An Asian Sensation at Uncle Sam's New York

By: Finance Foodie 

This past weekend, the Mister and I were craving different cuisines for lunch - he wanted a burger and I wanted Asian. Thankfully, Uncle Sam's came to the rescue - no not the American taxation icon, but the Beijing-based burger joint that just opened its first location in New York City earlier this year. Serving American style comfort foods (like fries and shakes) combined with Asian flavored burgers, Uncle Sam's brings a creative and exotic twist to all-American fast food cuisine.

Interior

When we arrived, we were pleasantly surprised to see the upscale modern decor and overall cleanness of the place (given this is a fast food joint, we were expecting something more grungy). There was plenty of seating and even a large booth that looked like it could have come straight from a fine dining resto.

Beijing Samwich; Tater Tots; Sweet Potato Fries

As for the food, the menu is obviously Asian infused. The Mister ordered the aptly named "Beijing Samwich" ($6.95), a panko crusted chicken breast topped with cucumbers, scallion and hoisin glaze sandwiched between a potato bun. The chicken was nicely crispy, the cucumber was very refreshing and the hoisin sauce gave the sandwich a tinge of sweetness - all the flavors worked very well together. Adding the sides of all-american sweet potato fries ($3.95) and tater tots ($2.95), this rounded out to a very full meal!

Dim Sum Burger; Coconut Banana Shake; Sweet Potato Fries

I ordered Dim Sum Burger ($9.95), a pork-shrimp burger, topped with shiitake mushrooms, lettuce, and house sauce. Definitely an unique menu item, but strangely the flavors worked well together. The Coconut Banana shake ($4.95) was a sweet way to top the meal off  (and left me hankering to try more flavors, especially the more Asian inspired Sesame-Miso Caramel and Vietnamese Coffee!)

While slightly pricier than a McDonald's or Wendy's, the food at Uncle Sam's is more creative, interesting and higher quality (plus you have a better chance of not being harassed by a bum at the next table over). So the next time I have an Asian American craving, I will for sure head back to Uncle Sam's to try more items on the menu!

Uncle Sam's
307 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10016
(212) 213-3938
www.unclesamsburgers.com
Cuisines: Asian American fusion