Burgers at Pony Express in Pleasantville, NY

After a failed attempt to scout out a new empanada place in Briarcliff Manor, we set our sights on Pony Express in Pleasantville. The restaurant is a tiny burger joint run by the chef of Iron Horse Grill. Having come as a recommendation from George, by no means a carnivore, I figured it would be a good bet.

Their specialty is the slider – small snack sized burgers. And while those looked tasty (they come two to an order), I set my sights on the larger 6 oz burger. After all, there’s nothing worse than leaving a burger joint hungry. So, I ordered the El Charro burger, a big burger with onions, pickles, tomato and lettuce topped with jalapeño pepper cheese and chipotle sauce. I must confess, was an excellent burger. The beef was appropriately beefy, but not overly salted to compensate for inferior meat. The brioche bun was absolutely perfect and the accompaniments did their job to accent the burger without taking away from the main star.

My only disappointment was that the burger, ordered medium, was cooked to well done without a hint of pink. Now, generally, that’s an unforgivable sin for a good burger joint. Luckily, their good quality beef saved them preserving the burger’s flavor and juiciness. But next time I go, I will expect a medium burger to be just that.

I wouldn’t consider this a destination burger, but if you are nearby, it’s well worth the visit.