Grilling in the City - A Bellevue Adventure

Apologizes for the hiatus. Work has been busy, to say the least. Either way, I'm back.

A couple weeks ago, I attend an event called "Grilling in the City" hosted by The Downtown Bellevue Network, 425 Magazine and Built Burger. The event invite mentioned free beer and free burgers, so naturally, Jon and I were there. Plus, I had heard about Built Burger and wanted to see what all the hype was about. Despite the drive getting to Bellevue from Fremont (see photo in post below), it was an amazing event to be at.

Photo courtesy of The Downtown Bellevue Network

The event was hosted on at the Bellevue Towers in their Urban Garden. Even without the event, this was a really cool space to see. But we quickly turned our attention to the crowd of people surrounding an array of yummy treats.

After grabbing a beer, we came upon a beautiful display from Trophy Cupcakes. I had a chance to chat quickly with Trophy Cupcake owner and founder Jennifer Shea (who is just darling) about the new store they are opening in The Braven, which opens this weekend, and how exciting it is to expand into the Eastside. I also let her know about my not-so-secret obsession for her Toasted Marshmallow cupcake (SERIOUSLY. You must try it. Anything involving chocolate and marshmallow fluff can't be bad.)

Photo courtesy of The Downtown Bellevue Network

Next on the list was Built Burger. Their website begs the question "What if you could cook a burger that stood on its own, sans bun, sans toppings - that would compel you to say - it's the best I have ever had?" And that's exactly what we experienced. With amazing flavors such as Brilliant Prosciutto, Stellar Short Rib, Pinnacle Bacon Bleu and Luxe Italian, there would never be a need for a bun! And toppings? Forget about it. Everything you need is in the burger itself.

Photo courtesy of The Downtown Bellevue Network

After tasting some of the best burgers I've ever had, I was completely surprised to find out that all the gourmet burgers from Built Burger are frozen! I would have never guessed or known had I not had the chance to chat with Rebecca and David Makuen, owners of Built Burger. After telling me a little about themselves (they met at Rolling Stone magazine and moved to Seattle from New York about four years ago - how cool is that), they explained how their company works. All burgers are handmade upon order, frozen, they shipped to the door step of people from all over the country. As a bonus for those of us who live in Seattle, they recently opened a store in Ballard, where you can order and pick up your frozen burgers (sorry, no cooked burgers at their shop...yet).

Photo courtesy of The Downtown Bellevue Network

All in all, a wonderful event and one I hope is a repeat for the future. In the mean time, I suggest you order up some of those amazing burgers for a end of the summer treat.