LAMA Restaurant Burger Review – Ridgeway, ON
LAMA Restaurant Burger Review – Ridgeway, ON
Robyn and I had never set foot in LAMA Restaurant in Ridgeway before this stop, and we left already planning a return trip. The Gold Medal Burger here was a little different from the usual, a spicy black bean patty, and it still scored a 7.7, good for #63 out of 140 burgers on my rankings.
We showed up a little early and got to shoot the breeze with the staff and with Matt, who owns the place with Laurie. The menu leans hard into seafood, with a seafood chowder made fresh every day and oysters on offer, plus a set menu deal that definitely had my attention.
My order
Same rules as always: lettuce, onion and pickle only. The burger came to $16.95 and showed up in a huge takeout bag. Inside was the LAMA spicy black bean burger on what looked like a toasted brioche bun, with lettuce, red onion and a whole lot of pickles. I'll be upfront, non-beef burgers have not had much success on this quest, but I was in Ridgeway to make Gold Medal Burger happenings, so I gave it a fair shot.
Parting the seas
One bite, everybody knows the rules. I smashed right through the beans, it was like parting the seas, and the patty had a little trouble holding together. The flavour won me over, though. Those black beans gave it some Mexican flair, and I'm calling it the best non-beef burger of the quest so far. I wouldn't put it ahead of a great beef burger, but it beat plenty of the beef burgers I've had, and it sure beat a few of the hockey pucks I've suffered through.
Matt told me the full version comes with avocado and other extras that would dress it up more, but the rules are the rules.
How it stacks up
- Bun: Fresh, toasted brioche. Delicious.
- Patty: Spicy black bean with real flavour, a bit crumbly but tasty.
- Pickles: A healthy portion, sliced vertically.
- Onions: Red onion cut the way I like it, though I could have used a little more.
- Value: $16.95, on the higher side for the quest.
My verdict
I wasn't sure a non-beef burger could score higher than a 7.7, and that's exactly where LAMA landed. It's a good, solid burger whether you eat meat or not, and if you're vegetarian I think you'll love it. The bigger takeaway for me: if the bean burger is this good, I can only imagine what the seafood is like. Next time I'm in Ridgeway, I'm going back for the chowder.
Find LAMA Restaurant
Ridgeway, ON
