I know I've been trying to avoid the touristy locations on the strip, but with all the meetings I have there it's too convenient to duck into something nearby and get back to the office. This is exactly what happened when I ventured into Stripburger the other day, and I'm glad I did. I'm starting to get very skeptical of restaurants in general located on the strip due to the fact that they don't really have to try and yet mass amounts of tourists will still flock to them, so I welcome the surprise.
Stripburger is unfortunately located on the corner sidewalk at the Fashion Show Mall across the street from the Wynn hotel. Parking is typically atrocious at the mall, but pretty much your only option unless you happen to be walking down the sidewalk in this area. There's a 99% chance you are not. What I didn't know until I arrived is that the restaurant is entirely outdoors; this is horribly inconvenient in the dead of summer, and potentially not great either come January. I suppose the awnings might help a bit in the summer although based on experience not too much, and the heat lamp that was placed directly behind me more than made up for the fact that it was overcast and maybe 55 degrees the day I was there.
Surprisingly there are several burgers to choose from on the menu, along with a slider option, a turkey burger and a veggie burger that my friend hesitantly ordered in front of me. They also offer shakes, salads, a bunch of chicken sandwiches and some other items. Plus, since this is an outdoor bar/restaurant right on the sidewalk, a large collection of cocktails are also available. I was in the mood for something simple and went with a classic cheeseburger and fresh cut fries. I quickly got worried when not only did the guy next to me get the wrong order, but when our food came out they also brought me the wrong burger. I was left with that bad situation of having fries and no burger, and the person I was eating with had their food. Luckily mine came out only a minute or two later.
The burger itself doesn't look like anything special; a decent plain bun, melted cheese, lettuce, tomatoes pickles and mayo. What surprised me was how well it tasted, the meat was cooked perfectly, and had great flavor with a hint of some pepper which I liked. It was juicy but not overly messy, dripped just a bit and left a small puddle on the plate yet the meat still maintained its moisture until the end. The pickles had good flavor, the bun was buttery, and was just the right ratio to the amount of meat. It tasted great and I was happy.
The fries could have been perfect too, but I think we got a mix of old and new so some were soft and great, while others were a bit hard and stale. I think it was also scooped from the bottom as we had a lot of small pieces in the bowl. Still they were quite good, maybe a bit too salty but I really liked their overall flavor and were quite bountiful.
The price was about what one could expect for being located on the strip, I think if it were more of a local's spot I'd have more of a problem spending around $30 for two burger meals. The location isn't ideal, but if you're already over there or don't mind going near the strip as much as I do then it's definitely worth the visit.