Sunset beers at West Alabama Icehouse & Bernies Burger Bus
Thursday was a flawlessly beautiful day of 80-degree temperatures, blue skies and low humidity. I had a break in my day at the hospital so I decided to revel in this weather by going for a 23 mile run around the city. Whenever I do a long run like this, I find myself craving nothing more than a greasy burger afterwards.
While I waited for my dining companions, Nancy and Jason, to join me for dinner, I decided to have a few beers at the West Alabama Icehouse (http://westalabamaicehouse.com/). This is one of my favorite watering holes in Houston and is conveniently located within walking distance from my house. West Alabama Icehouse has been open since 1928 when it was just a neighborhood grocery store. Over time it became popular for its large metal boxes filled with ice-cold beer. In the 1980s it became exclusively a bar. The “icehouse” itself is a small shack with a selection of about twenty different kinds of bottled beer. In the back is also a pool table and some games. Outside the house are loads of red picnic tables, a second smaller bar in the back house, a small basketball court, and a taco truck.
I love West Alabama icehouse because it attracts people from all walks of life: motorcyclists, hipsters, preppy college kids, grandpas reading the paper, middle aged couples playing backgammon, doctors in scrubs, and rednecks. Pretty much anything goes at the ice house; you can bring your dogs and let them run free, wear anything you want, smoke pot if you desire, shoot hoops, let your kids play.
I pondered the beer list and finally ordered a Polygamist Porter. I had heard about this beer but never got a chance to try it. Between my love for all things sacrilegious and affinity for Mormon men, I had to taste the porter. It is smooth but with a good nutty flavor. I basked in the sunlight of the evening while I enjoyed a few of the porters. Meanwhile, I was trying to decide where to get my celebratory hamburger.
I have had some delicious burgers at a few different joints in Houston. The most memorable were at Petrol Station, Block 7, Laurenzos, and Lankford Grocery. My online research led me to learn about a lot of other places in town that are supposed to be fantastic: Gus’ Meat Market, Burger Guys, Pappas Burgers, Bubba’s Burger Shack, Lucky Burger, Hub Cap, and the list went on. We decided to try a place I’d been to before that’s not technically a restaurant but a food truck, or a school bus to be exact. It’s called Bernie’s Burger Bus (http://www.berniesburgerbus.com/).
Unlike the food trucks in Austin which are kept stationary at one constant location, the Houston food trucks move all over town. Bernie’s Burger Bus spends a few weekday lunches at Inversion coffee in Montrose and spends Wednesday through Friday nights at Lizzards Pub in River Oaks. This would be my second visit to Bernie’s bus. The first was after a similar protein-induced craving from an 18-mile run a few weeks back.
The bright yellow bus has a chalkboard on the side listing all of the burger options with names like “The Substitute,” “Homeroom” and “Detention.” The Substitute is their most popular burger and comes with carmelized onions fried in bourbon, blue cheese and bacon and mushrooms. The Dentention is one of the most over-the-top burgers I’ve ever heard of. Instead of using a regular burger bun, they used two bacon grilled cheeses as the bun and inside of that they put two patties, cheddar, onions and fixings. Every day there is a “Field Trip” burger which changes daily; they hard already sold out for the day. Last time I went, the Field Trip involved a slice of ham and roasted pineappe. I chose the Homeroom this time, a burger with Applewood bacon, cheddar, carmelized onions, chipotle aioli and topped with a fried egg. That is probably as much protein as any given human would need to eat in a week, let alone a day, but my aching quadriceps muscles screamed for it.
Along with the burgers there is also a selection of interesting French fries served with housemade (or bus-made) ketchup. We got the truffle fries with green onions and parmesan cheese. They have sweet potato fries with chipotle aioli, blue cheese fries with bacon and green onions, and chilli cheese fries.
Bernie’s Burger Bus takes their food seriously and makes all of their burgers with black Angus beef, local Texas cheddar and all housemade condiments. I am not sure if the guy who runs the burger bus is actually named Bernie, but he is a young guy with a good sense of humor. I don’t have much criticism for the burger bus. At about $6-9 for a gourmet burger or $3 for fries, I think it’s a great deal. When I had The Substitute burger last time, I did think it was a bit too salty, but today’s was perfect and the onions were fantastic tasting. We grabbed beers at Lizzards pub and sat outside on their porch with a crowd of loud college kids and enjoyed our food. I am glad this food truck is so easy to find on most given days of the week unlike many of the other trucks in town. Next time my muscles are screaming for meat, I’m there!
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