There are elements of Trina's Starlite Lounge that I enjoyed, too bad none of them were related to the food. I do have to admit that this place, which feels part diner, part pub, part dive bar, has a terrific ambience and is certainly a spot I'd love to come back to and drink sometime, I'll just have to make sure I eat before I come. I'm sure I'll here it from locals who frequent Trina's, because it really is a local place, people come here regularly and might even know the owner, get tanked, have a few drinks and think the food is great. It is not. Yes, I am only concerned with burgers for the sake of this website, so who knows, maybe the chicken and waffles is a tasty dish, but serving up frozen, ultra-thin patties and greasy beyond belief onion strings are not the way to my heart. (although reciting Saved by the Bell lines and signing Pet Shop Boys' songs would be a good start)
I do appreciate the effort, on paper anyway, in being one of the few restaurants who have offered a riff on the burger and at least try to create something unique. The ""Starlite"" style burger is a double patty, topped with coleslaw, spicy ""sauce,"" and french fries. Unfortunately, the patties, as previously stated, are thin, which can be okay, but these are clearly pre-frozen, with not even a hint of beef flavor, and are as dry as it gets. The coleslaw is bland, the secret sauce, while delivering a decent punch, is rather flat and is missing an acidic element. The fries sit at the bottom of the burger, and offer nothing of note. The bun, your average run-of-the-mill white bun, is sad, pathetic and has no place here. The onion strings are about as greasy as it gets, and that's all I can taste, clearly not drained properly, the grease not only all over my fingers, it completely coats my mouth in a very unpleasant way. I wont rant again about my hatred of all things ""strings,"" if you read this blog you know I feel, next time I see it on the menu I'm going to run the other way. There's just no element of the burger I enjoy, in fact it's rather off-putting in flavor, not just under-seasoned, just unpleasant in a way I can't fully describe. Trina's is a cool spot, don't get me wrong, come for a drink or two, enjoy the environment, and plan your meal accordingly, but don't expect anything more than that.
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