My first exposure to Bobby Flay was as a judge on the Food Network’s, “The Next Food Network Star.” I have to admit that I am a big fan of “reality” TV, so when a channel devoted entirely to food puts out a reality show—they got a special place on my DVR’s season pass.

The one thing I learned from watching all these food-related reality shows is that they stress simplicity in the restaurant. I can’t tell you have many times I have seen a potential candidate cash in their 15-minutes of fame by trying to do too much.

A-B-C, Easy As The BBP 1-2-3
Bobby Flay has really put his money where his mouth is because I don’t think it is possible to get any simpler than Bobby’s Burger Palace and nothing makes that more apparent than the first thing you see as you walk in the door: The BBP 1-2-3.   

Personally, I felt a little insulted that before I even put one foot in the restaurant that I was being told what to do by this giant sign shouting at me in all caps. I think every fast-food joint in the United States has their menu on the wall by the registers, so note to Bobby Flay: “You’re not reinventing the process on how to order a frigging hamburger, so don’t piss off your customers before they even walk in the door.”  

Take A Seat
Once I placed my order, I had no choice but to follow barking order #3 and took a seat. The inside of BBP is like a modern-retro diner—it definitely had a “Pulp Fiction” feel to it. Even the design and décor is simple—very appealing, but simple.

The one thing that did bother me about BBP was that all the seats were bolted to the floor. This doesn’t mean a damn thing to all you skinny minnies out there, but for those of you that use your treadmill as an extension of your closet—you might have a tough time with the predetermined allotment of space between the chair and table. I was fine with the spacing between the counter and my stomach, but it sure was a pain to get out of that bolted seat. Thank God nobody was sitting next to me or there definitely would have been some uncomfortable leg-on-leg contact. First the sign, now the seats—Bobby Flay is a control freak!  

Will You Be My Neighbor?
Hope you like dining with strangers, because there are only four tables inside. The rest of the seating is either around the S-shaped, diner-style counter or on the two long, cafeteria tables in the back. If you have a choice of seating—choose wisely—or do what I did—go as soon as the place opens and you can sit anywhere you want! Anything else goes wrong during this visit and we’re going to “throwdown” Mr. Flay.

Price Check!
The first thing you need to know is that everything at the BBP is a la carte—with the exception of the kid’s meal. Actually, the Kid’s BBP Burger Deal is the most economic choice on the menu, but it is restricted to those 12 and under. You get a Palace Classic Burger, fries and a kid’s drink for $6.50 which is the same price (and size) of the Palace Classic Burger. All the other burgers are $7.50.

Next time I go back to BBP, I’m going to bypass Bobby’s Third Commandment and get me some kid’s meals to go. The burger is the same size (if it isn’t, I sure as hell couldn’t tell the difference), you get fries and a drink—plus I don’t have to sit next to strange people that shop at an outlet mall.

You Want Fries With That?
BBP’s fries cost $2.50 and you get a decent amount of quality fries. We’re not talking super-size, but there should be enough to fill your passion for French fried potato. They were not greasy and have the potato skin on one side. I know some people love the skin and others absolutely despise it—I didn’t mind it.  Plus, you get a little container of dipping sauce for the fries. It actually tasted better on the onion rings, but it was a nice little surprise. 

Lord Of The Onion Rings
Speaking of the onion rings—they were outstanding. Unfortunately, you only get five rings for $3.00. Good if you are by yourself, but not enough to share. After my first bite, I didn’t want to share “my precious” with anyone.  

You know how most of the time when you bite into an onion ring, you unintentionally have the entire onion contents dangling from your mouth because your teeth are not as sharp as a piranha’s? Well, that is not going to happen here my friends. Inside the sphere of beer-battered goodness sits a perfect onion slice. Not too thick. Not too thin. Just right, Goldilocks. Take a bite. Take two. Heck, you can even cut it with a knife and still get the perfect combination of onion and batter in every bite.  

Shake It Up
While adhering to Bobby’s First Commandment, I noticed in line that they have quite the collection of milkshakes and malteds. There are 10 different drinks for $5 each. I did my best Vincent Vega impression and said to myself, “I gotta see what a $5 milkshake tastes like.” So, I ordered a pistachio milkshake. My reaction was pretty much the same as John Travolta’s, but I’ll spare you the profanity laced admiration that he had for Uma Thurman’s milkshake.  

This milkshake was really good. Just like the onion rings—this drink was perfection. The flavor was consistent throughout every slurp and the shake itself was not too thick to go through the straw, but just thick enough. However, just like the onion rings—there was not enough bang for the buck.  

Mmmm. That Is A Tasty Burger
I purposely ordered the most basic of burgers on the menu—a simple cheeseburger. One can very easily mask the true taste of the burger by dressing it up with elaborate toppings and sauces, but a plain cheeseburger will really expose Bobby’s meat. 

The gimmick at BBP is the option of getting your burger “Crunchified™.” (Yes, Bobby Flay spent money to actually trademark the word "Crunchified.") You may add a stack of potato chips to any burger to make it “Crunchified.” I have to say that the potato chips did absolutely nothing to enhance the flavor of the burger, but I really enjoyed the crunch.  

My $7.50 Crunchburger was superb! The burger was top quality and cooked just how I asked. They even went the extra mile and toasted the bun.       

Now my wife got the Bobby Blue Burger and after trying hers, I had even more of an appreciation for my Crunchburger. While her burger looked fantastic, it tasted more like a grilled blue cheese sandwich. The blue cheese was overpowering and it shamefully took away from the wonderful taste of the burger. 

The End Result
A lunch for two adults and one child came to a little over $36. While the majority of the food was very good, I just didn’t feel like I got enough for my money. I loved the burger, onion rings and milkshake, but still left BBP hungry. For the same $36, you can go to Red Robin and have a similar tasting burger that is larger, bottomless fries and a milkshake fit for two—plus, the only sign on their door says, “Welcome.”

Contact info:

Bergen Town Center

610 Bergen Town Center

Paramus, NJ 07652

(201) 368-7001