BURGER REVIEW: BGR (Arlington, VA)

I have been hearing about the burger chain BGR for a long time and took advantage of my proximity to a BGR outlet in Clarendon to finally check it out on a holiday. I ordered The Burger ($6.99) medium-rare on a fresh, buttery-toasted brioche bun with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, mojo sauce, American cheese (+$0.99), and applewood bacon (+$1.29) with regular fries ($2.29).

The burger was excellent, but I have discovered in my Quest for the Ultimate Burger that even though a "buttery-toasted brioche bun" sounds great, it is often too much bread and can overwhelm the patty. This was the case with BGR's bun and so I took off the top half and ate it as an open-faced burger. The combination of the crunchy bacon with the decadent melted American cheese and the perfectly cooked beef patty is the very definition of a transcendent burger experience.

The burger was well-matched with the fries. BGR has an interesting selection of items to pair with their burgers, including regular fries ("the gold standard"), sweet-potato fries ("the orange standard") and grilled asparagus spears sprinkled with parmesan cheese ("the green standard") and onion rings. The fries were definitely above average in quality (but not quantity), thicker than typical but piping hot and lightly salted. Again, near perfect.

Overall, the burger experience at BGR was surprisingly good. The quality of the food surpasses the product at places with much higher price points. I will definitely try to return there in the future, perhaps to try their ahi tuna burger with the asparagus spears.

Name: BGR The Burger Joint.

Location: 3024 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22201.

Contact: 703-566-1446.

Visit: July 4, 2013.

AMBIANCE: B+

SERVICE: A-.

VALUE: A.

FOOD: A+. 

OVERALL: A/A- (3.83/4.0)

POLL: Strong Support for LGBT Equality in VA

Good news out of the Commonwealth of Virginia for supporters of LGBT equality! A new bipartisan poll conducted for Human Rights Campaign reveals that Virginians strongly support LGBT equality.

For example, support for marriage equality is at 55%, which jumps to 71% for voters under the age of 30. There is interesting geographic distribution too:

• 68 percent in Northern Virginia 

• 53 percent in Central Virginia

• 51 percent in Eastern Virginia 

It's great to know that the area in which I have been living (Ballston section of Arlington) has such strong support for marriage equality. But there is even more good news. Virginia also supports state recognition of same-sex couples (civil unions) as well as overwhelmingly support (by 74 percent) protections from employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

In fact, support for a state LGBT right law is strong among several demographics:

• 70 percent of Independents

• 62 percent of Republicans

• 71 percent of African Americans

The item "on the gay rights agenda" that is least supported by Virginians is adoption by same-sex couples, which is "only" supported by 60 percent.

Great news from Virginia! Maybe Virginia is for lovers, after all!

It's getting HOT In Here...

There's a crazy heat wave going on throughout the United States. Expected temperatures in Washington, D.C. for the next few days are in the triple digits! Last night there was an intense thunderstorm which took out power to much of Arlington County (in Northern Virginia just outside of the District) where I live. Fortunately, it left my power unscathed because this is not a time when one wants to be somewhere without air conditioning! Happily, Los Angeles looks like it is doing fine (low 80s) so I am looking forward to spend some time there for the upcoming holiday next week.

Hat/tip to Rad Homo.