You may recall the Food Snob being thoroughly petty upon finding out that the SNOB Film Festival was, in fact, not a celebration of the life of Concord's favorite food critic. Fortunately for everyone involved, the Snob was able to put his outrage aside and actually attend the festival.
A day of sitting in the dark watching moving pictures can leave the average audience member a bit fatigued; for one whose everyday routine revolves around locating delicious food and eating it, it was downright grueling. So the Snob stumbled out onto Main Street, squinted against the sunny Saturday sky, and broke right for the Barley House, with hunger – and ever-present vanity – on my mind.
In honor of this year's SNOB festival, the Barley House featured the “SNOB Burger.” As a burger enthusiast and narcissist, the Snob was not about to not order the one item on the menu that appealed to both of those interests. I cut the waitress off mid-specials list and blurted out my order. A SNOB burger, medium rare.
I would let the ingredients come as a surprise; if it's a burger with my name on it, it will probably be the best burger to ever cross these snobby lips. I busied myself with my bowl of hummus and waited for my sustenance.
A short while later, the magnificent platter arrived. I had my choice of sides, and as always, went with the sweet potato fries and a plump pickle spear. The burger itself was positively Dagwoodian, a thick, juicy burger patty piled high with tomato, cheese and something one rarely finds atop a burger – prosciutto. That slice of dry-cured ham is a high-class upgrade from the traditional bacon burger topping and provided the sandwich with an unique flavor. So too did the sweet tomato jam that topped the patty in place of ketchup. This was definitely the most extraordinary aspect of the burger, the subtle hints of sweetness lending the burger a taste all its own.
It was a mammoth burger, but I do eat such things for a living, so I polished it off quickly and called for the bill. Fourteen dollars for a burger and fries is a bit on the high side, pricier than even the most gourmet of the Barley House's standard hamburger fare, but the quality of ingredients, plus the goal of keeping up snobby appearances for the festival crowd probably justifies the price tag. 'Tis a shame that such a classy burger is only available once a year. Take this as a cue, Concord eateries: Name a dish after the Food Snob, and I will eat it!
