Denise's Art of Burger

Yes, dear reader(s), today we'll be discussing Denise's Art of Burger... because if there is one thing Geneva needs, it's a burger joint. ANOTHER FREAKIN' BURGER JOINT. But here's the thing, contrary to appearances, there is actually no plot to try to force feed the Genevan population burgers -- or "gourmet" burgers as business owners would have you believe -- however, without wanting to get on the conspiracy theory bandwagon, I am fairly confident there is a plot to feed you barbecue sauce and caramelised onions. For, yes, dear friend(s), Geneva's food scene is slowly being taken hostage by unbelievably bad burger toppings. And I am having none of it!

Enter Philippe Chevrier's Denise's Art of Burger, the newest addition to Globus' food court. The burger joint is no exception to the rule, and left to its own devices, it will gladly layer your burger with generous amounts of caramelised onions and barbecue sauce. However, you, the customer, should know that things can be different. You can actually enjoy a burger that isn't overpowered by the taste of toppings that take away from your eating experience... well at least they certainly take away from my eating experience.

Anyway, it turns out that once you ask the right questions, Denise has a couple of alternatives on hand. One of them -- and so far my favorite -- is a béarnaise sauce in lieu of the offensive BBQ sauce.  And as far as onions go, they don't seem to load up on regular raw onions in their kitchen, so I was able to get them to substitute spring onions instead. Fine by me!

The fries are a little unexpected, they come in a curved shape that is probably intended to help you scoop the dips they are served with. Which brings me to my next point: condiments. By default, your fries will come with mayonnaise and a house ketchup. Yep, folks, Denise's Art of Burger clearly makes its own ketchup. And while that is definitely a step in the right direction -- I have, after all, often complained about Geneva's unwillingness to serve up anything that didn't come in a little Heinz container -- one problem remains: their ketchup is... well... not good. So kudos for making the effort, but now let's work on improving the recipe.

Denise's Art of Burger also offers a wide range of desserts. My personal favorite is the cheesecake, it's perfectly fine just as long as you don't try to compare it to anything you may have had, say, across the ocean.

I should also mention that Denise's burgers aren't limited to just beef, if -- among others -- a lamb, salmon, veal or vegetarian burger is what you're in the market for, you're in luck! One word of advice though: I'd skip the chicken burger (truth be told, I haven't actually tried the others). I was somewhat underwhelmed. Just sayin', folks. Overall, if I were to recommend a burger, I guess it would be the bacon & cheese. I'm actually not a huge fan of bacon on my burgers, but the bacon cheeseburger's sesame bun is vastly superior to the plain bun you'd get with the basic burger. Furthermore, I know many of you do like a little bacon on your burgers.

Needless to say -- this is Geneva, after all -- Denise's burgers don't come cheap, a bacon & cheese will cost you CHF 20 and a basic burger menu which includes sides of fries and a salad as well as a dessert and a drink will run you CHF 30.

Pictured below: a bacon cheeseburger, a basic burger, a chicken burger, fries, house ketchup and mayo and a cheesecake at Denise's Art of Burger.

A Showcase of Beautiful Food Photos

I thought I'd do something a little different this time and showcase beautiful photos from Flickr. There's such a wealth of content on the image hosting website, it is difficult to choose just a few photos for a blog post but here's an initial selection I hope you'll enjoy!


Fettucini Alfredo by Amy Pospiech


Cupcakes by Keith Chu


Shrimp Lo Mein by Matt


Pastrami sandwich by Leon Brocard


Koshary by Wedstock 2011


Pepperoni pizza by Hungry Dudes


Brownies by jeffreyw


Dim sum by Morten Båtbukt


Naan by stu_spivack


Sushi by keg-shine


Garlic bread by Jasmin Foo


Pad thai by stu_spivack


Falafel wrap by Gloria Cabada-Leman


Gnocchi by Enrico Matteucci


Cheeseburger by entity


Lemon meringue pie by makemesomepie


Pea risotto by Anna Mayer


Fried chicken and biscuits by Niall Kennedy


Sour Cream Apple Pie with Pecan Streusel by I Believe I Can Fry


Cinnamon rolls by Timothy Vollmer


Spinach, ricotta and green garlic ravioli by Robb & Jessie Stankey


Pot stickers by Naotake Murayama


Fish & chips by David Ascher


The photos above are provided under the Creative Commons license. All photos have been changed for the purposes of this post, they have been resized, cropped and the colors were also altered some. Furthermore a stroke was added to each photo to remain consistent with previous blog posts.

