French Fry Diary 293: Bill's Bar & Burger, Harrah's, Atlantic City

I was intrigued when I heard that this place, Bill's Bar & Burger, was coming to Harrah's in Atlantic City. BB&B actually has a pretty interesting reputation up in New York, and I was looking forward to trying out their burgers, and especially their fries. Until, of course, I found out that that it would be replacing The Deli.

The Deli was a place I could almost twenty-four hours a day while The Bride was playing the slots. I could go, and get some lunch (or whatever meal), hang out, and write. If I got fries, it would come in an over-generous portion of terrific hot steak fries, less if I got a hot dog with it, even though I'd be charged the same price. It was a good deal, and a good place - and good fries. The Deli will be missed. But I'm open-minded, I'll give Bill a shot.

I hate to say it, but at first glance, I was unimpressed. Indicative of a restaurant in a casino, it looks nice but the food is not so hot, and crazy expensive - more expensive than The Deli. For example, the six-dollar milkshake came in a cup slightly bigger than a McDonald's small soft drink. And the sodas (notably all Pepsi products, rather than Coca-Cola) in the same size cup cost four dollars.

I ordered a burger (come on, guys, what else would I order?), and it was very good, very juicy on a soft sesame seed bun. All burgers come cooked medium, but you can get them done more if you desire. I'm not a big fan of rare, but it does kinda bug me when it's not an option. I understand not wanting to make anyone sick, but to me that sorta reflects a distrust of the cook by management, don't you think? Anyway, the burger was pricey, but definitely worth that price, and worth coming back for, I thought.

The fries however, were another story, and it should be noted that they came separate from the burger, not with it, an unusual practice. They were undercooked natural cut spicy potato wedges, some of them thinner than usual, but unusually not crispy. They were good, soft and hot on the inside, but without the crispy crunch most potato wedges have. They also came with cheddar whiz cheese, or as disco fries, but I didn't try them.

They weren't horrible, I ate them and enjoyed them, but didn't finish them. They were however disappointing, especially when compared to the gigantic portion size The Deli would have provided, and I would have eaten all of those delicious steak fries. Bill's also has beer battered onion rings, which were typical of beer battered - greasy. Sweet potato fries were also available as well, maybe next time, when I get another burger.