Hubby and I have been lamenting about the lack of quality thin burgers in town since the Barking Dog closed, and decided it was time to go back to Workingman’s Friend and check their version out again.This was especially true after the "smash burger" incident at Open Society. It’s a bit of a hike for us, but we were starting to get desperate. Last time I had been, I was a little disappointed, but these thoughts have been replaced with happiness after this visit—maybe last time was just an off day.
This place has the charming atmosphere of a very old, slightly divey bar in an older Indy neighborhood—the near west side. I do wonder when this part of town will be targeted for redevelopment like the near east side has been. Anyhow, there were people there, but it wasn’t super busy. We quickly ordered our cheeseburgers (me a single ($5), hubby a double ($6.50)) and our onion rings ($3.50). I foolishly noticed fried zucchini ($4.50) advertised on a sign and ordered it as well. That was my only mistake. These are clearly coming out of a foodservice bag and are not tasty—they are breaded and then fried. We each tried one and that was it.
Our burgers on the other hand, they were delicious. I got the perfect accompaniments on mine—cheese, lettuce, mayo, onions and pickles (they put the pickles on the side). Then I added some ketchup and mustard. So the burgers here are super thin. They have lacy edges but are still somewhat tender in the middle. They shred their lettuce (the only way it should be on a burger) and they put it on the bottom bun with the mayo. Exactly where it should be. Hubby enjoyed his double as well—he liked that there is a thin piece of bread in between the patties because it keeps the sandwich together, so it doesn’t just fall apart. These burgers really fill a void in Indy. (Please tell me where else to get good thin burgers in town if you know of any).
The onion rings are also solid. They are battered and are so much better than the zucchini. A burger and onion rings are the perfect combo. Oh and an ice-cold schooner of beer (literally, their glasses are coated in ice). It may become more frequent in our rotation. And we saw one of our U.S. Senators there, Joe Donnelly, which was pretty cool. He came and said hello and took a picture with hubby. (He had a single if you’re curious).
Sadly, we can’t take the kids because it is 21 and over only, and remember, they only take cash.
Workingman’s Friend
234 N. Belmont Ave.
Indy 46222
My husband makes awesome smash burgers and we did this yesterday for the holiday. They really are the best way to do a burger. One of these days we can meet up again and I'll bring burgers, egg rolls, and dumplings for you :)
ReplyDeleteWas the zucchini mushy?
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