Last Tuesday, CBC went to
Open City in Woodley Park to try their Turkey burger in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday. Despite not being a beef burger, the turkey burger was actually pretty good. (It
was still a turkey burger.) The burger itself wasn't amazing, but it had decent flavor, a hearty portion, and wasn't greasy. It was nicely charred with superb grill-marks.
The bun was the highlight of the meal though. A toasted whole wheat bun with oats on top was the perfect pairing to the turkey burger and received very high remarks all around. The cheese selection at Open City is quite good; options include cheeses that are hard to find at a burger joint like Gouda and Gruyere. The cheese complimented the burger, but didn't have an overall impact on the taste. The toppings were standard lettuce, tomato, raw onion, and pickles; quality produce but failed to excel above and beyond. The whole leaf of lettuce was appreciated, but that was in part because we have been to a few places that had very sub-par shredded lettuce. The fries were poor (McDonaldesque) and should be avoided. The beer selection is limited, but the fall seasonal brew is a good beer.
Open City is a coffee shop/restaurant/bar which leads to a confused atmosphere. Not totally unappealing, but it needs to make its mind up. The hipster vibe is certainly not standard of a burger joint, and although it may appeal to the alternative crowd, it
drew some criticism from the CBC. The Open City turkey burger is good for a turkey burger, so if you are one of those people that avoids red meat (or a hipster) check out Open City.
