2013 Burger Cup: Union Bar and Grille vs Flamme

The Beijinger Burger Cup returns for July 2013, where you vote for your favorites before we arrange a face-to-face burger cook-off to determine the winner.

This year, we begin with Burger Battles: a series of face-offs pitting Beijing beef patties against each other. These will not necessarily reflect the ultimate match-ups in our Burger Cup bracket, but give burger fans and burger chefs an idea as to how the product may fare in the final competition.

Visit our website often for Burger Battles, updates on the Cup, and more on how you can participate in voting and other burger activities.

Our second Burger Battle sets two next-door neighbors head-to-head: Union Bar and Grille against Flamme.

Burger Battle Two: Union Bar and Grille vs Flamme

Union Bar and Grille
This Sanlitun South Village staple warns about American portions on their menu, and they're not kidding. American fare is the way to go here: steaks, big salads, over-the-top desserts, and yes, burgers. Union has placed third in each of our previous two Burger Cups.

The Burger:
Union Classic Cheeseburger, the only burger on their menu, is 100% grain-fed chuck steak ground in-house with your choice of cheese (cheddar, Swiss or blue). The fixings are robust – thick rounds of red onion and tomato plus a healthy leaf of Red Romaine lettuce. The burger is served with serviceable coleslaw (I ate it all) and excellent skinny fries (crispy, a touch of grease and well salted). A cherry tomato and a chunk of pickle are skewered through the toothpick holding the burger together.

Price: RMB 85

Flamme
Known best for their steaks and the two-for-one deal offered on Tuesdays as well as their stellar happy hour and excellent cocktails, Flamme has two burgers on their menu.

The Burger: Their signature burger is two beef patties wedged between three pieces of brioche bun topped with white cheddar cheese, a couple slices of bacon and a fried egg. It's cooked to order and served with the standard fixings of lettuce (iceberg), tomato, and red onion (caramelized). The dish is accompanied by a heap of passable crinkle-cut fries.

Price: RMB 88

The Decision
Flamme Signature Burger

The Union Classic Cheeseburger was underwhelming. The order was taken with efficiency, to the point that we weren't ever asked how we would like the meat done, a realization we had when it arrived medium. Unfortunately, our cheese choice came out of the kitchen at odds with what we had ordered. The single slice of mistakenly placed cheddar was skimpy. We returned it for the blue cheese we had wanted which came, thankfully, in great abundance. The meat? Serviceable, but not as tender as it could have been and lacking in flavor. What Union really had going for it were the fixings – lots of blue cheese (which masked our disappointment in the meat), red romaine lettuce (a nice change from iceberg) and healthy slices of tomato and onion.

When we crossed the walkway to Flamme, little did we know the surprise we were in for. The menu makes no mention that their "signature burger" is actually a totally stacked double cheeseburger with an extra bun. At only three kuai more, the burger gives you much more volume for your mao. We ordered medium rare and the patties came dripping with juice. The bottom bun was soaked all the way through, but the rest of the burger was striking enough that the soggy bread merited little attention. This is not a burger to eat in front of your date. It's giant, teeteringly high and if your dining companion's mouth can fit around it, then you'd know something unsettlingly intimate about them from the get-go. Flavorful and juicy, there is no elegant way to eat this. And we don't care.

This is quite the upset from the original Burger Wars two years ago, when the two Sanlitun Village steakhouses were matched against each other. Union may have come out on top in 2011, but Flamme has quietly stepped up their game to win the 2013 battle.

Photos: Cat Nelson