Brereton Lake Resort

Brereton Burger
$14.99 (platter)

Tex Mex Burger
$12.99 (platter)

Deluxe Burger
$12.99 (platter)

Hamburger
$10.49 (platter)

Come for the beautiful Canadian Shield and stay for the burger! Greg and Kim Ftoma bought the Brereton Lake Resort in 2002 and promptly expanded the restaurant. It’s bright and airy with comfy tables and a bar across the double-sided fireplace. There’s a spacious patio, ice-cream stand and beach within walking distance - necessities in the summer. The resort is open all year long including a store stocked with camping essentials, gas station, boat, snowmobile and cabin rentals.

Greg’s a super guy with a great sense of humour. Well staffed in the summer, he draws his labour force from the young cabin dwellers in nearby cottage communities. “They're loyal - I work them like slaves and pay them poorly but they keep coming back” Greg joked. Greg’s background is a Criminology degree which he put to good use bartending for 30 years. He learned to cook with his steel worker father and says they “cook food the way we want to eat it.”

The burger is huge with chili the defining feature. The kitchen prepares 30 lbs of the rich, meaty sauce each week – Winnipeg Old Country ground beef, cumin, chili spice and garlic. The line cook ladled not one, not two, but three large scoops onto the flagship burger. They patted scoop #2 flat as a platform for the last dollop. Scott paraphrased 'City Slickers': “If chili were people, my burger would be China.”

Karen reviewed the Brereton Burger: “This was an immense burger with a prodigious serving of first class fries/onion rings. The first bite festooned my Frings with chili spatter. The cheese was lost in all the chili along with the bacon. The patty by itself was firm and fairly plain in seasoning. Quality ingredients. Lots of tomato and lettuce which I love.”

If chili isn’t your thing, the Deluxe Burger is the one for you. What it lacks in chili it makes up for in mayo and comes with all the groceries, bacon and cheese.

For a spicy stack the Tex Mex Burger is topped with grilled onions, jalapenos, green pepper, spicy mayo, BBQ sauce, cheese, bacon and fresh produce. Stan scribed: “I loved the TexMex. Just the right amount of spicy. Still got the flavour of the excellent patty. Bun held together until the last 10% which was better than expected. Really enjoyed it!”

The choice of sides is stellar. I *loved* the coating and furrowed texture of the Beer Batter fries. The Frings were popular as well, because, why should you have to choose between fries and rings? If you opt for coleslaw you get a juicy pile and today’s pro-tip is hoist your burger off the plate before the bottom bun gets soggy from the dressing. Little Brown Jug on tap was an unexpected bonus!

Rockwood Urban Grill: 4.3/5

Zeke's Burger: 4.4
$16 (platter)

100 Mile Burger: 4.4
$19 (platter)

Manitoba Maple Burger: 4.4
$15 (platter)

Urban Cheeseburger: 3.5
$14 (platter)

A shiny new Winnipeg ‘burb gets a new franchise – the Rockwood Urban Grill at Sage Creek. Owned by Jeff and Ashlea Street, former cattle farmers out of Moose Jaw, Rockwood is the first chain-child of Rock Creek. It’s bright and airy with plenty of wood features and an open kitchen.

Rockwood Urban Grill’s menu is developed around wood smoke, and the flavour comes from a 1,000 F Champion Tuff Grill. A mixture of pine and oak smoke pairs well with the beef flavours. Rockwood provided: “It’s an 8 oz patty and each burger has something different – the type of sauce, peppercorn coating, etc. We keep our seasoning pretty basic with mostly just salt and pepper to let the meat flavour come through naturally. Our wood fired grill is a big inspiration for most of our items.”

Half our group ordered the  Zeke’s Burger  [bacon, caramelized onion, smoked cheddar, provolone and secret sauce]. Karen scribed: “This was an excellent burger overall. The bun held up fairly well - almost matched in size to the huge burger. Fresh tomato and I loved the bacon, cheese, onion combo - it made the burger juicy over every bite.” Sandy rapid fired: “So many flavours. Smokey. BBQ. Cheesy. Charbroiled. Bacon. Onion. So cheesy. The bun is my least favourite part. Dry. Dusty. Unimaginative.” Laura exclaimed “Probably the best burger I have ever had!”

