Thursday, January 23, 2014

Motor Burger: amazing burgers and great beer, what more could you want?

Windsor is turning into a mecca for burgers. There are a ton of amazing places all within a short drive of my house where I can get a burger to die for. Many people in the city think one of these stands tall above the rest and that place is Motor Burger.

It's not just Windsorites that think so either. Reader's Digest listed their Deux Chevaux as one of the top 5 burgers in Canada. They've also been featured on You Gotta Eat Here!

Motor Burger is located in the heart of Via Italia, Windsor's Little Italy, at 888 Erie Street. Right by the roundabout at Parent. Parking in the area is scarce as is seating at the restaurant itself. No matter what day of the week you go if you show up after 5pm expect to wait to get a table. This place isn't a hidden gem or a well kept secret, people know how good Motor Burger is and they pack the place every night (well except Sunday when they are closed).

One of the reasons they are always so packed is that this is a tiny place. They manged to squeeze in about as much seating as possible but the interior with all it's automotive themed artwork and distinctive lime green colour is long, narrow and crowded. It's also noisy. Always noisy. Don't head here for a quiet date night with your loved one, expect lots of people and lots of noise.

As expected the menu at Motor Burger is filled with burgers. Not your ordinary burgers either. Sure they will give a traditional cow patty if you really want it but, why would you do that when you could have my personal favourite the Autostrada? This is a chipotle rubbed Italian sausage patty with Gorgonzola cheese covered in sliced apple slaw. That's a shot of it there on the left.

My wife's favourite is the Twin Barracudas. It's two panko encrusted haddock sliders with creamy Cajun slaw, cheddar cheese and pickle. Though sometimes she's grabs a Shrimp Fuel which has a patty made with ground shrimp covered in chilies, garlic, tomato, cilantro, avocado and mango salsa. There's more options as well including chorizo sausage, fresh chicken or Kobe brisket. There's a burger here for everyone.

In addition to the the burgers they also offer a ton of great sides and appetizers. Last time there we got the Chili Spring Rolls which are made with chorizo chili, black bean, lime and smoked cheese. Have I mentioned I love chorizo before? Well I do. Along with the appetizer we got a bowl of onion rings to go with the burgers. Motor Burger has the best onion rings I've ever tasted. 

If the kids were with us we would have had to grab a side of Motor Mac and 3 Cheese. This is a baked mac and cheese that puts all other mac and cheese to shame. My kids won't eat Kraft for at least a week after a trip to Motor Burger. We didn't have the kids on our last trip which is great because it meant I could have a few Ontario Craft Beers, brewed right there.


That's right not only is Motor Burger a great place to grab some amazing burgers and sides, it's a brewery. Motor Craft Ales are brewed right there on site. 

Motor Craft Ales brews 9 different standard brews as well as a variety of seasonals. My personal favourite is Dragula. This is a Black Schwarzbier Lager Ale. The Big Block Brown is my second choice. My wife is usually partial to the C-hop Top I.P.A but tried a seasonal this time around. Jalopy, a Jalapeno Ale. I had a sip of this and it was rather good. It did pack quite the punch though.

Our last trip to Motor Burger was just before my birthday party and we ended up getting an appetizer, two burgers and a couple beers each and the total bill was about $60 before tip. Extremely reasonable for the amount of food and drink and more than reasonable for the quality.

Despite the fact it's hard to find parking in the area, and it's sometimes even harder to actually get a seat without a long wait combined with the fact that sometimes you can't even hear yourself think, I still love Motor Burger. It's one of my favourite places to eat in the entire city. 

1 comment:

  1. The first time we went to Motor Burger was in August 2011. Moe & his family brought us, promising we would love the burgers. He wasn't kidding! His dad and I both ordered the Motor Burger Classic with bacon and we all shared onion rings (best ever) and Motor Mac & 3 Cheese (sooo good). Everything was perfectly cooked, absolutely delicious and we had great service.
    We have gone back 6 times since and never been disappointed. It IS noisy and you will most likely have to wait for a table but it is well worth it. I look forward to returning.

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