The Counter

A few weeks back a girl I work with mentioned The Counter, a new burger place at Ballard Blocks. She’d gone on a Sunday (presumably after a night out; though she didn’t spill) and was a fan. Burgers aren’t really on my regular brunch rotation but seemed like the best possible choice last weekend for me and a friend—two girls who found themselves tired, starving and all around lazy the day after Halloween.

The company that owns it is California-based, and their whole thing is letting you take the wheel. You get a clipboard and pencil and go about checking boxes to make your own custom combination in the form of a traditional beef, chicken or veggie burger. You choose cheeses (everything from standard cheddar to herb cheese spread), toppings (dried cranberries to the standard lettuce and tomatoe) sauces (aioli, soy ginger glaze, onion marmalade and more) and a couple of varities of buns (or English Muffins, if you prefer). You can also do a burger bowl if that’s your thing, but I figure if I’m going to take on an actual burger I might as well go all the way and get the carbs.

It was a lot decision making for a Sunday morning. (You can also choose from about a handful of pre-determined options, but that seemed wrong.) I went with beef, jalapeno jack cheese, lettuce, Bermuda red onion, bacon, roasted chiles, dill pickles and horseradish mayo. Random with no rhyme or reason, but it worked out. Pretty well actually. We shared their fifty-fifty too—a side of onion straws and sweet potato fries.

I had a round of Bravo reruns for dessert and was a normal, productive person again in no time.