Not gonna lie. I think Bobby Flay is a horrible, arrogant little man and I absolutely relish his losses on Iron Chef America. Yes Bobby, we all know that Southwestern cuisine is your thing but it does not need to be applied to every single dish you concoct! No, I’m not a professional food critic but just the arrogance he oozes through my t.v. does plenty to offend me. Perhaps now you’ll understand just how much it pains me to say that I absolutely love his new restaurant.

My wonderful best friend (lets call her Z) took me out for the day to celebrate my 23rd birthday. One of my gifts besides a scenic tour of a particular area of West Philly that I had never seen before was dinner at Bobby’s Burger Palace on Walnut Street. As soon as you enter the place, the decor has you fascinated. The whole setup is that of a retro diner joint with shiny wooden counter-tops and a color palette consisting of browns and oranges. With the vintage seventies styling with wavy counters, rows of booths and tables, and cookout style dispensers with several different kinds of sauces, it was a pretty chill place to be while still maintaining a bit of class.

It was actually a simple arrangement that somehow felt foreign. While the food is prepared, you get your own drinks (which are served in those plastic ice tea glasses that you know you’ve had at a cookout) and seat yourself. Now for the food! We played it safe and got Palace Classic Burgers (which is just a standard burger with cheese, onion, tomato and lettuce) and added bacon. A burger is not a burger without bacon. I must admit, it was a new experience getting a burger that quickly that wasn’t wrapped in paper and instead was quite attractively arranged on a real plate. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I have a serious love of burgers and this one was absolutely wonderful. It was a good sized burger but it wasn’t so large that I needed a take-out container afterward. My biggest problem with “Red Robin” is that the burgers are so big that I can’t even wrap my mouth around one let alone finish it in one sitting! The “Palace” burger was just the right size. There was even a special sauce on the bun and one included with the fries which was quite tasty. On top of all this loveliness, you can order beer!!! Or, if you’re feeling especially adventurous, a margarita!

Now, this place isn’t nearly as cheap as fast food and is more on par with places like Chili’s in terms of price. The real problem with this place is how you like your burger cooked. If you’re not a fan of a burger that’s a little pink inside, you may not like this place because, according to Z, even if you do order your burger well done, you may not get it. All in all, I approve of this place and cannot wait to go back! It’s got the service speed of fast food, the laid back feel of a diner but the prices akin to “Red Robin” and the quality of a classy restaurant. Congrats, Bobby Flay. You’ve done something right. It’s so good in fact, that you can almost be forgiven for the name of the place…almost.