Ranu's Reviews

25 Burgers
905 Route 70 & 88
Brick, NJ 08724

732-785-0025
11AM – 10PM Sun-Thu
11AM – 11PM Fri-Sat

25 Burgers is the relatively new burger chain taking Central Jersey by storm, however, their newest location further south in Brick, NJ is just a weak drizzle.

The Bastard Child of Five Guys?

When I walked into 25 Burgers for the first time I couldn’t help but think that I was here before. The place was very clean, but also visually uninspiring—was I inside of Five Guys? Nope, the door did clearly state in a child-like font (and logo) that I was at 25 Burgers. Then I started to think that maybe one of those Five Guys had their way with Wendy’s and she gave birth to this red-and-white checkered step child of a hamburger joint. Regardless of how 25 Burgers landed in Brick, I felt like I was eating at a hospital cafeteria—then again—maybe this was by design to make the majority of Brick’s elder residents feel more comfortable.

25 Burgers and More!

I have to commend the place on the variety of burgers. There are at least 25 burgers to choose from at all times—24 burgers and one burger of the month. In addition to the 25 burgers, there are also five additional “Local Favorites” and six different hot dogs. In addition to the Certified Angus Beef Burgers, you can also get Turkey, Bison, Veggie, Chicken and Pork burgers—plus cheese steaks, gyro, crab, pot roast, hot pastrami and pork roll. There is definitely something here for everyone.

The side orders are a la carte and you can choose from Boardwalk Fries ($1.75), Cheese Fries ($2.50), Chili Cheese Fries ($3.00), Sweet Potato Fries ($3.50) and Onion Rings ($4.00). 25 Burgers also has five different milk shakes for $4.00 (Chocolate, Strawberry, Vanilla, Butterfinger and Oreo Cookie). Stewarts Bottled Soda ($2.50), Bottled Water ($1.50) and Pepsi fountain beverages round out the rest of the drink options.

Paging Mr. Herman

Once you place your order at the counter, 25 Burgers gives you one of those restaurant pagers that lights up and vibrates when your order is ready. It is barely a step up from being inside a frigging Fuddruckers and I have to say that I prefer having my food brought to my table. Maybe I got spoiled at places like Smashburger and Elevation Burger, but given the choice I prefer my food to be delivered—especially since this greatly reduces the chance of me dropping my tray.

Want Some Burger with Your Lettuce?

I ordered the Bacon Royal Burger which consists of a burger with a fried egg, bacon, cheese, lettuce, tomato and mayo. I know what you’re thinking, “Ewwww—a fried egg on a burger?” However, I have to give props to Red Robin since that was the first place where I tried an egg on a burger and I liked it.

When I brought the order back to the table, I had to take another gander at the menu because I thought they gave me burger #26—“The Head O’ Lettuce” burger. The burger patty was barely thicker than the egg and the flavor of the meat was completely lost in the land of the lettuce. At least I know the lettuce was clean because it was sopping wet, which made for an overall awesome eating experience if you’re a rabbit.

I also tried a few bites of the Bacon Cheese Burger (#3) and the Mushroom Swiss Burger (#4) which were equally thin and lacking in taste. The Mushroom Swiss Burger was my favorite of the three, but that is not really saying much because I was extremely disappointed with just about everything at 25 Burgers in Brick—including the sides and shake.

The Boardwalk Fries were like a hybrid between steak fries and regular fries. Thicker than regular fries, but smaller than steak fries; nothing special at all. Their onion rings were probably the best thing I had that night. Each ring was stuffed with a decent-sized onion and was generously covered in batter.

The End Result

I’ve been to the 25 Burgers in Bound Brook, NJ and everything was just about spot on. The burgers in Bound Brook were a slam dunk, while the ones I had at this location were a “brick.” I had the mighty Colossal Burger (two patties) in Bound Brook and it was a great burger. However, this review was based on the Brick location and unfortunately I think Burger King would’ve been a better option.

The place was very clean and the service was just fine. Oh wait—I actually took the tray to my table, so the person taking my order was nice and whoever activated the annoying buzzer/pager did a fantastic job.

I would not let my excessive lettuce experience deter you from trying 25 Burgers because the burgers are very tasty (sometimes a bit greasy, but tasty!) and there is a great variety to choose from, however, I would recommend trying any one of their other locations that doesn’t have a Brick, NJ zip code.

For more information on 25 Burgers, visit their web site at http://www.25gourmetburgers.com/.