The 100 Mile Burger [peppercorn crusted patty, grilled sausage, bacon, provolone, smoked cheddar, caramelized onion, tomato relish, roasted red pepper aioli and pickles] was the other popular choice. Jeff critiqued “I wasn't sure about this burger the first few bites, but then everything came together once I bit into all the toppings. So. Freakin. Good. It was big, but not too big. I could definitely order this again.”

Burgers come as a platter and the selection of sides was excellent. People loved the Fire Grilled Caesar and the soups got rave reviews. Other choices include fries or chips and the Little House on the Prairie Salad. Rob wrote “Thai soup was excellent. Large portion and just the right amount of spicy.” Jeff said “the fire-grilled Caesar Salad was brilliant.”

Rockwood has a decent selection of beers on tap, and if you can’t decide, they offer flights of four, 4-oz. glasses. These were popular, and before long our table was covered with mini-Weizen glasses. They ran out and subsequent flights of fancy were denied until the dishwasher could catch up.

Burger Club’s visit to Rockwood started out a hot and sunny day, but a surprise monsoon rolled in right at supper time, leaving patio patrons scrambling to dry off in the lounge. Rockwood ran out of chairs, and as some of our party were tardy, we lost one seat. When the stragglers showed up, our waitress did the only thing she could and brought in a wicker patio chair. Luckily Chris is a hunter who doesn’t think twice about lying in soggy ditches so didn’t mind sitting in a sodden chair!

Silver Heights Restaurant: 4.3/5

Los Bad Hombres: 4.5
   $12
Mmmm-Heighty Memphis: 3.7
   $13
Angus Sirloin: 4.7
   $10
Blue & Gold: 4.5
   $12
Saucy St. James: 4.6
   $10

The Silver Heights Restaurant made Burger Club’s Top-10 list! The neon landmark of 60 years is famous for ribs, so it comes as no surprise they also make a 5-Star burger. We were lucky enough to sample new creations coming soon to an updated menu.

Silver Heights is family owned and operated now in its 3rd generation of Siwickis. It's a popular destination for those looking to nurture the soul. The restaurant and bar were full on a Tuesday night, and our servers Shelly and Leah had no problem taking care of our large group. A grinning Tony kept sticking his head out of the kitchen to make sure we were happy.

The new ‘Los Bad Hombres’ was the popular choice with Burger Club. It made a striking presentation topped with shredded mozza and cheddar cheeses, pico de gallo and colourful tortilla crisps. Grilled jalapenos and chipotle mayo filled out the flavours. The only distraction was the bottom bun got soggy for some people. Karen wrote: “60 years of practice in the kitchen really shows as Los Bad Hombres was a really good burger. The patty was crisp and flavourful with a full-beef flavour. I loved the texture of the Tortilla crisps on this burger. My only complaint was the patty was huge and I couldn't finish mine.  9/10 messiness factor equals 9/10 in flavour." Jeff scribed: “The burger was done to perfection, and the flavours complimented each other perfectly - just enough heat to not overwhelm everything.”

The ‘Mmmm-Heighty Memphis Ribber’ tantalized with a cherry tomato on top. It had a Cajun dry rub, smoked Beaman BBQ sauce and zingy coleslaw and will be a great addition to the regular menu. Russ commented: “A great blend of flavours! Spices on the ribs and sauce on the slaw went well together and the bun was perfect.” During #LeBurgerWeek back in September, Tony joked that the cooks were annoyed at him for his popular creation – they were madly ‘shucking’ a mountain of rib bones back in the kitchen.

The straight up ‘Angus Sirloin Burger’ from the regular menu was the highest rated creation and that says a lot about how well the patty stood on its own. Nat exclaimed “A solid burger! Moist & meaty with nice grilled surface. Nice warm bun and great beef ratio. Good flavour.” Geoff penned “A rather basic sounding burger with no bells and whistles but it came through with flying colours; a good sized patty and a good collection of fresh toppings. It was nice and juicy, and the tasty bun held up pretty well." Sleemans makes a beer just for Silver Heights and Geoff went on to say "The SHeights lager is a treat, like Original Draft but with a local flair. The Silver Heights is a true Winnipeg institution and one of my favourite neighborhood bars/restaurants."

