I tried our newest burger place, Twist And Smash'd, located at 72-06 Austin St. in Forest Hills.
Overall, I was really happy with the food. The burger I had, a double Original Smash'd Angus beef burger ($9.25) was delicious as well as perfectly cooked. I really, really liked it. My only complaint, for the price the burger should be bigger. The same goes for the chicken burger I ordered ($5.50 for a single burger.) It was excellent but should have been bigger,
The place prides itself on its unique "Twisted Potatoes"—a stack of thin fried potato slices on a stick. Again, these were delicious. Each one (for $2.50) was nice and salty and somehow didn't leave you with that stuffed feeling you get from regular french fries.
The restaurant itself, which looked still slightly unfinished when I went this weekend, has a fun vibe with numerous tables spread throughout the space. They also say they will have outdoor seating in the back in the nicer weather.
Also, they will soon be rolling out home delivery.
I was thrilled to see that they got my take-out order exactly right, despite what was a pretty big crowd and the fact that they were obviously in that typical opening phase, where they're still working out the kinks. It took about 20 minutes for me to get the food, not terrible. The place could definitely use a second cashier! But the three different employees I spoke with were very courteous and helpful.
So how would I rate the burger? Against my gold standard for a fast food burger—Shake Shack—I'd give Shake Shack a perfect 10 and the Twist & Smash'd Original Double a 9. It was definitely up there in terms of quality and taste. I just wish it was a little bit bigger to make it fully worth the $9.25 I paid for the double size. Make the burger bigger, and it's easily a 10.
I have to admit I had my doubts about what is in essence a "mom and pop" burger place opening at a time when there are already several really great burger chains in the New York City area. But Twist & Smash'd appears to me to have what it takes to go head to head with the best of them. But they need to overcome that "mom and pop" stinginess and be much more generous with the size of the burgers, especially when asking for upwards of $9 bucks for a double burger. (Just to clarify, the single burgers are $5.50.)
But all in all, I'm thrilled to see central Forest Hills finally get a modern fast burger place. For whatever reason, the other well-known chains, so prevalent in other parts of the City, haven't yet opened on or near Austin. And it's their loss. As I said, the Twist & Smash'd location was extremely busy when I went there after being open a scant 24 hours. There's obviously a huge demand for this type of place here. Why the big guys haven't noticed is beyond me. Now, when they finally do open here, they'll have to play catch-up to Twist.
I'll post the entire Twist and Smash'd menu Sunday. There are plenty of other options that I look forward to trying, including salads, a Short Rib Burger, a Crab burger and even Chicken and Waffles. This is one inventive place and we're lucky to have it! (And I'm already craving another one of their burgers!)
Overall, I was really happy with the food. The burger I had, a double Original Smash'd Angus beef burger ($9.25) was delicious as well as perfectly cooked. I really, really liked it. My only complaint, for the price the burger should be bigger. The same goes for the chicken burger I ordered ($5.50 for a single burger.) It was excellent but should have been bigger,
The place prides itself on its unique "Twisted Potatoes"—a stack of thin fried potato slices on a stick. Again, these were delicious. Each one (for $2.50) was nice and salty and somehow didn't leave you with that stuffed feeling you get from regular french fries.
The restaurant itself, which looked still slightly unfinished when I went this weekend, has a fun vibe with numerous tables spread throughout the space. They also say they will have outdoor seating in the back in the nicer weather.
Also, they will soon be rolling out home delivery.
I was thrilled to see that they got my take-out order exactly right, despite what was a pretty big crowd and the fact that they were obviously in that typical opening phase, where they're still working out the kinks. It took about 20 minutes for me to get the food, not terrible. The place could definitely use a second cashier! But the three different employees I spoke with were very courteous and helpful.
So how would I rate the burger? Against my gold standard for a fast food burger—Shake Shack—I'd give Shake Shack a perfect 10 and the Twist & Smash'd Original Double a 9. It was definitely up there in terms of quality and taste. I just wish it was a little bit bigger to make it fully worth the $9.25 I paid for the double size. Make the burger bigger, and it's easily a 10.
I have to admit I had my doubts about what is in essence a "mom and pop" burger place opening at a time when there are already several really great burger chains in the New York City area. But Twist & Smash'd appears to me to have what it takes to go head to head with the best of them. But they need to overcome that "mom and pop" stinginess and be much more generous with the size of the burgers, especially when asking for upwards of $9 bucks for a double burger. (Just to clarify, the single burgers are $5.50.)
But all in all, I'm thrilled to see central Forest Hills finally get a modern fast burger place. For whatever reason, the other well-known chains, so prevalent in other parts of the City, haven't yet opened on or near Austin. And it's their loss. As I said, the Twist & Smash'd location was extremely busy when I went there after being open a scant 24 hours. There's obviously a huge demand for this type of place here. Why the big guys haven't noticed is beyond me. Now, when they finally do open here, they'll have to play catch-up to Twist.
I'll post the entire Twist and Smash'd menu Sunday. There are plenty of other options that I look forward to trying, including salads, a Short Rib Burger, a Crab burger and even Chicken and Waffles. This is one inventive place and we're lucky to have it! (And I'm already craving another one of their burgers!)
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| They gave me my take out order in this cool tote bag. Nice touch! |
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| Double Original Smash'd beef burger. |
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| Chicken burger (single) had a nice charcoal taste. |
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| Their unique Twisted Potatoes |
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Service time was way too long considering there were only 3 people ordering. They need to concentrate on this Food was o.k and on the expensive side.
