Wednesday, January 4, 2012
First Bite First Bite: Pharmacy Burger Parlor and Beer Garden
Posted by Chris Chamberlain on Wed, Jan 4, 2012 at 5:41 AM
With a variety of burgers, sandwiches, wurtschen, house-made sodas and shakes as well as a nice selection of high-end beers, Pharmacy is like Swensen's for adults. Not that they aren't kid-friendly, at least until 9 p.m. Before that witching hour, young'uns are welcome and will probably have a great time enjoying the sort of fountain drinks that their parents might remember from Moon Drugs soda counter along with a nice little playground tucked in the back corner of the beer garden. In fact, that beer garden may be a favorite playground of many of us once the weather improves — its multilevel grassy knolls are filled with picnic tables that are just begging to be covered with steins of summer lager. Until then, there's plenty of space indoors and on the covered patio with an indoor/outdoor bar and propane heaters to warm your buns while you enjoy Pharmacy's burgers and their buns made special for them by Provence.
The buns are indeed notable in their ability to hold up to the juicy overtopped burgers, including what I've been told is a decadently messy Stroganoff Burger covered with a gooey mushroom bechamel. I sampled the Farm Burger (pictured), which was a protein bomb topped with country ham, bacon, maple mustard and a fried egg for good (if not necessarily good for you) measure. Other specialty burgers include the Chili Burger and a Mission City Burger with guacamole, black beans and crema fresca. Vegetarian options include a Falafel Burger and a Black Bean Burger.
Beers, hard ciders and specialty root beers are available in either 12- or 20-ounce sizes and are all pretty high-end and interesting. Don't expect to get a Bud or a Miller Lite at Pharmacy; Dino's is just down the street if you insist.
I'm confident that Pharmacy Burger Parlor and Beer Garden will take off in this spot. Parking may be a little problematic if both Holland House and Pharmacy are hopping on the same night, but there are several lots around and between the restaurants. It's worth the effort. If you get to visit before I get back over to the People's Republic of East Nashville for another fine burger, as always, let us know what you think in the comments.
Comments (23)
Showing 1-23 of 23
it's just a matter of time before those 'People's Republic of East Nashville' t-shirts start showing up. oh, and that burger looks amazing, and I know BP is excited about the currywurst.
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I admit I probably overuse the PRoEN reference, but after one of my friends that lives in the neighborhood referred to my side of the river as having to take a trip "to the mainland," I figured it's ok to poke a little fun at each other.
I'll buy one of those t-shirts if it gets me seating preference in the Beer Garden at Pharmacy next summer.
Ate there late last week. I had the Stroganoff burger & tots. Messy & delicious. Great selection of beer. Nice atmosphere - looking forward to the garden opening up once the weather warms a bit. Service was meh, but they've just opened.
I'll return. :)
ps. Looking forward to seeing how their brats stack up against those I grew up with in America's Dairyland. :)
Can you believe I wanted to order the Farm Burger minus the bacon & ham? What a weirdo I am. I think it was the maple ketchup & the egg I was interested in. Next time I might just build my own burger, or try the falafel burger. And I'll definitely go for the tots next time!
I thoroughly enjoyed my first visit there. High points were the tots & the ginger ice cream soda, which was served in a Hagar the Horrible-esque glass mug. Delicious. I got the chili burger & loved everything about it except the burger itself. I wasn't allowed to order the temperature I wanted, but was assured all burgers are cooked medium well (I wanted medium). It came out very well done, and it was a disappointment. However, the chili and the bun (oh, the bread! so good) made up for the burger. Here's hoping they'll start pulling those patties a bit sooner. Either way, I'll be back for a wurst.
I loved the burger - I got a standard Pharmacy burger, and it came out just a bit more done than medium; perfect for this type of burger. I've heard a couple of places now that they are a bit inconsistent with the cooking, though; hopefully that will even out. The burger was nearly perfect, except I actually didn't love the bun; I thought it was a little too firm and large. That might be good if you get one of the messy burgers, but for the plain burger I would've liked something squishier, a Marten's Potato Roll sort of bun. I think I might get two patties next time, though, which would help fix the balance.
The beer and tots were perfect, and the chocolate malt was good too. I'll be back many, many times.
Fie on your recommendation of weird ketchup. The gravy for tot or fry dipping is AMAZING.
Fie? That's the most erudite negative comment I've ever gotten here on Bites. I love it!
More than I loved the gravy. Mine was cold. I did say that whatever floats your boat was fine with me...
But if you can float your boat in cold gravy, you're a better sailor than me.
