TK a worthy burger joint

Kathy Mader

Does a burger joint deserve a review? Well, as with any eatery, some

do, some don’t.

TK Burger on the peninsula next to the Newport Pier definitely

does. It puts out a no frills, great charbroiled burger,

consistently, and it deserves comment.

TK Burger has been around since 1980, but didn’t step into the

“modern era,” owner and longtime Newport resident Jim Kalatschan

said, until 1986. By modern era, he means a “healthier” way of

cooking things, (i.e. charbroiler versus flat fryer), and a healthier

menu (i.e. not just burgers, but veggie burgers, tuna burgers and

chicken sandwiches).

Side note: if burgers aren’t your thing, TK is still worth a

visit. The customers are crazy about the veggie burgers.

No bigger than my living room, TK Burger has about five tight

tables and one busy counter. Black and white photographs of the local

surf spots on memorable days line every wall. Make sure to take a

look, because some of these photographs are outstanding.

The initials TK stand for “the kind,” which in a certain dialect

of surf language means “the best” or something along the lines of

“the standard by which to judge all others.”

I will be so bold as to say that TK serves up one of the top two

burgers in town, and I will be so diplomatic as to say you fill in

the other burger. So I am clear, match this burger up to your

favorite, and I do mean favorite, and TK’s classic burger will give

it a run for the money.

Speaking of money, nothing on the menu is more than $6, which

makes TK’s everyone’s favorite. A good while back, there was a burger

contest in town, and TK’s actually came in No. 2. Not bad considering

at the time it cost about $3 and was in competition with $5, $10 and

$15 burgers at restaurants and burger joints all over town.

The “Big Bargain Special” is the way to go at TK, with a

cheeseburger and fries for $4.29. Add another patty for $1 and a soda

for 89 cents, and you are still right around $6.

Now is the time to go to TK’s, too, because, says my friend

Jeremy, who surfs and speaks this particular dialect: “This place

rages in the summer,” meaning it gets very busy. Jeremy actually

introduced us to TK Burger, but clearly we were the 10% who hadn’t

gotten the word, because everyone we have run into since has turned

out to be a regular.

The menu is as simple and basic as you can get, but like I said,

so are the prices.

Here goes: turkey burgers($3.99), hamburgers($3.29),

cheeseburgers($3.59), chicken breast sandwiches($4.29), ahi tuna

sandwiches -- these are really good -- rib eye steak sandwiches and

the aforementioned veggie burgers. All on the same great bun.

But wait! There’s the corn dog ($1.79), which is a good thing, and

a tossed salad ($2.49) or a chicken salad ($4.49), to which I can

only ask, “Why?”

The salads might not even be bad, but do you think we tried them?

Not when there’s a burger in the house! TK stresses freshness of

ingredients as well as in preparation, so I imagine the salads are

pretty darn good. That’s the best I can do.

If you are out surfing in Huntington, you are in luck, because

there is a TK Burger there, as well, but we all know the one here is

better simply because it’s here.

And finally, get this: TK can “cater your parties.” Imagine.

Burger heaven.

* KATHY MADER’s dining reviews appear every other Thursday.