ReplyDeleteI walked by here Friday AM and they were handing out free hot apple cider to people walking by in the cold. I love supporting new small businesses, so my bf and I I went to eat here Saturday night around 6:30-7p for a quick date night dinner. First off, the interior is really cute. It reminds me of a fro-yo shop decor- very modern and bright. We were greeted by an employee that asked us if we had any questions about the menu they had posted on the wall. As we were discussing what we liked, he explained how we could order any of the burgers on a bun or whole wheat wrap. Also he mentioned the chicken and waffles on a stick is basically chicken tenders wrapped in a waffle batter, covered in powdered sugar and a little maple syrup. He said it was really good, so it didn't take much convincing for me to decide that is what I wanted. My boyfriend opted for the chicken burger on a bun. We also ordered Mango Ice Tea and the Japanese sweet potato on a stick, which the employee helping us explained it was more like a yuca than a traditional sweet potato and was crispy. The food did take about 15 mins I want to say for it to come out, but I expect that on Day #2 of a restaurant being open. The workers here were so courteous and kind, and the manager even checked on us to apologize for the delay and also to see if we liked the food. The chicken and waffles=heaven on a stick. It was soo good. I had never had that chicken and waffles combo before so don't know how to compare it, but it was so delicious and it tasted so fresh. My bf chicken burger was also AMAZING and tasted very fresh too. Also we overhead one of the workers telling a customer they don't even own freezers? Don't quote me on that though. But it explained how fresh the food was. I am so happy that this place opened on Austin street bc we plan on returning frequently and soon!
ReplyDeleteFrom the pictures above it looks like the buns are much too small for the burgers...and that's exactly how it should be!
ReplyDeleteagree the buns look too small but disagree that's how it should be. I was thinking that would make eating the burger a total mess. The buns look pretty weak, barely holding up to the branding.
DeleteThanks for the review! What I would really like to know is what the pre-cooked weight of each hamburger patty is. Charging $9.25 for a double burger would be reasonable, IMO, only if each patty is 4 ounces at minimum.
ReplyDeleteThe single burgers are essentially sliders so the double is another slider sized patty on top. $9 is to much for that on my opinion. I'd rather spend the money on bare burger because the sizing is better for the price. A good price for a double that size would be around $7. That being said, it was a cute place and the chicken and waffles were delish! Much better value for the money as well. I had both types of potatoes and the toppings offered were a nice touch. The breakfast options looked great as well. I'm hoping they'll tinker with the burger price because $9 shouldn't leave you hungry but I loved everything else about it.
DeleteWow-over $9 for 2 slider size patties is way too expensive! I hope they adjust their pricing too!
ReplyDeleteTheir high prices reflect the very high rent they are paying. Greedy landlords need to keep up payments on their Malibu and Miami mansions.
ReplyDeleteWhy should landlords care about anything but their bottom line?
DeleteI was there on Saturday, around 3:30. The place has a fun atmosphere--lively colors, menu on the wall where you can look at it while you're on line. The staff is courteous and friendly but there are clearly a few kinks to be worked out. I ordered a short rib southern BBQ sandwich, then a drink and an Idaho potato. The price came out a bit high and I realized that the clerk had separately charged me for the drink and the potato, which can be ordered as a combo at a slightly discounted price. She should have known to put in the order as a combo. I ended up waiting probably close to 15 minutes. Out came the meal, without a drink, so I had to ask for it. I thought that the short rib meat would not be ground like a burger. Either I was wrong, or they messed up my order. They also gave me 2 patties of meat rather than one. The burgers aren't over-sized, by any means, but they are definitely larger than sliders. But the burgers are quite juicy and with everything else on the burger, I had to eat very carefully or I would have been wearing my lunch. As for the spice bar, I don't know what the deal was, but though the shakers were pretty full, barely anything would come out of the holes of 3 different shakers that I tried. I didn't hear exactly what happened, but they also somehow fouled up the order of a woman sitting across from me. Has potential, but clearly a work in progress. Oh, and as for a second cashier, I don't see that that would have made much of a difference, given the wait time--if they take 15 minutes to get the food out with one cashier, stacking up more orders isn't going to improve things any.
ReplyDeleteWaited just over 15 minutes and I only ordered a burger and twist to go!
DeleteAlways nice to see the neighborhood supporting healthy vegetarian choices. I wish them lots of luck.
ReplyDeletevegetarian is not necessarily healthy. Fries are vegetarian but are they healthy???
DeleteI tried this burger with peperjack. I find myself conflicted. The burger tasted great. Not good but great. The service was exceptional but for the long wait. But hamburgers do take time to cook. The burger was small and I felt it to be pricey. But it wont keep me from going back. I would not order the potato thing again. It was dry.
ReplyDeleteJust returned from eating here. Service not so great, they need to get someone to help the girl at the register (she was doing her best). The burger was very good but was it a children's burger? Make it bigger please and up the single burger a dollar so it's at least reasonable. The potato twist was eh ok. Mine was very under cooked in the middle. I would I back if they made there burgers a bit bigger! I sure hope they do!
ReplyDeleteI really liked it! As far as burger quality it was great. Better than Bareburger. (I'm not crazy about Bareburger, but I appreciate the establishment in this neighborhood). The patty size was normal size, it really was the potato roll size. They use the small bun size. Bigger than a slider, smaller than the normal (Shake Shack). While most burger joints give you too much bread (NY Burger Company), this place does the opposite. I liked the potato thing. I got 2. One was cooked better than the other. It tastes good with some malt vinegar and salt.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, it's their first week. I expect them to just get better with time.
Burgers, pizzas -- it's very subjective. So, here's my preference. I like classic diner style burgers. I don't like burger places where the toppings are what make the burger. I love Shake Shack, I like NY Burger Company (even though it goes against what I said about toppings, but the actual burger has great flavor), and I also like 5 Guys (guilty pleasure).