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Dad's Backyard Burgers, Merrifield - Cooking Out.


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I haven't eaten there yet, but their shop is now fully decked-out, has a "now open" sign hanging from the railing outside, and their "schtick" seems to be wood-fire-grilled burgers. I'll probably be making a late dinner there tomorrow after my last class. This place has been "opening soon" for well over a year now and it'll be interesting to see if it can beat Elevation Burger, which is no more than maybe 15 minutes away.

For reference, this place is on Gallows Road, right across the way from Merrifield Garden Center (the one actually *in* Merrifield) in a tiny strip mall wedged between a 7-Eleven and a Pizza Hut. It is *NOT* in the shopping center with the Arby's and the Office Depot, for reference purposes.

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Chowhound thread for reference: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/405142

Okay...trip report - 2:30ish 9/26

Ordering Experience:

- Needs a bit of work. The sheet system is a bit flawed because while there are plenty of options, there's hardly any "fill-in" space for extras. I had to put "+Mayo" on the end because there was no option. Ordered an 8oz "Dad's Original" with Bacon and Extra Cheddar. Combo came out to 9.98.

Ambience:

- The welcoming wood fire smell seemed to be permeated by what smelled to my nose as a chemical cleaner odor. As you got closer to the grill the odor lessened. More than likely I came in right after they'd finished cleaning post-lunch rush.

- Yes, the restaurant is rather small. But one thing Chowhound didn't take into account is the area it's in is very much commercial - lawn services, offices within walking distance, Merrifield Garden Center right across the street...this place was obviously designed more with 'grab 'n go' in mind.

Wait Time:

- Couldn't have been more than about 15 minutes, but it wasn't extraordinarily busy, either.

Food:

- They've got a nice container for takeout - everything in the combo fits neatly in the styrofoam container they give you.

- Meat patty was cooked well-done, but that seems to be a staple for even "premium" burger joints now. The patty still had plenty of juice left, and was big enough that I had to flatten the burger substantially to get the first bite.

- Yes, I saw the "green things." They appeared to be tiny onion shoots. The meat, to my palate, was tasty enough to be enjoyable. It wasn't the best burger I've had - that honor belongs to a vendor at rodeo I went to in Fort Worth, Texas back in the early 90s...*that* burger was so tasty I didn't even notice they'd forgotten the cheese until four bites in. Normally I don't like anything in my burgers but *meat* (bad experience in Malta), but I didn't mind it this time, especially since I had prior knowledge from the Chowhound thread.

- The "specialty" burger that I think they want to stand out the most is their "Red Hot White and Bleu" one which is exactly as it sounds. Burger, Bleu Cheese, and "Red Hot" BBQ sauce. I don't know about your tastes, but I just like a *burger*. A "Tex-Mex" option with guacamole is available too if you like that sort of travesty.

- Fries were, as the Chowhound posters said, sort of limp. The potatoes were Idahoan (sic?) and despite the "softness" were also tasty. According to the menu, each month they change the "area" where they get the potatoes from. The menu specifically says "ask what new types of fries we have today," but I don't know if that means they're willing to do something like cheese fries or not - it's not mentioned on the menu sheet I took.

- Has a slight advantage on Elevation and Five Guys as they have a fish sandwich (seasoned tuna steak) available.

- Four hot dogs, kosher beef. Regular, bacon/cheddar, chili/cheese, and the "Devil Dog" with grilled onions and their "Red Hot" sauce.

As I left, a lady who I can only assume was the manager at the moment asked me how my burger was. I was frank, and then decided to give her the addresses for both this forum and Chowhound, since both forums offer invaluable criticism that most people wouldn't bother to put on a comment card. One can only hope they'll give both a look.

All in all, not bad, but this place already has a strike against it because after such a long opening cycle, people were probably expecting far more.

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Placeholder bump for a second trip report (when I have time to type one up) and to help the owner find this post easier.

I spoke to the owner this time, Milton. Evidently the staff I spoke to last time didn't relay the site info to him. Nice guy. Told him he could expect some constructive and useful criticism here, too. We did it for Elevation Burger, let's help Milton out too. :blink:

Also, the "green stuff" is cilantro.

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Placeholder bump for a second trip report (when I have time to type one up) and to help the owner find this post easier.

I spoke to the owner this time, Milton. Evidently the staff I spoke to last time didn't relay the site info to him. Nice guy. Told him he could expect some constructive and useful criticism here, too. We did it for Elevation Burger, let's help Milton out too. :P

Also, the "green stuff" is cilantro.

Wow. After the endless run-up to opening, no one told Milton that most people would not want Cilantro in their burgers? :blink:

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Tried to go there for dinner back in January, but it was closed and there were signs on the door saying that they were closed because of issues with the electricity. At the time, it seemed legit because other places in that strip were closed as well, but while the other places opened back up, Dad's never did.

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http://www.chowhound.com/topics/501432

Is this the truth? Looks like after a long and rough opening, Dad's Backyard Burgers may have closed...any VA folks out there in Merrifield able to verify?

Just to chime in, as someone who lives in Annandale and goes past this place twice a day on the bus - it's been dead for months at this point. The doors are shut tight, the lights are off, the furniture is stacked up, and the banner(s) on the railing are in sad shape.

Have to wonder how they would been if they settled in, but between the rough start and 5 Guys being so close, I guess it was just too much.

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Just to chime in, as someone who lives in Annandale and goes past this place twice a day on the bus - it's been dead for months at this point. The doors are shut tight, the lights are off, the furniture is stacked up, and the banner(s) on the railing are in sad shape.

Have to wonder how they would been if they settled in, but between the rough start and 5 Guys being so close, I guess it was just too much.

I'm almost honored to be one of the few people apparently to have actually eaten a Dad's Backyard Burger. What a bizarre saga.

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It is not a good location, considering traffic patterns. I work less than a mile from there, but never even attempted it because it is not easy to get to or get back to work from.

The Caribou Coffee franchise in that location has the right idea: delivery.

Edited to add: Also, the idea of cilantro in the burger kept this hard-wired cilantro hater away (it tastes like soap!).

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Edited to add: Also, the idea of cilantro in the burger kept this hard-wired cilantro hater away (it tastes like soap!).
Outside of salsa I would agree with you about cilantro, but it really did not get in the way of the burgers at Dad's, actually I thought to myself on more than one occasion "why bother" since I could not even tell that it was there. I liked the burgers and certainly found them to be above any 5 guys that I have had in recent memory, but the only time I am in that part of the area is when a trip to Merrifield Garden Center was demanded by my wife.
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It is not a good location, considering traffic patterns. I work less than a mile from there, but never even attempted it because it is not easy to get to or get back to work from.

Very good point. I'll brave Gallows to get my 5 Guys fix, but even for them, the traffic is just too horrendous to justify the trip sometimes.

The Caribou Coffee franchise in that location has the right idea: delivery.

zpizza also, which was surprisingly good the one time i've ordered so far.

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