Yes, Prime Minister

The lure of two new hamburgers each made with a different blend of meat had us going to the Pub and the Kitchen on a beautiful fall night with the weather still warm enough for outside seating.

Oyster Stout Rarebit, grilled country bread, stout beer mornay, and broiled oyster.

Three oysters on a long piece of grilled sourdough bread with each oyster covered with a stout beer mornay sauce with grated cheese sprinkled on top. This would have been a delicious appetizer before the burger, except one thing: It didn’t show up.

 The Churchill

Using a special blend of meat blended specially for the P&K by the Pat LaFrieda Butcher in NYC who also supplies the meat to The Spotted Pig and Shake Shack; this 8 oz dry-aged meat wonder arrived sitting on a brioche bun, topped with bone marrow butter and sautéed onions with a large heap of fries on the side. I was disappointed that the burger did not come with cheese until the waitress convinced me that the cheese would totally overwhelm the delicate flavor from the bone marrow butter.

My first bite hit the mouth with a nice rich beefy flavor of meat combined with the spongy texture of the brioche. Although slightly over-salted on the outside, the meat was nicely packed, moist, cooked perfectly medium rare, and had a nice medium grainy texture. The meat umami was making a nice direct hit to my cerebral cortex.

The bone marrow butter was very subtle. If I didn’t know about it, I am not sure if I would have noticed the flavor. I did enjoy the sautéed onions along with the brioche from Metropolitan They made a good harmonized package with this specially blended burger meat.

The Hamburger

Not liking the bone marrow butter, the Tourist Tree chose the Hamburger which was still made with meat from the Pat LaFrieda but just not the special blend made specifically for The Churchill. The Hamburger comes with lettuce, tomato, onion and fries. Instead of any of the extra cost a la carte toppings of tomato marmalade, bacon, fried egg, cheddar or blue cheese; the Tourist Tree wanted the sautéed onions from The Churchill.

The medium-rare Hamburger arrived cooked solidly through. Our waitress quickly whisked it away for a re-do while the manager stopped by to check on us and apologized for the kitchen’s oversight on the burger and the appetizer omission.

After some uncomfortable waiting, the Hamburger, Act II, appeared at the table with the meat cooked much closer to the medium-rare that Tourist Tree had requested. The patty was nicely packed, moist, had a good texture; and in essence not that much different from the Churchill except the flavor was not as intense and complex.

Kit Kat Bar

 

Oh yes, I have loved Kit Kat since I was a kid. The combination of chocolate, crème, and crunchy wafers is a rewarding treat for the mouth and the mind.

 
This fancier version of the Kit Kat is made with chocolate mousse, white chocolate mousse, and layered with crunchies. The flavor was very similar to the real thing. Except for the solid chocolate cover outside and the in-between wafer layers, this dessert could pass for Kit Kat, the candy, in flavor and texture if not for the look. A light sprinkle of a few grain of salts on top of the piece and the raspberries gave this dessert a unique twist in flavor I particularly liked the lightness of the mousse which made me feel less worried about the dessert still sitting in my stomach like a piece of lead at 2 in the morning.
 
Unlike the cult followers for the Windsor burger, I was never impressed with the Windsor that had been on the menu since the P&K opened. The Churchill and the Hamburger are quite different from the Windsor. I found each meat more complex than the old burger and I prefer the brioche over the bread that the Windsor used.
 
The new burgers are definitely a good step forward in the evolution of this restaurant’s offering. I am more enthusiastic about these burgers than the Windsor although I do think the patties on the new burgers could be a bit heftier in order to make them winners. It would be interesting to see how these burgers will be received by the Windsor followers now that the Windsor has been put to the pasture. For the Churchill, I am not sure if the “special blend” meat and the bone marrow butter are worth the $7.00 premium over the Hamburger. For that amount of money, you could buy yourself a 500 Degree burger plus almost a soda!
 
We asked the waitress for our bill after I kicked the Kit Kat. She replied, “There is no bill tonight….for all the mistakes we’ve made….” We were shocked but very grateful. Taking care of our bill from drinks to dessert for a couple of mistakes shows how much they value the customers and their integrity to admit mistakes when they happen. Two very fundamental ingredients that have gone missing from a number of Philadelphia restaurants. Yes, Prime Minister, the Pub and Kitchen is a class act!