A Burger in Short Order

I met my friend (and former boss’ wife) Amy at the Farmer’s Market on Fairfax this afternoon for lunch.  We both wanted to try out Short Order (www.shortorderla.com) – the restaurant created by Amy Pressman, Nancy Silverton and Bill Chait.  Unfortunately, Amy passed away last year before the restaurant was opened, but Nancy and Bill moved forward with Amy’s vision. 

Short Order is burger-centric.  While they do offer other sandwiches and a couple of salads, and some “boats” that do the burger without the bun – may no mistake, this place is a burger joint, a high class one, but a burger joint.

It’s located on the southwest side of the Market, next to Du-Par’s.  There is outdoor seating downstairs, and an indoor bar upstairs.  Reservations are not required, nor allowed – it’s first come, first served.  We got there early so a crowd wasn’t a problem.  They also do have a take-out window around the back if you want to get a burger to go, especially if the restaurant is crowded.

I ordered Nancy’s Backyard Burger, which is a beef burger, with applewood smoked bacon and comté cheese – I left off the rabbit food (I don’t like salad on my burger….it’s one of my many quirks).  I accompanied it with a pale ale.  Amy ordered Amy’s Turkey Burger which had cheddar, celery, leeks and a mustardy mayo.  We also ordered the Short Order Fries with a sour cream dipping sauce to share. 

My burger was very juicy (the spot on my shirt will attest) and moist, pink in the center, and melded so well with the cheese and bacon.  The patty was on the thicker side, well seasoned and cooked perfectly.  The flavor was very beefy.  It was a true burger.  I tasted Amy’s Turkey Burger and found it well flavored and moist (turkey can be very dry).  It’s a great alternative if you don’t like beef. 

And the fries…amazing fries.  These are not your typical shoestring French fry, no.  They did it different.  I had read about them in a review and how they came up with these, so I was anxious to try.  What they do is cut the potato like home fries (quartered wedges), bake them, let them cool a little bit then smash them down slightly, then deep fry them golden brown.  It was a very nice texture.  And they were very crispy, yet moist inside.  The sour cream dip was a nice addition.  Big thumbs up on the fries.

I forgot to take a picture unfortunately, but trust me, the food is as pleasing to the eyes as it is to the palate.  If you’re in the Fairfax area, or shopping at The Grove, make your way over the Short Order to try it out!