My most expensive burger ever

I went to Josie's on Pico last night. It was heavenly as usual.

Dinner started with Josie's customary slice of cheese and mushroom quiche; it was very thin, and very, very good.

We only ordered one appetizer for the table - the sublime 100 tomato tart. Why 100? I have no idea. The tart consists primarily of rather sweet grape tomatoes on a bed of melted goat cheese, all nestled in a shallow tart shell. The tomatoes are impossibly sweet and explode with flavor when you bite into them – a nice contrast to the creamy taste and texture of the cheese.

When I was ordering, I had my eye on two entrees, the lamb chops (too normal?) and the buffalo burger topped with foie gras (too gimmicky?). When I asked our waitress for more detail, she recommended the lamb chops, but said ordering the burger was an “event”. That sealed it, I got the burger.

It was monstrous. Without the top bun it was easily 7 inches tall and surrounded by herbed and truffled fries tossed with a bit of grated cheese. The fries were fair; in my opinion they would have been better without the terrible truffle treatment. Eggs and truffles – fine, pasta and truffles – also fine. Fries and truffles – I’ll pass. The ground buffalo was quite good and just slightly on the rare side of medium. Topped with a thick slab of foie gras, grilled onions and mushrooms, it was served with fresh catsup, mayonnaise, and an excellent red pepper based sauce. A Juicy Crumbly Rich Meaty Mountain of meat. Of course, I ate the whole thing. (and inspired the woman at the next table to do the same)

Dessert was a chocolate lava peanut butter cake, with peanut butter cream and a wedge of peanut brittle. Imagine a 6 inch wide Reese’s peanut butter cup, and invert it. Then inject an ounce or so of warm chocolate sauce and serve. Two (or more) great tastes that taste great together.

If I could eat at Josie’s more often, I’d be as big as a house.