Early Burger Review…”They were good before they were great.”

I still have a handful of burgers on my to-do list including some on-Strip steakhouses that potentially have good yet expensive burgers, and maybe a couple of local’s spots that some friends swear by in town, but I think I’ve pretty much handled just about any burger worth eating in Vegas at this point. Still, new restaurants keep popping up all over town, so my work to review what’s out there will never cease. One of the newest hot spots that’s been frequently mentioned by many of my friends is SkinnyFats, which also happens to have a massive burger on their menu. So once again I ventured out for a lunch to try this latest offering to the burger world, and come back with my full report just for you.

SkinnyFats is located in an awkward, small office park on Dean Martin near Sunset with minimal parking and minimal space inside, so if you’re planning on a weekday lunch be prepared for a bit of a crowd and nowhere to park. The restaurant is equally small but colorful with just a handful of two- and four-top tables, and maybe ten seats facing a high counter along the window. There are veggies and animals painted all over the walls, with fun metal corrugated ceiling tiles. It’s a loud, lively space, and gets a bit hectic when it’s crowded. The menu has a healthy and unhealthy side, both filled with quite a number of items for breakfast, lunch or dinner. On the healthy side you will see juices, snacks, gluten-free pizzas and sandwiches. On the unhealthy side, or happy side as they call it, you have choices of shakes, waffles, snacks, sandwiches, and more. There seems to be plenty of options for whatever you’re looking for, and I’ll certainly have to stop back in to try some more.

So as usual I came for one thing, and in this case it’s their Cheeseburger Benedict: 1/2lb angus burger with lettuce, tomato, pickles, cheddar, avocado, red onion, fried egg and SF sauce. What came out looked great, but was kind of like the Rollin Smoke burger I ate a few weeks ago; too damn large to properly enjoy. There’s something to say of the spectacle, but the oversized assembly makes for a slightly inedible burger. The moment I picked it up and gave it a squeeze I could tell the bun might be a bit dry. The patty was sticking out from the edges of the bun so I was able to sample it on its own; it was of good quality and cooked well. The bun was indeed a bit too dry, and on first bite a bit too thick as well, but the burger quickly got messy so I saw the need for something with a bit more substance. The egg had good flavor but got a bit lost in everything, there was tons of cheese that had good flavor, although some of it still wasn’t melted by the time it got to my table. The lettuce was prominent and proportionally just enough, and the pickles were also good. I knew the avocado was there because a few slices fell out, but I couldn’t taste it within the burger with all those other flavors mixed in. If this burger was simplified and you could properly sample some of the intended flavors it could be really great, but there is just far too much going on to enjoy this. Does any burger really need a fried egg, onion, pickles, avocado AND a sauce? I guess many people would argue that this is what a burger is all about, but for me it’s a bit much. Oh and as for that sauce, I don’t even know what it tasted like, and for me that’s the problem.

The truffle fries on the other hand were really good; almost all of them were cooked well and they were very flavorful. I found myself eating them well after my giant burger was done. Again, I feel like I have to defend myself with my slight disappointment; a massive burger is a great thing, but when you add too many toppings they start to cancel each other out. Maybe the solution is choosing only one or two of their offered toppings, which could provide a slightly simplified and very flavorful burger. For $10.50 with fries this really isn’t a bad deal, I just found it to be a few too many items piled together. Still, the menu looks great, and all the food looks to be of very good quality, so I’ll surely be back to try other items soon.