Abe's Diner Burger Review – Airdrie, AB
Abe's Diner Burger Review – Airdrie, AB
The Gold Medal Burger quest took me west for this one. Abe's Diner in Airdrie, Alberta, about 20 minutes north of Calgary, gets an 8.5 from me and lands at #27 out of 140 burgers on my rankings. It was a local pick, too. Robyn wasn't with me for the last few legs in Alberta, so Hofstede was behind the camera, and he requested this stop because it's his go-to burger in town.
A server who knows her menu
Something happened inside that had never happened to me on the quest before. The server walked me through the whole menu: 100% beef with no filler, bison and elk options, everything made in-house and cooked on a flat top. I was really impressed with how much she knew. Then she asked me to be sure to give them a review. Nobody had ever said that to me before. Request granted.
My order
Same as always: a hamburger with lettuce, onion and pickle only. It came to $14.70, a little more than some stops, but right around the middle of the pack for this trip. I'd just hit a couple of cheap ones in Calgary and some pricey ones in Banff.
Out of the bag came napkins, ketchup and a burger on what turned out to be a brioche bun, lightly toasted, with leaf lettuce, ruffle cut pickles (they like the ruffle cut out in Alberta) and minced onion. I flagged the onion as a little light before I even took a bite.
First bite in Airdrie
One bite, everybody knows the rules, and I could taste it right away: a good burger. I picked up butter on the bun, and I liked the balance. After a few stops with more bun, this one had a proper ratio of meat to bun. The ratio that was off was the onion, which stayed too light the whole way through.
The more I ate, the more the patty took over. The server said it was 100% beef. I believed her at the start, and after a few bites I really believed her. You can see there's no filler, and it's done on the flat top the way I like it. Sorry, Hofstede, there wasn't much left for you by the end.
How it broke down
- Bun: Brioche, lightly toasted and buttered. Good.
- Patty: The best part of the burger. All beef, well seasoned, flat top cooked.
- Pickles: Ruffle cut and not homemade, but fine, and they brought a nice crunch.
- Onion: Minced and too light. If they'd grilled the onions, I think Abe's would have had a shot at the nines.
- Value: $14.70, middle of the road for Alberta.
My verdict
Abe's is a good, solid burger with a patty that does most of the heavy lifting. I went with an 8.5, and the only thing holding it back from the nines was the onion. Hofstede says it's the best burger in Airdrie and there's no second place, this is where he goes. I can see why. With bison and elk on the menu, I'll come back to try those next time I visit. As the Alberta leg wound down, this was our appetizer before a steak dinner, and a good one.
Find Abe's Diner
101-30 Market Blvd SE, Airdrie, AB
