Last Sunday I biked over to join Jen and Quinn at Roscoe Village Burger Fest. We decided to go early because it was supposed to be so warm. At 11:30 a.m. it was already in the 80s. Since there wasn’t a line by the ponies, Quinn took a ride there first. Then he had a turn on the bouncy castle. We were getting hungry, so we went through the fest a bit and bought some burgers. The good thing about Burger Fest is that a lot of the stands sell small sliders, so you can try a lot of burgers without stuffing yourself.

Goose Island Legendary Stilton Burger Slider (cracked pepper, roasted garlic, dusseldorf – $4)

Jen got the Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2) from Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro and I got the Legendary Stilton Burger Slider (cracked pepper, roasted garlic, dusseldorf – $4) from Goose Island. This burger was awesome. The cheese and the roasted garlic were so rich and delicious. I also got a Leinies Classic Amber, maybe my first mistake of the day. It was, by then, in the 90s and I was so hot and sweaty. Plus I rode my bike there. I shouuld have been gulping water, not beer.

Hamburger Mary’s

Hamburger Mary’s Mighty Aphrodite Slider (stuffed with olives, spinach & oregano, with baby spinach onion & feta cheese – 2 for $6)

We also tried the Mighty Aphrodite Slider (stuffed with olives, spinach & oregano, with baby spinach onion & feta cheese – 2 for $6) from Hamburger Mary’s. This burger was good, but not amazing.

Quinn creating his masterpiece.

I told Quinn to make a Batman face.

Since it was so hot, we mostly chilled out under the kid’s art tent while Quinn worked on some projects. We didn’t stay long at the fest before walking back a few blocks to Jen and Chad’s house. Quinn had to go to a friend’s birthday party anyway. Also, their backyard was way cooler. It’s shaded and had a breeze. We needed to cool off. We were so hot, we didn’t even stop to see any of the gardens in the Roscoe Village Garden Walk on the way home, like we did last year.

When Jen took Quinn off to his birthday party, Chad and I headed back over to Burger Fest. We had roadie beers for the walk over and the tough security guard would not let us through with them. So we had to chug. Probably my second mistake of the day. Followed by much more beer hydrating.. let’s just say, I did NOT ride my bike home that night.

Chad and I stopped by the Village Tap stand. This is our favorite bar and we’d just been there on Friday night. Our waitress was telling us about the mediterranian burger they were going to sell. Chad and I stopped by and talked to the Village Tap owner to aks if the burger would be on their menu any time soon and the owner said it would be likely. So, we passed that one up, knowing we’d be eating it soon.

Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2) & Pulled Lamb Slider (Irish Whiskey BBQ sauce – $2)

On Jen’s recommendation, Chad went to the Mrs. Murphy’s & Sons Irish Bistro stand. He tried both the Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2) and the Pulled Lamb Slider (Irish Whiskey BBQ sauce – $2) there. He loved the slider, but not the lamb, and didn’t even finish it. I tried it too… very flavorless. Chad also had a Turkey Slider (gouda, onion jam – $4) from Goose Island, which he really liked.

John’s Place Cowboy Burger (1/4 pound angus beef burger, pub cheese, bacon-onion jam, bbq chipotle drizzle – $5)

John’s Place had a burger called the Cowboy Burger (1/4 pound angus beef burger, pub cheese, bacon-onion jam, bbq chipotle drizzle – $5) that was the Burger Fest winner last year, so I tried that. I was totally intrigued by the bacon-onion jam. The pub cheese was kind of cheez whizzy, but it worked. Added a nice creaminess that complimented the savory bacon and onions.

Trent and Loden recently moved to Roscoe Village and brought their doggies Charlie and Winston over to the festival. We sat for a bit and decided once again that we were too hot, so we headed back to Jen and Chad’s backyard, where it was much cooler.

Chad, Winston, Cortez, Drake

Drake, Jill, Halle, Charlie

Halle

Winston

Jill, Brian, Halle, and Limey met up with us there. We sat around the backyard watching the Cubs game, visiting, and drinking beer (mistake!). After a while Jen and Quinn came back. It was getting to be around dinner time, so we decided again to go back to Burger Fest. Everyone went over, except Jen, who smartly had enough of the heat and decided to stay home.

Goose Island

Goose Island Turkey Slider (gouda, onion jam – $4)

On my third trip to the fest that day I tried the Turkey Slider (gouda, onion jam – $4) from Goose Island that Chad was raving about.

Stanley’s Kitchen & Tap

Stanley’s Kitchen & Tap Roasted Corn Salad (chipotle, cilantro, onion – $2)

Also, my coworker Dave had told me that on Saturday he had the Stanley’s burger and corn side and both were good. It looked like they were only selling full-sized burgers and I was trying to avoid those, so I just got the corn side. It was light and fresh and just a bit spicy. Perfect for the hot weather. This was a good-sized side, so I passed it around to share and everyone really liked it.

Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro – Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2)

I also tried the Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2) from Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro. Many of us tried this slider and it was great, but the meat patty was a little small for the bun. But the bun was a pretzel roll, so we didn’t mind much. This was a delicious little slider.

So, after a while people were dispersing. I went back to Jen and Chad’s house because Chad had to drop Quinn off for bed. I was getting so tired. By then it was maybe 7:30 p.m.? And I’d been back and forth from the fest drinking beer and eating burgers and sweating my butt off in 90+ weather since 11:00 a.m. I was done! Chad was trying to get me to rally, saying that since I’d opened the fest that day, I needed to close it too, but I just couldn’t. Foghat was playing. Foghat. I was not rallying for Foghat. I took a cab home. My bike is still in Jen & Chad’s garage!

Oh, and the winner of Burger Fest? Each hamburger stand had a code on it and you texted your votes in. I thought that was a great idea. I voted for Goose Island because I enjoyed both of their sliders. Very good. But guess who won? STANLEY’S! The place Dave told me to get the burger from and I didn’t. Oh well. Mrs. Murphy’s & Sons Irish Bistro placed third, losing second place by only one vote! Select Cut Steakhouse won second place. I don’t think any of us even got a burger from that place! On a side note, Dallas used to live above Select Cut probably something like 10 years ago.

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