Ruby's Deluxe

This isn’t a fancy burger, which is exactly why it’s such a good burger.

On our way to Astoria, my wife and I stopped for lunch in Seaside. Our first choice was a fish & chips place we’d heard about that turned out to be closed, so we went down the street a block to Ruby’s instead, which turned out to be an excellect decision.

The burger I got was the Ruby’s Deluxe (with cheese), which is on paper is a very, very standard burger:

• lettuce
• tomato
• onions
• pickles
• mayo or smoky sauce

I didn’t even try the more exciting burgers, like the Sleepy Monk (coffee-rubbed patty and frizzled onions) or the Seasider (bacon-wrapper sweet onion slice?!?).

The Ruby’s Deluxe is a great burger. Each element compliments the others to provide a savory, smooth (odd word for a burger, but I stand by it) bite that’s balanced well by the little bit of sweetness from the brioche bun. I feel like folks love to use brioche for buns because it seems Fancy, but it rarely a) tastes very good b) feels justified. This tasted good and felt justified. I got the smoky sauce instead of mayo, which I strongly recommend.

Lately one of my “is this a good burger” yardsticks has been “do I feel like I need to put (more) ketchup on it?” The Ruby’s Deluxe did not need any ketchup.

Also, there is a very strong dog theme at Ruby’s which I approve of in the strongest possible terms.