Posted by Oregon Live
Teresa Mahoney/The Oregonian
Super Deluxe, the new Southeast Portland drive-thru from Matt Lynch and Micah Camden, is open for business.
Wednesday, we took a spin through the drive-thru to try the burger joint from two of the people behind Boxer Ramen, Little Big Burger, Sweet Heart Pizza and Blue Star Donuts.
Teresa Mahoney/The Oregonian
Super Deluxe, at the intersection of Southeast 50th Avenue, Foster Road and Powell Boulevard, opened Monday as Portland temperatures “cooled” from 100 degrees into the high 90s. By the time we hit the drive-thru Wednesday afternoon, the milkshake machine was broken, due, according to the person manning the window, to the insane amount of milkshakes people ordered Monday.
There was no ETA on a new machine, he said, but management is hoping to get one that will handle a higher volume of orders.
Teresa Mahoney/The Oregonian
We reached out to Lynch for more information about the milkshake machine and the opening days of the restaurant. We will update this post when he responds.
Super Deluxe definitely appears to be working out the kinks dealing with volume. We pulled into the drive-thru line around 1:20 p.m., thinking it would have been a slower, post-lunch time, but we were wrong.
The line snaked around the building, and all accessible parking spots were taken. (Super Deluxe also has seating for 32 inside.) We sat in our car, idling, which may not ultimately be something environmentally conscious Portlanders are excited about, for roughly forty minutes.
Courtesy of Super Deluxe
The ordering mechanism isn’t as slick as remodeled fast-food chain’s ordering systems, and it might be more effective if it was farther away from the pickup window. It was a relief when we finally got there and placed our order.
Everyone in the car was disappointed by the broken milkshake machine, but we dealt with our sadness by ordering two fizzy fruit waters: strawberry and marionberry. We also ordered fries and four burgers: two single deluxe burgers, an Impossible veggie burger and a single deluxe with bacon.
Lizzy Acker/The Oregonian
The fries were okay but seemed to suffer from unfortunate timing, the Achilles heel of fast-food french fries. They must be served fresh out of the fryer, and anyone who gets a late serving from an old batch, even though it’s still hot, gets an inferior, drier version of what probably was tasty 10 minutes earlier.
Teresa Mahoney/The Oregonian
The deluxe burger was a different story. The bun was soft and Goldilocks size: not too thick, not too thin. The cheese had just enough melt and the meat just enough juice. The condiments and toppings added taste and crunch without overpowering the burger.
Lizzy Acker/The Oregonian
On the bacon burger, the bacon was thin cut, crisp and delicious.
It immediately beats the somewhat comparable Tillamook cheeseburger at Burgerville and compares more closely to an In-N-Out cheeseburger.
Lizzy Acker/The Oregonian
The Impossible burger wasn’t really anything to write home about, especially when there is a very real meat version sitting next to eat, begging to be eaten.
Lizzy Acker/The Oregonian
We all enjoyed the fruit fizzy waters. The marionberry water was the better of the two, and sort of like a refreshing marionberry pie.
Lizzy Acker/The Oregonian
The strawberry water was a little too chunky and sweet for a water, but still cooling on a hot day.
Lizzy Acker/The Oregonian
Was the meal worth the 40-minute wait? We will definitely be back for the burger and hopefully, before too long, a milkshake, but we’ll wait until the lines die down or try for breakfast. The drive-thru is open 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily.