I am not sure what is the star of the show at Handcraft Burgers and Brew, the sister restaurant of Croton Reservoir that is next door. The burgers are amazing, not made with frozen patties, juicy, with a nice char. Although, I would go with the double patty so there is a good proportion with their amazing brioche bread. But the brews are also quite interesting as they have quite a nice choice, with craft beer cans that are not that usual, from small breweries, some local, giving them a chance to be discovered.

It is a small place, fast casual, where you can either order directly from your phone or on their point of sale. They will then bring you a brown bag with your order, where you are eating there or not.

For the burgers, you can either chose one of the ones they propose or build your own, with always the possibility, if you pick theirs, to add or remove ingredients. I tried their Truffle Shuffle burger, made with a single beef patty (I added another one), umami truffle spice, Swiss cheese, sauteed mushrooms, truffle herb aioli, squeezed between a brioche bun. I was a bit apprehensive that the truffle spices and aioli would overpower the whole thing, but it was in fact perfect. I also made my own, with a double patty, American cheese, ketchup and mayo. By the way, they have an interesting way of wrapping their burgers, with like a small chimney on top to let the steam out, the shape of the wrapper allowing to hold the burger as you eat it, keeping your hands from getting any sauce or meat juice dripping on your hands.

If you do like beef, you can opt for their spicy fried chicken sandwich (quite spicy but delicious: crispy, not dry), or, if you are vegetarian, you can get one of their veggie burgers that I admit are quite good and not mushy at all.

For sides, they have crispy French fries as well as tater tots. I just wished they had onion rings and have to say that I did not like their truffle aioli that I ordered with the tater tots: it was too overpowering and some mayo and ketchup was better for me.

I have tried the following beers (that you can also transform as floats):

Drowned Lands, Gather House Unfiltered Wit Beer, Warwick, NY
Torch & Crown Brewing Co., Almost Famous IPA, Bronx & Manhattan, NY
Oxbow Brewing Co., Seaworthy India Pale Lager, Newcastle, ME

And then, if you do not like beer, you can order some sodas like the Boylan raspberry seltzer.

So I guess you now have figured out that I love this place: their burgers are superb, and the beers, that change from time to time, quite interesting. Marrying burgers and beer was a smart business idea and I would not be surprised to see them expand to other locations. This is definitely a great place!

Enjoy (I did)!

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Handcraft Burgers and Brew - 110 W 40th St, New York, NY 10018

Handcraft Burgers and Brew near Bryant Park, NYC

I Just Want To Eat!