clive burger

it's ok. it's a nice looking burger joint and pretty fast serving. my main gripe is the amount of salt doused onto the fries. the fries were perfect apart from that. also the douchey looking guy walking around wiping tables is a creeper.

can't even tell it's gluten free!. the mark of a good pizza, burger, or bread-related menu item is if you can tell it's gluten free or not. the burgers at cliveburger will give even the best gluten free item a run for its money. it was so good, i was worried they'd messed up my order and given me a regular burger!

staff were friendly and knowledgeable, atmosphere was fantastic, burger was juicy and delicious, huge bag of fries was crispy and gf (fried in peanut oil. celiacs, you know how rare it is that we can get french fries). had a refreshing duke's cider to go with it.

just fantastic. love it here!!


-----26 jun, 2012-----

mmm... gluten free burger!!. cliveburger not only has a fantastic and lively atmosphere, the food was great. the burger (gluten free!) was juicy, the bun was moist (very rare for gluten free buns), the french fries were amazing (and good value for money, $4 for a huge bag) and they even had gluten free cider available. love it love it love it. i'll definitely be back!!

okay. fries are yummy. good ambiance. shakes are tasty. recycling is great! meat in single burger is too small and insignificant.

ambivalent. we've been there twice - i think i have it figured out. it's kind of boring when you order the clive works, i could bbq this at home, though my patties would be much bigger. what you want to try there is the mushroom, onion swiss with the clive sauce. that's a hit. i like that they offer gluten free buns, but why not whole wheat? i'd pay more for whole wheat. the fries are good, if you find them too salty, just return them and ask for new ones. having a liquor license does mean you have a responsibility to provide us with more choice. one white "special blend" wine and one red "special blend" for $5 in a ten-year old's juice glass reminds me of my dad's homemade wines from the basement of his home in woodbine.

it's great that clive burger uses all recycled goods and the place is hip, well-managed and service is great. i like it, and will be back. maybe trying bacon with the aforementioned toppings next time.

amazing. simply wonderful. this is now my new go to spot for lunch and after work. i have been here numerous times now and i must say i am always impressed with everything! food is great! service is awesome and the vibe and music are perfect. really impressed guys, keep up the good work. if you have not tried this place... go! i loved the service, i got to see the men make my burger and one gentlemen who was yelling out orders (short, blonde) did an amazing just during the rush. burger flipper was amazing! (blonde, glasses with black pants) i also enjoyed our till girl, she was wonderful helping me with my son who was very picky. she was getting interrupted by the other girls, but gave me some amazing service and my custard shake was amazing!(short, blonde, red flower)

average burger with a service hiccup. food wise, i'd have to say "average" sums this place up. i had a single bacon cheese with a fried egg and clive sauce & fries. the bacon was a little undercooked for my liking and like other reviewers, the size of the patty was lacking. nothing really stands out that i can think of. i'll probably stick with boogies, five guys or smashburger before i'd come back . i'm not going to give it a dislike but i'm not putting it on the like list either.

decor was modern and clean. we did enjoy the seats right at the open window looking out to 17th. great for people watching. the pager system is nice too.

the hiccup came when the wrong toppings were on the wrong burgers. i'm not sure where the problem lied there. i think it was the kitchen not reading the correctly as we all ordered our burgers individually.
when i took the two of the three we ordered to the pickup pass and pointed out the issues, he asked if i wanted them remade or just switch all the ingredients around. well, i'd like it to look appealing at least. digging around in my food isn't too appealing either. they ended up remaking the order and waited another 10 mins.

makes me wonder why he'd ask me that? first, i'm not the frick'en kitchen manager. secondly, just make it how we ordered it and bring it to my seat. should i expect anything less for $55 for a three person burger meal? too bad i tipped before i got the food. lucky for them i guess.

horrible girl at the cash till!. my friends and i were at clive burger a couple nights ago, it wasn't too busy, there were two girls on till. my friends lucked out with the girl they got. my other friend and i unfortunately got stuck with the other girl. i patiently waited for her to call me up to let me know she was ready... we made eye contact, wasn't sure that she was ready as she was still putting money in the til. she finally called me up in a rude tone of voice, making me feel like i was dumb. when my friend and i asked some questions about clive sauce and clivestyle, she answered us but it was like we were the biggest inconvenience as if we should have known what they were. when we took a couple seconds to decide on what flavour shake, she rudely asked "what flavour?!" while my friend was paying by debit, she started making our shake and while she was doing so, she was complaining about something in regards to the shake machines needing to be refilled. she was complaining loud enough for us to hear and at one point we looked to the girl working on the other til and she gave us a look like she felt uncomfortable about her co-worker's attitude and rudeness.
when we got our food, i asked the guy if they had comment cards, to which he replied, "what are those?". i told him they were surveys/cards where were could comment on how the food/service was... he directed me to talk to a guy who was sitting just around the side. i assumed he was the manager? i left it for the time-being. when i sat down with my friends they also commented about how the girl on the til was very rude and gave poor service.
i was very surprised when the manager(?) asked all of the tables how they like the food, so when he came over and asked us, i asked him if he had comment cards. he said no but that it would be a good idea. he kindly asked why, and i told him that everything else was fine, but that the girl at the till was extremely rude and gave poor service. i gave him a description of which girl it was and he thanked me for my feedback and that he would talk to her.
i appreciated him taking the time to ask and hopefully there was follow-through with her.
if i do go back to clive burger and see the same girl on till, i will wait for the other cashier to take my order, or if it is just her on till, i will turn around and leave.
for a new burger joint to be able to compete with the many other burger joints out there, i think service is an important and strong way to stand out from the rest, let's hope service improves.

a burger joint for hipsters...not foodies. when you're drunk, everything tastes good i guess. tiny burgers, fake cheese. nuff said.