Capocaccia Acacias Soon Closing?

I hear Capocaccia's location in Acacias won't be around much longer. The restaurant's managers will apparently be shutting it down in the very near future. It's too bad, it was the perfect spot to stop for a quick meal if you happened to be around the neighborhood. The food was decent and fairly inexpensive.

I was able to enjoy Capocaccia's pesto pasta on a couple of occasions:

Green Mango

I recently discovered a fairly new restaurant in rue de la Terrassière. Green Mango seems to be the newest addition to the list of Thai restaurants in Geneva. And because I love Thai food yet feel many of the Thai restaurants here leave something to be desired, I was eager to try something new and different. Thankfully, I was not disappointed! The food is fresh, the service is more than pleasant, and the space, while small, is actually rather cosy. I will say, however, when the place is at capacity, the service does tend to be a tad slower than it should be. But as long as I'm in no particular hurry, and the quality of the food remains high, I'm quite willing to forgive the delay.

Pictured below: duck salad, dim sum (which I especially recommend) Pad Thai and a delectable fresh mango and sticky rice dessert

Comptoir

I think Comptoir is one of those places you're supposed to like. It's supposed to be hip, modern and bohemian or whatever. But truth be told, the Paquis located restaurant never really grew on me. However many of my friends do enjoy going there, so every so often I do end up having a meal there. But frankly, I always felt the food was nothing to write home about. Though in fairness, I must admit their sushi is actually quite good and fresh.

Pictured below: eggs rolls and vegetable noodles.

CNN's World's 50 best foods

Not exactly recent but definitely worth a mention, CNN got users to vote on the world's 50 best foods a couple of years ago. Some of the results may be a little surprising, but I can definitely get on board with a list that includes cheeseburgers, fettucini alfredo, maple syrup, fajitas, pizza, fried chicken, fried rice, fish 'n' chips, gelato, dim sum and pad thai among others!

Check it out:
Your pick: World's 50 best foods

Another Trip to Ponte Vecchio

I've reviewed Ponte Vecchio on this blog before. It is a good, unpretentious Italian restaurant similar to many decent pizzerias around the city. However it's neither hip nor especially modern. But boy, when they serve up a plate of gnocchi gorgonzola, it is something of a magical experience, they manage to get the texture of the gnocchi just right, and the gorgonzola sauce is that perfect balance of creaminess and bite.

Le Mont-Salève

Most of the time when I'm meeting someone for lunch and dinner, I figure, let's play it safe and go to one of the places that will reliably serve up something delicious. But then, every now and then I think, let's be a little adventurous and try something new, something different. And that's exactly what I was thinking on a recent Friday night, when we decided to go to Mont-Salève. I had heard a little about it, and by all accounts, the food there was definitely worth the trip.

Located at the foot of the Salève in the Veyrier area, the restaurant isn't exactly in my neck of the woods, but when you're in the mood for something different, why not go with a change of scenery too? I was told the restaurant specialized in entrecôte and had great sides of risotto and french fries which all sounded great on a freezing December evening.

We got there and ordered our entrecôtes - medium rare for me, and rare for my friend. The meat was more or less what you'd expect, the sauce was a little bland to my liking, but the sides of risotto, fries and the absolutely delicious cardoon gratin definitely made the trip worthwhile. I was somewhat less impressed with the carrot puree but with three other delectable sides, I was still delighted with the experienced.

Then came the dessert, a meringue topped with sweetened chestnut cream and a dollop of fresh whipped cream and I was on cloud nine! Easily one of the best meringues I had ever had, it certainly seemed fresh and it was probably made on the premises.

Overall, I would definitely go back, though more for the side dishes and the dessert than for the main attraction.

Pictured below: a garden salad starter, followed by a special sauce for the meat, a medium rare entrecôte with sides of risotto, french fries, cardoon gratin and carrot puree and finally a meringue topped with sweetened chestnut cream.

Luigia

Does Luigia still need an introduction? If you live in Geneva, enjoy Italian food and going out for a meal every now and then, you're probably familiar with Luigia and its delicious pizzas. But the restaurant also knows how to whip up a pasta dish, and with new additions to the menu on a regular basis, it's certainly worth giving Luigia a third (or is it a fourth?) mention on this blog.

Pictured below: salmon linguine at Luigia's.
 

Le Sud

Le Sud is a restaurant operated by Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Geneva. It boasts an extensive menu, and its desserts are certainly worth the trip.

Pictured below: a crème brulée at Le Sud.