The ‘Blue & Gold Stuffed Burger’ took Les to new heights: “It was a top-notch crispy done to perfection tasty zesty mouth watering bliss! Onion rings, hints of blue cheese swirling over the 10 yard line, the bun was tackled, SHeights beer pushed us over the end zone. Touchdown!” I found the burger wasn’t so much stuffed with blue cheese, pickles, bacon and mushrooms as blended, but all the flavours came through in the mix. I enjoyed it, but I liked the spicy flavour of Karen’s Los Hombres patty even more.

The last of the five stacks we feasted on was the ‘Saucy St James’ with smoked ham, spicy jalapenos, banana peppers, mushrooms and chipotle cheese gravy. Isabel wrote “Loved the crusty burger. Had nice bits of crunchy beef bits. Can't say I noticed the ham. The cheese sauce was tasty and the crispy onion bits on top just made it super extra tasty. I would get it again.”  Jacques liked his too: “I was a bit leery with a name like Saucy St-James that I would be wearing half of my burger, but it held up exceedingly well. I want to come back to try all the others. Very meaty and great flavour.”

The fries met with mixed reviews, but Brad said the “Chili cheese fries were to die for.” I had a big bowl of meatball soup and it was delicious.

The Heights is having a big 60th birthday party in June and you can play along to win a VIP pass. Western Restaurant News recently wrote a great story on the history and operation of the Silver Heights Restaurant and Lounge (5.5 MB).

Shannon's Irish Pub: 4.3/5

Shannon's Burger: 4.3 

$11.99 (platter with fries)

If you think of Shannon’s more for great Celtic music than a dining destination, you may need to change your tune. They make a great burger! Shannon’s lies beneath the streets at 175 Carlton; out of sight, but not out of mind. When Winnipeg turns into Winterpeg you can get to the bar from the downtown indoor walkway. The Japanese Gardens - commemorating our sister city status with Setagaya, Japan - grow over Shannon’s.

Owner and Chef Gerard Fletcher is no stranger to the kitchen. Papered through the culinary apprenticeship program at George Brown in T.O., Chef Fletcher cooked his way from Field, BC to Halifax, NS before buying the Shannon’s Irish Pub in 2007. “When we took over Shannon's Pub, it wasn’t necessarily known for its food. I think now, after all the years, we have gathered a bit of a reputation that the food is another reason to stop in for a visit.”

The Shannon’s Burger is masterfully designed and executed. “The seasoning is a proprietary recipe that I have been tweaking since we took over the pub and this particular blend has been in use for the past four years. Inspiration is taken from of the fact that I love a good burger, which is why the recipe has been morphing for so many years.” The stack is assembled from perfect parts with the Brioche bun prepared by Gunn’s Bakery and the cheese a Bothwell Monterey Jack.

They pushed two large, carved wooden tables together in the centre of the bar for our group. Server Hailey confirmed our count so the kitchen could get the patties cooking while we were still arriving. It’s a *big* 8-1/2 oz. patty so takes some time on the grill. On game days (the MTS Centre is nearby) the ‘Burger and Beer’ special is $15. The Shannon’s Burger is $11.99 (with fries) and for a ‘nominal charge’ you can add cheese for $1 and bacon for $1.50. For another $2 you can have soup, and the soups are *amazing*. Three choices the day we went. “I highly recommend the mushroom & Guinness soup” said Tina.

Despite the size of the stack, the burger and bun handled well and held together to the end. Chef Fletcher used a revolutionary assembly technique with the melted cheese, groceries and bacon all on the bottom. The patty was cooked through, but juicy and a nice bite. The Brioche bun, brushed with a wash, made it shiny and attractive. The smoky bacon was cooked to leathery perfection.

Chris critiqued: “I really like these traditional pubs. Shannon’s has a comfortable homey feel. Staff were attentive and made sure I had everything I needed. The patty was nice with a little bit of charcoal on the outside while the bacon was smoky. The bun kept the burger all together; never got my hands messy. The fries were homemade and I liked the potato skins on the ends.”

