to become a full-fledged foodie. She
chronicles her adventures every Tuesday. She writes about any damn
thing she pleases at South City Confidential.
