rogue states

rogue states
1300 connecticut avenue NW (at N N St), washington, DC 20036
tel: 202) 296-2242
hours: monday-sunday 11am-5am (yes, that's 5 in the morning ...)

what was consumed: ciao down (garlic, tomatoes, basil) burger (pink), fries, soda

recommended for: lunch and/or a casual dinner

i was sitting at my desk at the office one day and friend dave handed me a 5x7-ish flyer for a "new" burger place (thanks, dave!). he had been out during lunch and received one of the flyers as 'rogue states' began their grass roots marketing for their upcoming opening. i began anticipating their opening ... only to have that date slip my mind (i guess i'm not that much of a fan of new places to eat. hahaha - i laugh as i type that). no matter - i soon got a chance to visit rogue states (and have been a few times since then).

so, this is how it works at rogue states. you walk in, select the sort of burger that you want (and decide pink (yes please!) or no pink), appropriate toppings, fries (yes please!) and soda options. then you sit (while sipping on your selected beverage - yes, they have beer & wine here) while waiting for the wait staff to bring your food. once your food arrives, enjoy! repeat as necessary (though i've never had a desire to repeat immediately after completing a meal). simple, eh? here's where it gets complicated. the variation of burgers is not necessarily related to the additions that you add to your burger; rather, the variation has to do with what you add to the burger's patty. i.e., if you order a 'ciao down,' then they mix garlic, tomatoes, basil with the ground beef and together, those ingredients make your burger's patty. YUM. a bit different from other burgers, especially in that others try to maintain the purity (?) of the patty. rogue states offers variation (they also have a more 'purist' patty option as well), which i most definitely appreciate. the patty, then, coupled with their deliciously toasted bread and fresh toppings (lettuce and tomatoes, please) creates a delicious burger!

and be sure to try the different dipping sauce options for the fries! i can't remember what the options were off the top of my head, but there's one that i really liked. i think it's the old bay mayo (or was it the chipotle one?). shoot - i don't remember. i'll just have to go back to refresh my memory (yay!).

among the other things i like at rogue states, one thing i really appreciate has nothing to do with food. rather, it has to do with options. i love it when eateries (a la rogue states) offer a few variations of the same and you choose from that menu. wonderful! now, i love options. i love having options and will sometimes even go out of my way to make sure there are a variety of options available to me (though this is turning into a sort of harrowing existance because i often cannot/will not choose from my options). but when it comes to food, more often than not, restaurants have too many options. shoot - i've already gone through the arduous decision making task of selecting a restaurant (what cuisine? what mood? indoors or outdoors? drinks or no drinks? quick or sit down? options options options!), it is tormenting to then decide what it is that i'm going to eat. granted, part of the distress is because there usually are no less than a dozen thing on those menus that i want to eat (but i digress, per usual). understandably, there is a time and place for eateries that offer everything under the sun (especially if you want to eat one thing and the people you are with want to eat something else or are unwilling to try new and different things (boo!)).

when i teach facing connecticut avenue, i can see 'rogue states' from my classroom. this will remind me of the yummy burgers i've had (which often causes me to digress from the lesson. sigh. you can see what my priorities are - ha!). i'm sure i will find myself at rogue states again ... soon please!

online: http://aburgergrillingcompany.com