I was completely amazed to walk by The Counter in Hawaii! My friends in San Francisco first introduced me to The Counter in Palo Alto, where I really enjoyed it. The reason I love the Counter so much is because every last detail is customizable. You pick what goes into your burger from the bun to the protein to the toppings – and you can have as many toppings as you want! Some premium toppings are more than others, but still a sizeable list of included toppings.
My parents enjoy a good burger and wanted to try this place out after I was telling them how much I enjoyed my experience in San Fran. We sat down pretty quickly and I thought it was interesting that they offered us a Japanese menu (although this wasn’t the first time we were offered a Japanese menu at a restaurant in Hawaii).
Another reason I love the Counter (but also Hawaii in general), is that you can get your burgers done medium rare. Not entirely sure why this isn’t a thing elsewhere – but ordering your burger medium rare just has a nicer juiciness to it.
Of course, if you’re not in the mood to figure out what you want on your burger, they do have several burger combos to choose from that are just as good. They also have sandwiches and salads.
And no burger place is complete without milkshakes on the menu – they have delicious ones like Nutella & Salted Pretzel, Apple Crumble and even spiked milkshakes.
We also ordered Parmesan Fries to share – served with garlic aioli and topped with rosemary and parsley. The fries are skinny, so they’re nice and crisp – also addictive.
As you can see, my mom went a little overboard on the toppings!
I ordered mine with all natural beef at 1/3 lb on a brioche bun. I chose jalapeno jack cheese, garlic aioli, lettuce, red onions and fresh jalapenos. It was a sweet and crunchy burger. I loved every bite!
Food: 5
Service: 3.5
Value: 4
Ambiance: 3.5
OVERALL: 4.5
For more info, check out their website at: http://www.thecounterburger.com/honolulu/