-----29 apr, 2012-----

the latest foray into the "gourmet burger" game.. i do like myself a tasty burger, so i was was pretty excited when i'd heard about the new independent burger joint opening on 17th ave..."clive burger"! i decided to head down after work and procure myself an early dinner.

so rather than ramble on, i'll do a quick point form of the good, the bad, and the ugly.

the good: the ambiance, the indy soda's, friendly service, good ole' alberta beef, they serve beer! (this last one may end up being on the "ugly" side after a few weeks due to its location)

the bad: broken milk shake machine, smaller than expected burgers, gourmet burger prices ($9 for a double), incorrect toppings from what i ordered, pre-salted fries which were heavily salted, no condiments on table, no napkins in bag or on table, poor ordering system (if you sit in the back, you'll never hear them screaming your name when your oder is up), bench table situated an arms length from the restroom (this can be an appetite killer for sure), the one giant menu on the wall is situated exactly where everyone orders/stands and will make it very difficult to see when the place is busy, the wooden bench's and tables didn't seem to be sealed and every drop of burger juice that i splotched on it seemed to soak right in. good luck finding parking.

the ugly:

1. the magazine racks. a health hazard. with a food that people generally eat with their hands, i wouldn't recommend thumbing through that publicly used magazine right before taking that first bite!

2. the cheese: nothing says "gourmet burger" like processed cheese slices! (settle down fouad, we get it..."gourmet" food and "cheese slices" shouldn't be used in the same sentence). i asked the manager why they wouldn't use real cheese and was told that kraft singles just "melt better". i told him that real cheese "tastes better", but that didn't seem to impact on his opinion. i also suggested that perhaps it would be a good idea to offer different varieties of actual cheese at an additional cost to the customer that perhaps doesn't enjoy plastic cheese. that didn't seem to sit well with him either. i suspect that processed cheese slices are significantly less expensive when purchased in bulk.


so to sum it up, i'd have to score clive burger a solid "meh". compared to a fast food burger, yes, clive burger is vastly superior. but at about 2 or 3 times the cost, my expectations where slightly higher; and what i wouldn't have done to wash that tasty burger down with a delicious milkshake from their busted shake machine. other comparables in the city like "5 guys burgers and fries" and "south st. burger co." are built on a similar business model, but unfortunately, clive burger just doesn't stack up.

the music is way too loud. burgers are decent, great buns. shame about the processed cheese.

so. burgers are all the rage now. they are the new pizza. there’s even an entire food blog dedicated to reviewing just burgers. clive burger is the latest addition to the scene that has been dominated so far by places like rocky’s burger bus and boogie’s burgers.

style > substance. nuff said.

delicious new burger joint. really enjoyed this new burger spot on 17th. clive burger brings some great tastes to their hamburgers.

a simple, thin, good quality beef patty with a great selection of toppings, clive burger allows you to customize your toppings your way. so with the choice of sauteed mushrooms and fried onions i couldn't go wrong. the clive sauce was also a nice topping to give the burger a mild kick. plus the moist soft bun added a great texture to each bite. i will say, i'd probably go for a double burger, single was a bit too small for my appetite.

the veggie burger was probably one of the best i've ever had. it was a juicy patty and not too mushy which can be common with other veggie burgers.

the fries were quite crispy and delicious with a side of ketchup and fry sauce. and there were lots of them - the $4 bag was stuffed and covered in grease.

this restaurant was pretty awesome. great decor, lots of light, plus constantly busy with people. it was quite enjoyable. the food also came out pretty quickly and i guess when they're busy they also have a paging system that is quite helpful to let you know when your order is ready.

best burger i've had in a long time. on the weekend i went to clive burger and absolutely fell in love. clive burger is reasonably priced ($7 for a single cheese burger and all the fixing you want) as well as has a very clean, warm atmosphere. the service was absolutely fantastic and the staff was friendly and very efficient. if you stop by, you must try the clive sauce on your burger - it is a spicy aoili which is amazing! the best part of the whole experience is that their burgers are 100% alberta natural beef (finally!) and their vegetables are natural as well. i honestly can't rave enough about this place! the place was packed when we got there so it was a little difficult to find a seat but otherwise, everything was absolutely fantastic! i recommend trying the custard shakes as well as they are very unique and addicting! i have tried the vanilla and cherry and was not disappointed - however, if you don't like custard, you most likely will not like a custard shake! to sum this place up, it is absolutely delicious and was hands down one of the best, fresh yet greasy burgers i have had in a long time. perfect seasoning, delicious toasted buns and smooth and creamy shakes!

just okay.. i tried the single with cheese, onions (fried), jalapenos, ketchup and hot mustard. the combination of jalapenos and hot mustard was a bad choice on my part, but otherwise the burger was alright. definitely a step up from a fast food burger. i was quite satisfied with the size of the patty (i know a lot of people have been complaining about it), because i personally don't like a giant, meaty burger. i couldn't taste the cheese at all; i know they use flavorless kraft singles, and i can't say i really understand why (apparently for the melt, but because the cheese melts so much i couldn't feel the texture of it either, it was like it wasn't there). i must say though that the fried onions were delicious, and the jalapenos were very fresh and packed a serious punch.
the fries were okay. the ones that weren't overcooked were delicious. i really wish they offered the fries in smaller amounts. the only option is a very large bag of fries that would be enough for two or three people easily.

overall, i would go again, but it wouldn't be my first choice of place to eat at. i do want to try the milkshakes, but i don't expect i will go again unless a friend wants to try it out.

best burger in town. i don't even like burgers but not clive's. their burgers are really juicey and the buns are soft. i specially like their deco inside, very europeian and doesn't feel like in calgary. best burger in town for sure!!