Bob's Burger (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

At a mall in Rio de Janeiro, but they have 610 restaurants throughout Brazil.

Bob's Burger is the first fast food in Brazil with 610 restaurants in all states of Rio and a couple in Portugal, Chile and Angola. They clearly try to knock-off McDonalds, which incidentally also has many restaurants in Brazil.

I got the Big Bob meal for R$15.25 (or $9.15), but substituted the soda for a chocolate shake (at extra cost). The Big Bob is their Big Mac rip-off, but tasted gross (I even doubt it was pure meat); despite that it was freshly made (without cheese). The fries were cold and saggy, while the shake was far too sweet.

VERDICT: 36/100
Bob's Burger is well below McDonalds. Nuff Said!

Bourbon Street Distillery (Indianapolis, Indiana)

361 Indiana Avenue, Indianapolis, IN 46204, T: 317-636-3316

Bourbon Street Distillery is one of my favorite eateries in Indy. It is a crossover between a sports bar and a low-key American restaurant. The Distillery doesn't 'distill' anything, but they do seem to have their own bbq oven. To be honest, some of their food is so good that I always eat the same.

There is only one starter that I ever had at Bourbon Street, and that is the chicken tenders ($6.95). Although the size and weight at times differ, there always are six tenders, freshly breaded and perfectly grilled. The batter is fairly light, between classic American breading and Japanese tempura, while the honey mustard sauce is thick and absolutely delicious.

One of the problems I have is that the chicken tenders are too delicious to withstand, but too big too eat alone and still have space for the entree. Normally, I share them with my wife, and then go for the Cajun Burger ($7.95), minus the cheese, which comes with a spicy rub and mushrooms - I always add their sweet-spicy BBQ sauce. Bourbon Street is one of the few places that actually charbroils its burgers exactly as you order, so medium is really medium (hence, I prefer medium-well, which is the normal medium). The burger comes on a soft bun and the patty is big and juicy, the rub makes it salty and spicy, while is both enhanced and perfectly balanced by the sweet and spicy BBQ sauce. The fries are not handmade, but perfectly deep fried and very tasty. Finally, it comes with a small cup of coleslaw, which is light and not too mayo-based: excellent.

VERDICT: 99/100

Bourbon Street takes pub grub to the extreme! They have hands-down the best chicken tenders in the world and one of the best burgers in the country. Shame the place is often filled with groups of very loud suits and it is filled with smoke.

Billy Goat Tavern (Chicago, IL)

O'Hare Airport, Terminal 1-Concourse C, Chicago, IL, T: 773-462-9368

Billy Goat Tavern is a Chicago legend, established in 1934, and currently counting almost 10 locations in and around the city (and one in D.C.). It is particularly known, or in American term "world famous", for its "cheeseborger". The menu list a broad variety of burgers (distinguished by number of patties; from 1 to 3) and meat sandwiches.

I went to the Billy Goat at Chicago's O'Hare airport, which (to be fair), might not provide the best food of all locations. I ordered a triple hamburger $5.49), regular fries ($1.79), and a 24oz soda ($1.99). The fries were soggy and undercooked. :-( The burger includes three thin, dry patties on a big, dry bun... that's all! There is a small condiments bar with two types of onion and two types of pickle (i.e. cut or uncut), as well as ketchup and mustard. Overall, a big dry and tasteless burger, which I didn't even finish (too boring).

VERDICT: 54/100

As said, I went to Billy Goat at the airport, which never have the best quality, but given that the food isn't too difficult to make, and was made fresh for me, I doubt it will be significantly better at any other location. Very disappointing!

Ka-We Imbiss (Berlin, Germany)

Wittenbergplatz 1, 10789 Berlin, Germany

Ka-We Imbiss is a typical German-style snackbar (Imbiss) situated at the square in front of the famous department store Kaufhaus des Westen (KaDeWe). It mainly serves sausages, either with a roll or with fries, and drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic). There are a couple of high tables in front of it; no indoor seating! I ordered the main dish, Currywurst mit Pommes, which cost 3.90 Euro plus 0.30 for the mayo. The sausage was knackig (crispy), but not really a Bratwurst; the sauce was good (warm, spicy, and tasty). The fries had little taste, while the mayo had no taste at all.

VERDICT: 72/100

Ka-We Imbiss is a dime a dozen in Berlin and seems to survive mainly because of its location. While there are places in Berlin where you can get worse Currywurst, there are many places where you can do better!

Powers Hamburger Shop (Fort Wayne, IN)

1402 South Harrison Street, Fort Wayne, IN 46802, T: 260-422-6620

Powers Hamburger Shop has been in Fort Wayne, Indiana, since 1940. The current owner, who doesn't seem to work there, bought it more then 10 years ago from the original family, the Powers, but seemingly changed nothing. The place has ca. ten seats at the counter and one small booth, all original.

They serve only burgers, coney dogs, and pies... no fries! Their burgers are small, like at White Castle, even though that name is not to be uttered at Powers. The coney dog costs $1.30 and features a soft bun, a tiny wiener, grounded beef (rather than real chili) and fresh chopped onions. Not bad, not remarkable. M. took two single patty cheeseburgers (at $.95 a piece) and I had a single patty hamburger ($.85) and a double patty hamburger ($1.60). Each came with a (too big) portion of fried strong onions. While all little burgers are much better than White Castle, only the double patty burgers taste really well.

VERDICT: 82/100

If you are in Fort Wayne, you should stop at Powers Hamburger Shop, if only for a little snack. Be sure to take a double and ask for "light onion"!

Ritz (Oranjestad, Aruba)

L.G. Smith Boulevard 122, Oranjestad, Aruba, T: 297-592-2009

Kind of tucked away in a strip mall with various types of stores, Ritz is a snackbar that serves ice cream and both Antillean (e.g. pastechi) and Dutch snacks. The clientele is also very mixed and the people behind the counter speak mostly Papiamento and only poorly Dutch or English.

After trying to order several different things, most notably a frikandel speciaal (fried meat with mayo, ketchup and fresh chopped onions) and a friet met mayo (fries with mayonnaise) in the end I settled for the 'frikandel box' that the person behind the counter seemed set on selling to me (costs: 10 AWG or $5.60). The box included a large portion of fries, two frikandellen, and some pasta salad. The fries were soggie and simply gross and even the frikandellen tasted suspicious.

VERDICT: 37/100

This is, without any doubt, the grossest snackbar I have ever eaten at. And, you should not take this statement lightly. I have eaten at a lot of bad places!

't Friet-Uurtje (Palm Beach, Aruba)

@ Paseo Herencia, LG Smith Blvd 382, Palm Beach, Aruba

Located in the pleasant Paseo Herencia mall in Palm Beach, in the high-rise hotel area, is the Dutch-style snackbar 't Friet-Uurtje. Serving most staples of the Dutch snackbar, it is a safe haven for the Dutch expat (either in Aruba or the US). I ordered fries with mayonnaise, a croquette (kroket) with mustard, and a Mexicano with curry ketchup. I forgot how expensive it was, but it wasn't much more than in the Netherlands (ca. $13). The croquette didn't have much taste, but the Mexicano tasted good. The fries were like in the Netherlands, made of potato starch (aardappelzetmeel); unlike the Belgian fries, which are made of real potatoes. They were crispy and tasted quite good, as did the mayo.

VERDICT: 75/100

If it would be in any (small) town in the Netherlands, I would probably ignore it for any alternative, but here on Aruba it is the best Dutch snackbar I visited.