I went today for lunch. The currywurst wasn't bad, but was a little different from what I had in Germany.
They pretty much nailed the curry ketchup - it was awesome. The sausage (bratwurst) was interesting - it was split, and the meat in the sausage seemed very coarsely ground - not a bad thing, just different. And it was served on a bun, and with sauerkraut, which was a little strange. But then again, the menu claimed that currywurst is a "Munich beer hall classic". I thought currywurst had more connection to Berlin? Maybe in Munich they serve it this way?
Anyway, the Pharmacy seems like a really cool place. I can't wait to go back and try a burger.
I had the Stroganoff burger. It was messy as hell, but I did enjoy it. I will go back, because it's fun, and near my house. But if I have a hankering for the best burger in town, I'd go elsewhere. I know they are probably erring on the side of food-safety caution in their decision to not allow you to specify how you want your burgers cooked, but still, it's a turn-off. I know I can go to Marche, PM or Fido and get a burger cooked the way I actually like to eat it — which is not medium-well, as Pharmacy cooks all their burgers. I'm a medium-rare guy. And I've survived 52 years without any weird food-borne illnesses ... that I know about. Is it fear of lawsuits? An attempt to streamline the cooking process? I just don't get it. And for a place that wants to hang its hat on having the best burger in town, just a tad odd.
I've also found at Burger Up that no matter how I order my burger, it comes out medium well. Maybe they have the same directive, but they choose to let you THINK you are ordering it the way you like it. And I like Burger Up, but can never seem to get a medium-rare burger there.
I like my burgers less done than medium well also, Jack. It's pretty disappointing to hear a burger place won't actually cook a burger the way you want it.
@Jack- There was an explanation on their facebook which now appears to have been taken down. It explained that the burgers were not cooked to temp for the reason below...
It looks like they didn't delete the post from their twitter account.
The Pharmacy @ThePharmacy1
And...a word on our burger: We make old-fashioned burger counter burgers. If you must have a burger cooked to... fb.me/zdRxvdEC
11:21 PM - 30 Dec 11 via Facebook · Details
I have to agree with Jack also. I burger cooked medium well is no longer a burger, it's a hockey puck. I definitely go there for their beer garden, but I won't even attempt to eat a well done burger. I'll just go to Brown's Diner to get a burger cooked properly.
I only make a fuss about the burger temperatures if I'm sure the restaurant is grinding their own beef. If they aren't, medium well is fine with me. I can get e coli at home, thanks. Is anyone in town doing that, though? I can't think of who does for sure.
Went there last night.
The food was a solid "Meh". Tots and Fries are straight out of the bag. I understand having frozen/premades for the tots. But, for fries? That's weak sauce. Up shot on the fries is they're the same as Fat Moe's. Beer selection was nice. Only one local brew though.
If there is a long wait, you'd be better off movin' on down the road to some place else.
I, too, went last night. Service was impressive - quick and friendly. Husband had the Pharmacy burger, with iceberg, American cheese, and onion. When he added ketchup and tasted it, he nearly giggled. It tastes JUST like a McDonald's hamburger. We both loved the bun. The husband says it's among the tastiest burgers in Nashville, but he is not picky about doneness. The tots were standard. I like a medium-rare burger, so I had the brat, which came sliced and mixed with kraut. It was tasty, but I'm curious about the sliced presentation. Is it because their house-made sausages tend to split when cooked? The bun was delightful. The fries taste--get this--JUST like McDonald's fries. I don't mean the McDonald's comments as slights; there certainly is some nostalgia there. I appreciated the unique selections on the beer menu. I'm not a soda person, so no comment there.
The only thing good about this place is the bun from Provence. They were out of SEVERAL menu items, including onions? Frozen tots and fries - please do not have frozen tots - this is not an elementary school cafeteria. Have you even had the tots at SouthStreet? You should - devine.
Good beer selection and friendly staff.
I'm not a big burger man, but lately I have developed an interest in tartare and very rare red meat. We went to Ted's last night for pre-skating fortification, and I ordered the blue cheese-bison burger, rare. Rare it was, just as requested. Bloody delicious. Maybe -- just speculatin' -- Ted's can feel safe serving genuinely rare meat because it controls the production line from pasture to plate.
It looks like Bitester voices have been heard loud and clear. Pharmacy Burger's Facebook says that they are now serving hand-cut fries and tots and will begin to serve sweet potato tots soon. Also, they are now cooking burgers to temperature upon request.
Power to the people!
Tried the stroganoff burger and pharmacy cream soda last week and both were amazing. I can't wait to go back!
