Union Station - 12/6/12

Sometimes, I wonder what's happening to our beloved tour. Dwindling attendee's, declining burger quality, and a disturbing trend that includes an influx of salads and bar sammichs. SALADS, on the Burger Tour for Pete's sake!!! Don't gimme any of that "Bill, it's the Holidays, and we're busy with work, family, and other social commitments" crap! Now, I can't criticize too loudly (and yet I just did. Hypocrisy, thy name is Captain Willy Redbeard). A last minute scheduling change required me to alter my plans, and I had to send other Burger Tour representatives in my stead, to serve as my proxy, to act as my substitutes, to judge and evaluate the beefy comestibles that one CR watering hole, The Union Station, had to offer. 

Our review today begins when Secretary Joyce Willecombe grows suspicious of two men boarding her train and is referred to 'Tough Willy' Calhoun, head of the Union Station police. The all-seeing, no-nonsense Calhoun is initially skeptical, but the men (who escape) prove to be involved in a kidnap case. Calhoun calls in equally tough police Inspector Donnelly, but the ruthless kidnapper's precision planning stays one jump ahead of them. Most of the action centers around bustling Union Station. Wait, oh, sorry, that's not our review, that's the plot summary of the 1950 film "Union Station, starring William Holden and Nancy Olson. 

Any bets on how many times Tough Willy got away with calling Joyce a "dame" or "broad"? I'll bet it was a lot. Man, the 50's must have been awesome. 

"What was that crap?" you ask? Well, let me tell you. See, normally I TRY and post a link to the bar's website so that digital residents of the World Wide Web, also known as "the internets" can better connect with the establishments that we frequent. It's a free service that I provide. No need to thank me. Apparently Union Station can't scrape up the $12 a year to pay GoDaddy for a domain name that works, so instead, you get old Hollywood (presented in both black AND white!!). Step it up folks, it's the 21st Century. If you don't have a website, you're old news. I mean, for crying out loud, I got this here fancy schmancy blog, I got the Twitter, I got personalized Lip Balm for crying out loud, and I haven't spent a dime. 

Union Station

Photo may not depict the actual establishment that served the burgers in question per se et al etc.

Eight Burger Tour participants attended today, 6 of them have completed surveys. 

NOTE: Two people did submit surveys late, so I am going through here and updating all the numbers to reflect their input. - 12/7/12

Since I did not actually attend today, I will largely limit the review to their comments and survey responses. To include my own viewpoints would introduce variables into the process, and we cannot, WILL NOT have our scientificial methods compramazed..no..compramaized ...screwed with! 

The Burger

Based on survey responses, 5 people had a burger, one person had a bar sammich, because someone ALWAYS has to be just a LITTLE bit special now don't they????

The Numbers: Burgers received a 6.14/10, while the lone Bar Sammich was given a 7/10. 

Comments included:

• Cheeseburger with lettuce, pickles, mustard and ketchup. It was cooked well, but you can't make a frozen beef patty into more than it is. Tasty, but still just a pre-made burger.
• Regular cheeseburger with ketchup, mustard, onion, tomato, and lettuce. I liked the toasted bun, but my burger was really messy. Too many toppings and condiments? Not sure what the problem was. Burger tasted good overall with crispy edges and a toasty bun :)
• Very average frozen hamburger patty. Tastes very similar to fast food burger like Dairy Queen. (Editor's Note: OUCH!)

Fries & Sides

Fries were given a 6.0/10, and apparently there was a fiendish dish known as a "side salad" available as well. It was served with an odd white goo that's referred to as "ranch". 

Comments: 

• Fries were a nice blend of crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, but still just frozen fries.
• Fries were OK, nothing to write home about. There were also quite a few onion straws mixed in with my fries, but since they weren't very good, I didn't consider it a bonus.
• Onion straws were not that great :( Small, fat little pieces, too greasy. Just wasn't right. Salad was okay. (Editor's Note: ಠ__ಠ)
• Fries were above average. Crispy and hot! Possibly fried with fish, a little Long John Silver tasting. (Editor's Note: OUCH! AGAIN!)
• Onion straws - very good!
• Fries: crisp, hot, salty

Service

6.50/10. Comments include:

• One girl running the entire bar and restaurant. She did great for being solo.
• There was only one waitress for the whole place and she was running around like crazy. She did a fine job considering she was alone and working in a dump!
• There was only one lady serving the whole place of 25+ people trying to eat lunch. She was doing her best but forgot to take our order, so our group ate in 3 different shifts. She did bring refills, not sure when she had the time to do that! Didn't want to wait to pay, so we took our checks up to the bar and paid.
• This waitress was very busy serving about 30 people by herself. Never ran out of beverage and even got a dessert for free!

Conclusion

Well folks, sounds like Union Station wasn't exactly one to put on the map. Average burgers, so-so fries, and an understaffed/overworked bartender/waitress don't make for a real inviting environment. 

"Would you eat here again, or recommend it to others?" Union Station came up with a 3.13/5. Based on all this, I doubt Union Station will be on the short list for "Best Burger".

Few comments I'll leave you with:

• I thought my burger was pretty good and priced well. Daily lunch special is burger, fries OR onion straws, AND soup OR salad AND pop for $6. Not bad at all :) Mostly quiet. Multiple TVs and one huge screen that had the news on. Really narrow tables, maybe 18 inches wide. Can't really sit a group bigger than 6 together. Not interested in going back if there's only 1 waitress for the lunch rush.
• Ah, it's all right for construction workers and thug-types, but I think I just have a skewed opinion of it since my very thuggish step-brother-in-law frequents the place and loves it. Now on to better and cleaner places!! :-)
• Women's bathroom was a little sketchy. The seat was up when I went in, I was concerned.

We'll keep looking!