Bravo, Spike!

After a brief summer hiatus, the Great DC Burger Caper returns through a stop at Good Stuff Eatery. Located on Pennsylvania Avenue on Capitol Hill, Good Stuff was opened by chef and reality tv star Spike Mendelsohn in 2008. Spike was a contestant on Bravo's Top Chef Chicago which aired a few years ago. Last week, he was also one of 18 chefs selected for the upcoming Top Chef All Stars season to premiere on December 1.

Given Spike's reality tv-stardom, local periodicals and blogs have consistently reported on Good Stuff Eatery. This "free" advertisement is clearly working as the place was packed upon our arrival at 3:30 pm on a Saturday afternoon. Fortunately, it didn't take them too long (about 15 minutes) to serve the 30 people in front of us and there were plenty of tables available on the second floor of the burger joint.

The Burger: placed on a Pennsylvania Dutch-style bun, the Farmhouse Burger comes with onion, lettuce, a long-cut pickle, tomato*, and good stuff sauce (which appeared to be a mayo-based condiment). American cheese and Applewood bacon were added as part of the Burger Caper guidelines. At first glance, the burger looks somewhat small. However, this is due to the size of the bun as opposed to the actual thickness of the burger, which is more than adequate. The burger was cooked to medium - pink in the middle. While no red juices flowed out of the sandwich, grease was everywhere. In fact, it saturated almost the entire bun by the time I got to my final bites. Still, the meat tasted fresh and had a nice amount of seasoning. Nothing was overpowering. In fact, the bacon blended to the extent that it was hard to notice its inclusion. Still, it is clear that Spike knows what he is doing when it comes to burgers.

The Fries: Slightly less greasy than the burger, the fries were cut to about half their typical size. This made it necessary to eat two or three of them at once. Spike leaves the skin of the potato on the fries and sprinkles sea salt over top. The fries were good; however, they needed the condiments.

Free Fixins: Hot sauce, vinegar and sea salt are featured on each table, while ketchup and mustard are located on the fixin bar. Nonetheless, it's the four types of mayo that are notable. The Old Bay mayo combines a tangy kick with a little bit of spice. Sriracha brings some true spicy heat, but also includes a degree of sweetness. The mango mayo was rather mild compared to the others; however, it's sweetness provides a nice contrast to the savory fries. Spike's 4th featured mayo is the Chipotle. All four are noteworthy, but the Old Bay seems the most complex and innovative. If you are in seach of a spicy kick, try the sriracha.

Atmosphere: Although there was a long line, the second floor dining area was rather comfortable. The R'n'B that crooned on the first floor was barely audible up above, where patron conversations mixed with the sounds coming from the two (or three) flat screen tvs featured on the walls.

Cost: The regular burger with American cheese and Applewood bacon is $6.69. The regular french fries goes for $3.69.

Overall: Good Stuff Eatery is more than just hype. I doubt a better burger can be found on Capitol Hill.

Burger
The Burger Joint
Good Stuff Eatery
Z Burger

Fries
The Burger Joint
Good Stuff Eatery
Z Burger

Free Fixins
Good Stuff Eatery
Z Burger
The Burger Joint

Atmosphere
The Burger joint
Good Stuff Eatery
Z Burger

Cost
Z Burger $4.38/$2.59
Good Stuff Eatery $6.69/$3.69
The Burger Joint $8.99/$2.89

Overall
The Burger Joint
Good Stuff Eatery
Z Burger