I wanted the world to see me, chest all full of “Bring It”, and never a cold moment as the heat of everyone’s attention clearly was on us at any given moment. That was until I introduced her to him. You know him, that casual friend you have that comes around in passing once in a while. He probably was, but cannot be limited to: Quarter Back/ Captain of what ever team you thought was important, member of the I have muscles and stubble at 14 years of age club, leader of the free world order of impeccable genetics, He also is an alumnae of the I was transferred here from another school cuz I’m a bad ass to society. Arm pit farts would not withstand his smell of burgeoning manhood and heat of his full throttle zipper. I fell, and I fell hard into the chill of the shadows outside the new inferno of their high school spotlight.

I did finally fill out, get my own stubble and was still able to utilize the armpit fart to help me get with the actual hottest girl. The universe also threw me a bone and I have run into both him and her since . They are no longer together but turns out he still has a full throttle zipper that he pays for across three failed marriages and she also now has stubble. Naina’s Kitchen serves up a burger that is just like “her”. And at the risk of you becoming “him” I want to introduce you. Naina’s is in that weird little strip mall that sits off the elbow of the turn off from Ogden road south to Blackfoot trail East. It has been every type of failed restaurant in the past and outside of a few heartwarming nick knacks and some table cloths, it does not look all that different. The difference is that Naina’s is a sole proprietor business built on the love of food first. Naina’s is not appetizing for the eyes. She is playing to the meal and as I watched old favorites like macaroni and cheese, Pork chops in mushroom sauce on rice and of course burgers come out of the kitchen I was both salivating and praying that the quest was finally delivering up a holy grail experience. It did. This place knocked me head over heels harder than a juggler wearing a red thong in a bull pen.

Bun 25/30
Though it was revealed to us that this was a simple kaiser from SuperStore or Costco it is a hearty, buttery bun that when cut in half makes a nice set of meat muffs capable of staying with the juicy stuffed burger that it gets paired with. There is a nice chewy crust on the kaiser that holds the starch team together when the juices start to flow. I have to side bar here for a second. As an upstart restaurant a place like Naina’s needs to be strategic and cost effective. You may not be able to work a custom bun because of cost, but you do have a choice in the bun you end up using. Top marks here by luck (which I doubt) or honed instincts this is a fantastic bun choice for this burger.

Meat 29/30
The architecture of this stuffed patty alone is worth high marks, but pair that with some of the freshest and tastiest beef yet on the quest and I almost feel ashamed for leaving one point off my total. The toppings inside this burger kept the meat savory and moist. Any juice I spilled on the table should be saved and bottled to be sold to lesser hamburger joints as secret sauce. Who am I kidding? I licked my drippings off the table. Wonderbun is a heathen, you’re saying. True, but when you end up sprawled on all fours across a table at Naina’s growling at anyone that comes to close to the little spots of juice that you are french kissing, know that Wonderbun does not judge you. Just leave an appropriate tip after the adrenaline slows and all should be forgiven. You will then fall back into your body your lips will still be quivering and longing for more of the experience you just came from. This too will subside with time, but you may uncharacteristically crave some deep pulls off a cigarette.

Toppings 27/30
What toppings? You mean the tiny bit of mayo underneath a piece of leaf lettuce, or the spot of mustard and catsup under this stunning patty? I was a bit taken back when my burger arrived. The ratio of toppings to bun and meat ratio seemed nothing but a forecast for a dismal experience. No tomato I thought…. oh no! The first bite threw me into a place of no words. A suspended state where I saw the hem of Gods robe while the blatherings of the other questers filtered off into that voice the teacher uses in Charlie Brown.

“What do you ask of Me?”

GO TELL THE WORLD OF THIS MANA THAT I HAVE BROUGHT FORTH FROM THIS HUMBLE HOLE IN THE WALL

“I am afraid, I am just one man, I have neither a staff nor a great Charlton Heston beard…. speaking of which why the hell did you cheap out on my man fuzz? I have seen men from other cultures who’s faces brim over with the stuff…..”

