Wow no comments on this place since my last one in 2018? Anyway, I went to the bank st location the other night before a movie with my oldest 3 kids. Overall the experience was very positive. Burgers were fantastic as one might expect from a burger joint. Onion rings are legendary as always. The offspring all enjoyed their meals greatly.
I do have a few qualms though.
Those ridiculous 500ml Anchor Hocking measuring cups for the found pop drinks need to go an never come back. I should have asked for a beer glass for mine. It was just stupid.
On a related note, I definitely give the server points for being on top of things and making sure we were taken care of - clearly they train the staff well to keep their eye on the tables. However not sure if this part is standard policy or not but our drinks were being whisked away to be refilled before they were even empty, and without asking first! Zoom, zoom and the stupid measuring cups are gone and zoom, zoom they are back and full. That's not cool because people don't always want a refill, but people like me also don't like wasting food. And if I had been asked I'd have asked for a different flavour of pop than the one I started out with.
Anyway, I'll recap that overall very positive. But those couple of things really irked me.
I guess I should also mention that food was delivered in a timely fashion too. Another on the positive side.
Oh yeah one more quibble - it would be nice to have a healthy option on the menu. I wanted good burgers for my kids but would have preferred a healthier wrap or something for myself.
I just stopped into the Westboro location for a quick beer and a snack, and left wondering what it is that makes this place so popular.
My first impression is that it is really dark inside - is that really an atmosphere they are trying to achieve?
And it was warm. So warm that a family of 4 came in after me and was seated at the next table, and 3 minutes later they left and told the waitress it was just too warm. Around the same time a customer on the other side opened the big front window on his side. Too warm.
And yet they had air conditioning teazing us gently. I felt it just before the family arrived - I was right under a vent and suddenly there was a wonderful blast of cold air coming out. But evidently they are keeping costs down by regulating it carefully. So carefully they are driving customers away - the place was about 1/3 full which seems pretty bad for Westboro at 8pm on Saturday.
And in hindsight they are adding insult to injury with what little lighting they had - the lights were tiny halogen not LED. Halogens are extremely hot unlike LEDs which are quite the opposite.
So I dunno. It seems to me that on a muggy night like tonight they'd be packed if they cranked up that AC and gave people a bit of relief from the sweltering heat.
We haven't been to the The Works for a while. I had a huge burger craving so we went last night. I chose the Down Under burger because it reminded me of my year spent in New Zealand. It consists of a beef patty, covered with an egg, slices of beets, a slice of pineapple and gouda cheese.
Sadly, I did not like it. It was too dry because the beets and the pineapple were grilled and the eggs over cooked (it was poached). My recollection of the kiwi burger is with a grilled egg with an almost runny egg yolk and slices of beets straight out of the mason jar. Oh well. The beef party was fine but could have used a bit more seasoning. There was also some caramelized onions which saved the burger.
My husband had the peppercorn, goat cheese and bacon burger with beef patty and he loved it. He thought it was juicy and flavourful.
I did enjoy the sweet potato fries which were fresh and in a light coat of batter. My husband had the spicy coleslaw and it was also very fresh and coated in a light dressing. We did not finish either as the burger and milkshake was pretty filling already.
Terribly disappointed with my hamburger from here the other night. At first I was happy because the size of the burger seemed to have returned to a decent dimension – when they first got bought out, I found the patty had shrunk to almost non-existence, however, once I bit into it, I felt more than let down. Despite having slices of fresh jalapeño peppers as one of my toppings, my burger was basically tasteless – did not finish it even though I'd been dreaming of it for several hours.
With all other burger places around town I will think twice before returning (I wish I lived closer to Vera’s!)
Burgers (and milkshakes) are huge so perhaps that's why I don't mind the price. I don't eat ground beef so the other meat choices is necessity in my books. I'm also a fan of the combinations.
Is it something I would eat all the time? No. Are there better places, I'm sure. But with my aversion to ground beef, if my date is really hankering for a burger I would suggest this place so we can both leave happy
For the prices they are charging one would expect far better quality. It is a burger joint you would think they would at least have fresh buns. Just another example of big corporations taking profit more serious than the food.
Last week I visited for the first time since the change of ownership. Not as bad as some people are making out but I missed the option of having organic beef. I also seem to recall them having Beau's on tap but they only had bottles this time.
The Works has definitely changed since it was sold to corporate investors. I find the portions have gotten smaller and the ingredients are less fresh. I also noted that the beef seems different (I switched to the local elk burger at one point), much drier and less taste. I ate here for years and I no longer do so.
