School House Cafe Fails the Test

Preamble Ramble

When I wrote my review for Hugo’s cheeseburger, I received a lot of emails letting me know where other great cheeseburgers can be found in the area.  So, we’re now officially on a new quest: The Quest of the Golden Cheeseburger.  Buckle up, Argonauts.  It’s time to board our ship.

Food for Thought

The first stop in our quest was School House Café and Market in Goshen.  It hasn’t been open very often, but was pretty busy when I went in for lunch.  They offer a single and double cheeseburger with the normal fixings.  I opted for the single with a side of sweet potato fries.

I’ll start with the fries and get them out of the way.  They had absolutely no flavor.  I ate two or three just to make sure it wasn’t just one loner fry that was flavorless, but all of them were that bad.  They were the Newt Gingriches of the fry world, bland, listless and overdone.

Thankfully, the cheeseburger was more than a few steps up from the fries.  It was a hand-formed patty, which is crucial in having a good burger.  It wasn’t seasoned, but it was juicy, and the flavor of the meat carried over the other toppings.  The toppings were the typical onion, lettuce and tomatoes. The bun was your average white bread bun, nothing exciting, but it was fresh.

Is this a contender for the Golden Cheeseburger?  Unfortunately, the fries brought down the entire meal to well below the contender status, and the cheeseburger just wasn’t enough to bring it back up to the standard required to be the Golden Cheeseburger.

The Sporkcast
(on a scale of 1-5 sporks)

Atmosphere: 3.75 wooden sporks with corrugated tin tines.  There is a lot of wood and exposed air ducts, which makes a blend of industrial and country cabin.  The atmosphere is very laid back and relaxed, and no one will look at you sideways if you wear your overalls to lunch.
Food:  3.75 transparent sporks with PVC handles.  I liked the burger.  I didn’t fall in love with it, but I liked it enough that maybe a couple of times a year I’d invite it over. But I would insist that it didn’t bring over its sidekick of boring sweet potato fries.
Staff:  4.85 sporks that are singing Walking on Sunshine.  Everyone there was friendly, especially the very nice woman who took my order and told me I looked pretty.  She was the best!  (I’m shallow enough that compliments totally work in my book.)
Dollars Spent:  My cheeseburger, fries and drink was only around 7 bucks.
Chance of Returning:  Even though it’s not Golden Cheeseburger status, it was a good burger.  Plus, there are a slew of other sandwiches that I’d like to try, and I did notice a menu for fried pies that I’m pretty sure were serenading me with their siren song.

If you know of a great eating place, drop me a line at rabirdsell@gmail.com. I’ll check it out and let you know what I think.