SILENCE!!!! WONDER BUN!
IF YOU DO NOT CONVINCE THEM TO EAT OF THIS BOUNTY THAT I HAVE PROVIDED I WILL RELEASE SPECIFIC EDITS OF THE VIDEO I HAVE HAD ST. PETER KEEP OF YOU

“I didn’t think anyone was looking”
I AM ALWAYS LOOKING
“and filming apparently”

SHUT! UP! WONDER BUN AND DO AS I SAY
“Gotcha, Eat mana at Naina’s or you will eat thunder and poop lightning ” TTFN Big G.

It was shortly after this dream that I woke up on the table with a greasy face trying to fight off the craziest burger buzz. Hell, Gravy hadn’t even finished his burger he just sat there with the same catatonic stare that I was coming out of. I think Flavor Saber was mumbling something in tongues and wandering around back by the kitchen door.

You cannot judge the toppings of this burger. They are not parts unto themselves. They are all fresh and tasty but they are players in a much more divine and transcendent vision. Oh, by the way I have to tell you that God has footage of us being naughty and if you don’t go and try the stuffed burger at Naina’s he just might release a montage that he has put together of you called Burger Hater vs: Gym Socks. It’s your life, but if I were you I would at least go and try one.

Other considerations
I feel like a little wicker basket has been set on the doorstep of Inglewood. Inside is the most fragile type of business that, if raised right, will grow up to be an amazing (Dad tear) most wonderful (snot pull) place for burgers that the S.E. has seen in a long time. This is the kind of place that makes your money worth spending. It is unassuming and it is just getting legs. If you want to rip up in your overpriced ride, wip out your wallet and power lunch over conversation of quarterly profits while leveraging synergistic bullshit terms like leveraging and synergy then please drive fast and take ridiculous chances. This way you will you will be arrested or miss Naina’s and end up on Blackfoot trail heading east until with any luck you will end up in Saskatchewan hungry and alone. While you are there think about this: a humble quiet atmosphere where you sit and talk about real things with good pals until an amazing burger is ready to have you.

Final Evaluation: What would you do to have one of these again?
I would gladly host a screening of St. Peters wonderbun highlights for another one of these celestial treats.

Then you have someone present who speaks directly to you, is genuinely enthusiastic, uses real English, and has about three things to show you and it makes perfect sense because it is simple and straight to the point? Naina’s is this person.

Bun 25/30
This is probably the weakest part of the burger here. That’s how good this place is, the worst part of the burger got 25. While speaking with the owner, she informed us that the bun comes from the Superstore. I shop at Superstore and have had this bun many a time. I like it and it is good quality, and when prepared perfectly like it is here it is good, but the problem with this bun and all supermarket buns is that they have a bit of a dry fluffiness to them, making them a bit weak in the flavour department.

Meat 28/30
The meat at Naina’s is juicy from the first bite to the last. It was prepared to perfection, achieving the so-important crust on the outside of the patty. During our meal, Erin – the owner, came over and asked why she was not hearing any noises of enjoyment. She was concerned. There were no noises because I was too blown away to say anything. Even an elemental noise, a grunt, wouldn’t properly capture how good the meat is here.

Toppings 30/30
A first for me: a perfect score on toppings. How is this possible? If you look at my scores, I typically score harder than my fellow questers. There are two reasons that the toppings kill it at this place:

1) The toppings are all high quality ingredients that are prepared perfectly.
They contribute flavour in every bite and leave you wanting more.

2) The toppings are put INSIDE the burger. That’s right, this is a stuffed burger. I was concerned that this was a bit gimmicky, but the toppings in the burger work. The flavours penetrate each part of the burger, juice is found in every bite, and just to make sure you get enough toppings, Erin puts some ON TOP of the stuffed burger as well.
Incredible

Other considerations
Discovering a place like this is why we started the quest. A chance encounter with local food blog yycsbesteats brought us here. This place is about one minute away from our office and I have driven by it hundreds of times on my way to work, but never noticed it. Probably because I was in autopilot mode – you know when you get somewhere and you think, “I don’t remember the past 20 minutes at all.”

Anyway, Naina’s is what we hope to find every time we go out on a quest. When we were talking to Erin about the stuffed burger, she said that you could put anything on the menu in a burger. Mac and cheese, lemon loaf, club sandwich, salad are all on the table and if you want it, she’ll put it inside a burger. Our fierce cadet, Man Sauce, had pulled pork in his burger. Why? Why not.

All the food looked incredible here. My favourite part of this quest was catching Gravy passionately whispering to himself, “I bet the gravy here is incredible.” It was a Burgerquest Inception moment – Gravy dreaming about gravy.