The Works is crap, plain and simple. This will be my last review, the only reason I got burned (figuratively, and literally) more than once at this place is because I did not want to bail on office luncheons there. From now on, I am bailing at any function at this pseudo-burger joint.
Some of the driest meat you will ever have in a burger anywhere. They don't bother telling you that the bbq sauce they drown the burger in is boiling hot tar and will scald your lips. Actually, they probably nuked the whole thing come to think of it. They put inedible whole chipotles with the seeds in the burger that would scald the tongue of the most masochistic of Thai diners. And I like my spice.
I've gotta give a tip-o'-the-hat to the Glebe location. The last couple of times we've ordered take-out from there it has been really really good. Maybe some locations do take-out better than others.
Threw caution to the wind last time I ate at The Works (Westboro), and ordered my Navan Breakfast (Havarti, chipotle ketchup, caramelized onions, double-smoked bacon) Elk Burger done medium.
As the menu states, I did have to sign a waiver.
But, man, was my burger tasty. Flavourful, juicy, and pink. Like many people, I've had my fair share of tough Works Burgers, so this is one way to get around it.
Were I to get a beef burger, I'd likely request it done medium-well, rather than medium, just in case.
Remember, of course, to use your discretion when ordering your burger anything less than well-done.
I tried the Beverly Hills Lawsuit (fried egg, leaf spinach, havarti cheese & double smoke bacon) this visit and was once again underwhelmed by the dryness of the meat. Even though it's cooked medium-well (quite pink) it is somehow very dry. Maybe the patties are just too thick or maybe the burger needs some kind of sauce. Either way, I found myself having to dip the burger into ketchup to get it down. The only real flavour in the meat is the nice grill-smoke flavour. Patties that are very thick like these should be seasoned! The egg added nothing to the experience and I couldn't taste the cheese. There was a generous amount of spinach (although too stringy for me) and the bacon was tasty.
Wifey enjoyed her Spartacat Special (gouda cheese, crispy bacon & fresh avocado). The avocado was a bit unripe and she didn't mind the dry meat as much as I did.
Here's my story from May 2005: After having had several great meals at the Beechwood location, I visited the Westboro restaurant with a friend who had never tried a Works burger. Service was friendly although uninformed (the waiter told us all of their buns have sesame seeds when in fact none of them do). On a whim, I tried a turkey burger. Bad idea!! I was sick for the following week with salmonella food poisoning -- not a fun time! Both of us remarked that our burgers were tasteless, dry, and quite overpriced. Nothing like the experience I remember from the Beechwood location. I will not be back. (Yes, I should have returned a *pink* turkey burger, but I dismissed it as normal because I'm not a ground meat expert and I know that ground pork is sometimes pink when cooked. The fact is, a burger restaurant should know how to safely cook burgers!)
The 2-cup Oreo Cookie milkshake was the high point of my meal. Very nice indeed.
Wifey's kid size (1-cup) Creamsicle shake was awesome too. Note that this was the "flavour of the day" and when I asked our server why someone should choose the flavour of the day she replied, "Because it's delicious and you get some vitamin C." Quick thinking on her part. :-)
They have tons of flavours! My favourite is the chocolate peanut butter milkshake. The burger and side itself is already a large enough meal so go for the kids size shake!
The poutine at the work's is good enough to be a meal in itself. With all that ooey gooey cheese. And that gravy! Delicious! And its vegetarian gravy. Which is great for me.
zymurgist
I do have a few qualms though.
Those ridiculous 500ml Anchor Hocking measuring cups for the found pop drinks need to go an never come back. I should have asked for a beer glass for mine. It was just stupid.
On a related note, I definitely give the server points for being on top of things and making sure we were taken care of - clearly they train the staff well to keep their eye on the tables. However not sure if this part is standard policy or not but our drinks were being whisked away to be refilled before they were even empty, and without asking first! Zoom, zoom and the stupid measuring cups are gone and zoom, zoom they are back and full. That's not cool because people don't always want a refill, but people like me also don't like wasting food. And if I had been asked I'd have asked for a different flavour of pop than the one I started out with.
Anyway, I'll recap that overall very positive. But those couple of things really irked me.
I guess I should also mention that food was delivered in a timely fashion too. Another on the positive side.
Oh yeah one more quibble - it would be nice to have a healthy option on the menu. I wanted good burgers for my kids but would have preferred a healthier wrap or something for myself.