Paper Poutine Separator

Karen wrote “The Brioche bun held up nicely while not adding too much bread. The burger, as a result, stood out. The patty was 3/4" thick and seasoned pleasingly. I enjoyed my side of flavourful French onion soup.” Stan echoed “The patty was happily the main component. It was a nice healthy size, perfectly cooked.”

Brett recently returned from a pub crawl in Dublin and scrawled “Better than any burger I had last month in Ireland!” High praise.

Les enjoyed his: “One of the biggest, juiciest tasty burgers ever. The juicy-squishy done-to-perfection burger dribbled out of the corners of my mouth when I took a bite through the well oiled, shiny bun, which held that big monster burger surprisingly well.”

Underground Windows

Chef Fletcher left us with a teaser for 2017: “Stay tuned for the Lamb and Bison burger on the new menu starting in the New Year.”

The Planit (closed): 4.1/5

The Ultimate Burger
Score: 4.1
Platter: $14.50


Mushroom Swiss Burger
Score: 4.1
Platter: $15.00

Ashley Meilleur opened The Planit at 285 Portage Ave in August 2015 upsizing from her 12 seat Vinyl Diner in the Garrick Hotel. It’s a great location in the heart of downtown Winnipeg’s burgeoning Sports, Hospitality and Entertainment District (S.H.E.D.) The buildup of condominium high rises and nearby MTS Centre should mean plenty of Planit patrons for Ashley and partner Sandra Soares for years to come.

Our table was presided over by a painting of Ashley. She told the story of how the portrait went for auction at a fundraiser, and that she felt funny at the thought of it hanging in someone’s home so bought it herself. The second floor kitchen is shared the Creating Opportunities & Rewarding Experiences (C.O.R.E.) culinary training program that “provides skills for those transitioning from the streets back into the workforce”.  As their website proclaims, The Planit is “Proudly gay owned and operated and we are all about culture, diversity and supporting our community.” There are live entertainment events in the evenings and starting May 1, Planit will open a patio on Portage Ave.

The Planit Burger (RIP)

Interior colours are from La Bamba (and briefly Reuby's Gastropub). Diners are greeted by an upright piano soundboard leaning against the wall and a bright and cheery space. I took one bite of The Planit Burger on a previous visit and knew Burger Club had to dine here. On the day we visited there was a new menu and new chef (Ashley) with The Planit Burger replaced by two new beef offerings – The Ultimate and The Mushroom Swiss Burger. Sadly, the Brioche bun delivery didn't make it on time for Burger Club's lunch.

Sandra and server Brittany were great hosts and Ashley prepared ingredient platters so we could see and taste the individual components of our stacks. Along with the Red Thai Chicken and Rice soup, Ashley surprised us with a “cheeseburger” soup for anyone (like me) who wanted to make it all about the burger. Both soups were a large serving, hearty and delicious. “The soups are an adventure” wrote Cary. Have the soup!

The two Angus chuck beef burger assemblies are similar, but with cheddar cheese and onion rings on one, and Swiss cheese, bacon jam and mushrooms on the other. Both come with flavourful Sriracha aioli and fresh groceries. The planned Brioche would have raised Burger Club’s rating from the substitute bun.

The home-style patty was soft and airy but held together well. Dani commented “Love the flavours of the patty! All of the food had such a wonderful variety of spices and flavours.” “Great burger, nice little bit of spice” wrote Chris. Cary also had the Ultimate Burger and scribed “Burger was FRICKEN TASTY!” The fries were delicious and consensus was they had a light dusting of cinnamon.

I had the Mushroom Burger and the mushrooms were fresh, thick sliced and sautéed to perfection – the highlight of my sandwich. “The hand battered onion rings made the burger for me! OMG - so flavourful” wrote Stephanie.

Photo Credit: The Planit

The Planit also makes a vegan Earth Burger with 14 grams of protein – more than the beef offerings! April wrote “I will have to come back to get the protein-packed veggie burger. Sounds like a good pre-roller derby meal ...” Russ liked the music “Bonus points for playing Grimes the whole time.”