The other great thing about discovering this place is that it shows that the quest has much to teach us. I used to have a pretty good idea of what I thought the perfect burger should look like. Then, I go to a place like this and my world is turned upside down. A stuffed burger with a pretty hefty patty has turned out to be my favourite burger so far. Who would of thought?

I urge you to make the trip and give this place a try. It is a bit tricky to get to, but well worth the effort. The hours are something like 8:30 – 3, M-F, so plan accordingly. Also, if you are in a pinch for time, you can call in advance and they will have your stuffed burger ready for you when you arrive (they take about 20 minutes to make). Hey, questing ain’t easy. Support this local business, as she is making a good go of it and has the best burger in town to date.

Final Evaluation: What would you do to have one of these again?
Nothing is going to stop me from having one of these again. You get in my way when I’m trying to have one of these again and you will experience the worst case of nerd rage ever.

Of course what drew us to Naina’s was the idea of a stuffed hamburger, where the ingredients are cooked inside the patty. But that’s just part of what makes this place worth visiting.

For the time being, it is not particularly busy, even during the lunch rush. However, that could change if word ever gets out about the wonderful things happening back in the kitchen. For now, you get that neat feeling of being an insider…part of a culinary secret that too few Calgarians are aware of. Enjoy it….because we hope that Naina’s hard work pays off and the crowds soon follow.

Bun 25/30
Rarely has so much been asked of a hamburger bun.

Depending on the ingredients you select to be stuffed into your burger, it can get more than a little messy. I chose swiss cheese, bacon, and mushrooms. I was warned that the swiss would make things a little runny…and boy did it ever (though in a deliciously messy way).

The store-bought Kaiser bun didn’t hold up as well as I would have liked it to, particularly in the final few bites. A slightly heartier bun would be a an improvement on a near-perfect burger. I would note though that my fellow knights did not seem to have as many problems with their bun, which underscores the fact that it really comes down to what toppings you choose.

But I’m reaching here and I know it. I’m sincerely hesitant to suggest any changes to this meat masterpiece.

Meat 28/30
This is where this review gets a little tricky. The ½ pound pieces of beef are stuffed with your toppings. So is that meat or toppings? Honestly who cares because it is all kinds of fantastic.

The meat itself is perfectly cooked. The stuffed ingredients keep the beef remarkably moist, yet a wonderful crust can still be found on the edges. Everything is made to order, which means you aren’t getting a frozen, pre-cooked patty. It’s all fresh baby.

Toppings 30/30
Your selected toppings go both IN the burger and ON top of it. Your choices include 3 types of cheese (swiss, mozza, cheddar), 3 types of additional meat (pulled pork, ham, bacon), veg (mushrooms, spinach, Onions, sundried tomatoes, Jalapenos) and best yet “anything else we have on hand”. Dig that – she’ll cook up anything you want to throw in that burger. The onus is on you to make smart choices, but the prospect of trying out any number of combinations is incredibly tantalizing and reason alone to go back.

The ingredients themselves are all fresh (sense the pattern?). The mushrooms add wonderful flavor and work in perfect harmony with the swiss cheese. The bacon wasn’t present in every bite, but when it was….heaven.

Other considerations
If you are looking for a quick lunch, Naina’s offers a regular burger. But if you want the stuffed version, be prepared to wait about half an hour. Believe me it is worth it, but if you are on a time crunch you can call ahead and they’ll get things going for you. Nice eh?

Also, be aware that Naina’s isn’t open for dinner or weekends, since it closes at 3 pm Monday-Friday.

Final Evaluation: What would you do to have one of these again?
Seriously…WHY ARE YOU STILL READING THIS REVIEW?!?! After getting this far, there is no reason why you should not already be en route to Naina’s yourself. GO NOW!

If you are reading still….let’s talk about honesty, because really that’s what this is all about….honest food. By honesty I’m referring to locally-sourced, fresh ingredients…cooked in a manner where flavors are preserved and enhanced, instead of tossed aside in favor of time and/or cost. I’m talking about having pride in the food that comes out of your kitchen and then taking delight in seeing your visitors wolf it down with zest and enthusiasm. Honest food gang…there isn’t enough of it anymore but you can find it at Naina’s in spades.