The new burger place, replacing the old McDonald's in Corte Madera Towne Center has opened. It is called "The Counter" and it's been so busy I didn't see a way in until a couple days ago. There are greeters outside the door that orient you to the concept and guide you to a seat inside. Since the ordering is a little more complex, and hopefully rewarding, its a good thing that they get you oriented.
Thinking it would be nice to try their 'half-and-half', which has several choices of combination, I decided to order the half fries, half onion strings combo. Little did I know it would be enough for a family of 4! I didn't eat even half of this and I credit this dish with making me feel sick after I left, continuing through to the following morning. It was just too grease-laden. The onion strings were a vehicle for transporting oil soaked deep fried batter to your mouth. And the exceptionally slow service also figured in to me over indulging in these. This dish took a long time to come out, and the by the time my burger came out (it seemed like a VERY long time) these were totally cold. The fries and burger need to be served close to the same time! This dish was served with ranch dressing and barbecue sause as dips, and the barbecue sauce was rather good with it.
To place the burger part of the order you are given a clipboard with lots of choices to tick off with one of the pencils in a box at your table. I chose a veggie burger in a honey wheat bun, with Guyere cheese, mixed baby greens, tomatoes, carrot strings and grilled onions. The grilled onions were actually caramelized and very good. In fact, just ordering a heaping plate of these would have been a better option! The burger is served with a knife, guess why? I'm supposing because with all the toppings, and the softness of the veggie patty, you can't really eat it in your hands. I picked up the burger gently and the soft, crumbly veggie patty flung off chunks of itself onto my plate. I didn't even get one bite. I ate the rest with my knife and fork. The veggie patty itself tasted good. The bun wasn't anything to write home about, so I also just ate half of it. Overall, I don't think the food and experience were consistent with a $16.79 + tip price for the above pictured food plus an iced tea.
Restaurant Inspection Results
The Counter has not yet been inspected.
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3 comments:
Thanks for the "heads-up" Anna. Maybe they will improve their service and their food when they've been open for a while.
I tried this place for lunch last Saturday and enjoyed my burger and fries, though since it took so long (for take out) I was completely ravenous, anything would be great! Hopefully they'll get a bit more organized. I don't think I'll make it a regular destination, but since it's super-close to my house, I can definitely see getting take-out after a long run (calling in first, though).
Zoomie: I hope so to as their concept is good.
Margot: I was puzzled at the slow service as I was there after the big rush and there were some empty tables. However, they haven't been open all that long. It seemed to be a kitchen issue rather than the wait person who was charming and attentive.
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