Opryland Hotel (in the Delta)
Nashville, TN
Menu: Different types of Burgers
Pricing: Hotel's are always overpriced, for a burger and fries this was $13
Kid friendly: Sure if you want obese children
Atmosphere: Atrium style casual, tables around the perimeter amongst the trees
I was in Nashville this past weekend working a photo convention at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel. The Opryland is an atrium style hotel with rooms facing into the inner areas of the hotel which are filled with shops, restaurants, plants and waterfalls. As one convention goer put it, we were in a giant biosphere. The Delta area of the hotel actually features a boat ride along a small canal. It is a sight to be seen.
How does someone with a full time job in telecommunications end up working a photo convention in Nashville? I have a good friend, Maryann who does work with a company called Kimbra studios.Kimbra Studios is owned by Kimbra Orr. The company makes high quality photo jewelry and they have a wholesale program with photographers. Maryann helps Kimbra work conventions to showcase the wholesale program and allow photographers to see the quality of the jewelry in person. Check out her website www.kimbrastudios.com. I was lucky enough to be asked by Maryann to work the convention in Nashville this year. Lucky not only because it is a really fun part time gig I get paid for, but lucky because my sister lives in Nashville!
Most people who have worked conventions would say they can be tedious and boring at times, but not when you are working for Kimbra. Her booth is packed because her product is amazing. We barely have the time to take a drink of water, let alone eat, so at the end of the day, we are famished. This made Stax the obvious choice for our afternoon meal on the last day.
Stax is a burger joint in the center of the Delta area of the Gaylord. If you haven't been there or seen someone eating there, be warned. The burgers are GIANT. Walking in, you are presented with the basic menu to check off. Choose your size, single, double, or triple. Choose your bun,
white, wheat, or pretzel. Choose your type, beef, chicken, turkey, or veggie. Choose your cheese cheddar, pepper jack or Swiss. Choose your toppings, and choose your side chips or fries. Hand that to the cashier and then wait for your number to be called.
I got the single burger because Maryann had warned me about the size, but she and her sister Sofia opted for the double. The first thing out of the cashiers mouth was "that is a pound of beef!" but Maryann was starving and steadfast in her choice. She also boldly chose the pretzel roll as a twist to the traditional burger.
We put the ketchup in the picture to try to give it some scale. These burgers were huge.
Unfortunately besides the size of the burgers, Stax is nothing to write home about. I guess this is ironic, since I am writing about it in my blog. I don't think the burgers were awful. They just weren't anything special. I admit, I used to work at Fuddruckers where the beef is fresh ground and pattied every day so maybe my opinion is skewed, but let me present some facts.
Stax doesn't ask you how you would like your burger cooked. For a burger this big, that is odd. All of our burgers came out medium well to well done. Personally, I think the more you cook beef the less flavor it has.
I asked for lettuce on my burger, and on a half pound of beef I got one leaf of romaine lettuce. A leaf from the center of the bunch, so it barely covered half the patty.
As I mentioned, Maryann went for the pretzel roll. It seemed like an interesting twist, but she said it wasn't anything particularly earth shattering. Good bread usually makes good sandwiches and this roll didn't add anything to the flavor. We had a friend from the convention sitting with us who agreed with this assessment.
Speaking of bread, these burgers were completely opposite of the "Where's the Beef?" days. These were more like where's the bun? Especially the bottom half which was so small, it became soggy and fell apart making the burger hard to eat unless you had a fork and knife.
Overall, the only thing which makes Stax stand out from the crowd is the size of the burgers, and in these days of over portioning I am not sure it should be considered a plus.
No comments:
Post a Comment