Burger Conquest: The Palm - An Appetizing Tiger

The Palm
http://www.thepalm.com/
206 West Street
New York, NY 10013

THE STORY
What better way to celebrate the holidays with your buddies then eating beef? Sounds like a great idea but with the state of the economy and the need to buy your spoiled baby cousin that D-Rex 2.0 for Hanukkah and the "designer" leopard print snuggi e for your girlfriend your just short on cash. Well respected celebrity hang out and steakhouse chain, The Palm, has the solution to your holiday meat needs; The Prime Time Bites Happy Hour! All appetizers platters, including Kobe Sliders, Prime Cheese Steak, Filet Mignon Capri Sandwiches and more all for only $3.50!!! (Be sure to read the fine print on locations, times and sections of the restaurant!)

When JoeC from Steak Club 7 emailed the above flier with the simple question "who's in?" I immediately replied with my confirmation.

The Palm first opened at 837 2nd Avenue, New York, NY in 1926 serving up northern Italian cuisine to artists and writers. Legend has it that when clientele would order a steak, one of the owners would run over to butcher shop and pick one up to serve the customer. Eventually steaks were added to the menu and now The Palm, expanded to locations all over the planet, run their own meat wholesale company. Although anyone can eat at The Palm, even today, they still paint caricatures of famous and popular customers on their walls. And although Accenture won't work with this dude anymore, I guess he is still welcome to come eat steak at The Palm.

THE BURGER
While the 9 of us were still getting settled into our tables in the back of the bar, our extremely attentive server already began to take our drink orders. Realizing we only had 45 minutes left before the "Prime Time" special was going to end, JoeC and I quickly placed the following order;

2 orders of Kobe Sliders
2 orders of Prime Cheese Steak
2 orders of Filet Mignon Capri Sandwiches
2 orders of "Ultimate" Chicken Strips
2 orders of Veal Parmigiana Sliders
1 order of "Point Judith" Calamari Fritti
10 Jumbo Shrimp

The sliders and chicken strips were the first to arrive and after disappearing faster than Tiger Woods' savings, the food was gone. JoeC and I immediately asked our server to double the ENTIRE order. I mean really, what's another $48.50 between friends?

The Kobe Sliders were cooked medium well and had great flavor. Unfortunately the bread was a little dry and the meat itself was room temperature. The cheese and bacon topping were both an added bonus since the menu didn't mention either. For $3.50, complaining is really for the spoiled and since I know I am not getting the D-Rex 2.0, I know I which side my bun is buttered and grilled on.

After a few Google searches, I still can't figure out if "Capri" means "serve cold" but if that is the case, the Filet Mignon Sandwiches were fantastic. Cut from a Filet Steak, cooked medium rare and topped with tomato, basil and fresh buffalo mozzarella, these little buddies were full of great well matched flavors. My thanks to Josh's parents for making him allergic to dairy because I got to eat all his mozz. MMM!!!

The "Ultimate" Chicken Strips were piping-hot, crispy, golden and juicy and when dipped in the sweet chili sauce (at least that is what I think it was!) they were quite delectable.

The big taste winner however were the Prime Cheese Steaks. The extremely pungent and salty cheese made combined with the fried onions and chopped steak to create a mini 4 of July explosion in your mouth. If this is what Santa fuels his reindeer with, I know understand how they achieve lift-off!

Overall, a great selection of meat appetizers, insane prices and wonderful time with friends. What more can you ask for around the holidays...other than a "designer snuggie?"