A dockside disagreement turned into a violent brawl over the weekend in Alabama and now, footage from the fight has gone viral, according to Newsweek, Page Six, and the above local news video — which can be viewed on YouTube — from NBC affiliate WSFA.
On Saturday evening at Montgomery’s Riverfront Park, a fight ensued, leading to several arrests by local police. Montgomery Mayor Steven L. Reed shared a statement on Twitter saying officers, “acted swiftly to detain several reckless individuals for attacking a man who was doing his job.”
Last night, the Montgomery Police Department acted swiftly to detain several reckless individuals for attacking a man who was doing his job. Warrants have been signed and justice will be served.
This was an unfortunate incident which never should have occurred. As our police… pic.twitter.com/5cywOwA6Uz
What happened beforehand? Via Newsweek, footage taken from someone on the riverboat showed a woman explaining what led to the altercation. According to her, the man in the white shirt got off the riverboat to push the pontoon further down the dock after its owner was told he couldn’t leave his vessel there.
The riverboat worker then reportedly exchanged words with several shirtless white men surrounding the pontoon with things eventually escalating. While the Black dock worker tried to convince the people in the pontoon to move their boat, a man in grey shorts reportedly attacked him, encouraging the rest of his group to gang up on the man who was just trying to do his job.
Via WSFA, a handful of police officers arrived after the brawl began but seemed to let it die out on its own before issuing any arrests. At one point, a fold-up chair was reportedly used to beat one of the passengers on the pontoon while another was thrown into the water by a riverboat worker. Warrants have been issued for several people involved with more arrests likely to follow, but as serious as this whole situation was, Twitter was able to find some humor in the more bizarre bits.
me watching every clip of the Alabama boat brawl from different cameras, angles, perspectives pic.twitter.com/HsKvP8Lc26
Blanton’s Single Barrel Bourbon is one of the most sought-after whiskeys out there. The bulbous bottles of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey from the Buffalo Trace Distillery are the stuff of legends, driving up the desirability and price. That last part makes buying Blanton’s a sketchy issue. Yes, it’s pricey, which begs the question, “Is it worth it?”
Well, there isn’t one Blanton’s expression and there isn’t a clear “yes” or “no” to that question either. So I’m going to give you my professional opinion on all four of the mainstream Blanton’s bourbon expressions that you can buy (generally). It’s time to rank some Blanton’s, folks!
Before we dive in, let’s get a little background. Blanton’s is “The Original Single Barrel Bourbon” in that it was the first commercially available bourbon in a single-barrel format. This started back in 1984 when bourbon — and whiskey in general — was on the ropes. Vodka was the drink of the masses and a lot of whiskey distilleries were shuttering worldwide (they literally couldn’t give the stuff away back then).
Back in 1984, Master Distiller Elmer T. Lee took a huge swing and decided to release a “single barrel” product to distinguish his Kentucky whiskey on the market. It was … not that much of a success. Remember, this was back in the day well before single-barrel picks were everywhere. People weren’t really sure what Elmer T. Lee was getting at until the Japanese market woke up to the brilliance of single-barrel bourbon via Blanton’s being shipped over there (almost exclusively). The Japanese appetite for bourbon exploded in the 1980s, largely thanks to Blanton’s Single Barrel Bourbon which helped keep a large part of the industry afloat (and arguably set the table for bourbon resurging in the late 90s/early 2000s). Now, I’m not saying Blanton’s and Elmer T. Lee saved bourbon in the 1980s, but it was a big reason — amongst many — that bourbon survived a devastating downturn.
Fast-forward to that aforementioned 2000s bourbon boom and Blanton’s starts getting the recognition it deserves in the U.S. market. About a decade later, that recognition kicks into high gear with seemingly less of it on shelves, and, well, prices started to soar.
That gets us to today. Blanton’s is a highly allocated bourbon. That means that a small quantity of the expressions is released to specific retailers, bars, and restaurants seasonally and annually depending on the expression. That small quantity and lack of widespread availability (in the U.S. mostly) means that the price of Blanton’s has become exorbitant for the average consumer. Translation — what should be a $50-$100 bottle of bourbon often costs $150-$400 (or more) depending on the expression. You can read my advice on actually buying the stuff right here.
Since that’s the case, I’m going to give you my thorough tasting notes and professional advice on each. That way you can make a more informed decision if you do want to dip your toe into the world of Blanton’s. Let’s dive in!
Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months
This version of Blanton’s is made for the international market and has been on again/off again for a while. It seems to be on again right now and bottles are available at U.S. retailers (mostly only online though). The whiskey in the bottle is indeed single-barrel bourbon from Buffalo Trace. The ripple is that it’s proofed down to 80-proof or 40% ABV.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose feels like Blanton’s-lite with a mild sense of falling leaves, old barrel houses, vanilla-heavy oatmeal raisin cookie jars, and gently cedar kindling.
Palate: That vanilla mounts the palate like a lush creamy eggnog with a hint of allspice next to dates and more raisin with this fleeting sense of white pepper and dried red chili (very light sense).
Finish: That spice fades back toward the vanilla oatmeal raisin cookies and cedar on a frankly very short finish.
Bottom Line:
This is very clearly bottled as a mixing whiskey. It’s bourbon-y and very nice — there are no faults here. But it feels like something you build with, adding flavors for old fashioneds or whiskey sours.
3. Blanton’s The Original Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Buffalo Trace’s “original” Blanton’s Single Barrel is made up of hand-selected single barrels that meet the sky-high standards of former Master Distiller Elmer T. Lee, who created the expression back in 1984. Those whiskey barrels are kissed with local limestone water and then bottled as-is.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a clear sense of Christmas spices right away, leaning towards honeycomb spiked with vanilla and an old cedar cigar humidor before leathery Buffalo Trace notes (think freshly soaped saddle leather) kicks in with a hint of pipe tobacco.
Palate: The taste holds onto the spice, especially nutmeg (think eggnog), as caramel kettle corn, more fresh honey, fresh red berries with a hint of tartness, and vanilla pods that lead back to the dry spice barks and cedar.
Finish: Those woody barks and cedar have a nice dose of tobacco and leather on the end that feels like a vanilla oil-heavy eggnog with tons of allspice and nutmeg just kissed with fall leaves on a rainy day.
Bottom Line:
This is classic bourbon. It kind of has everything you want. It’s deep yet never overpowering or “hot”. It’s balanced and classic. But classic doesn’t mean “amazing” or “quintessential” — it just means it’s really good. So, I’d still rank this among the cocktail whiskeys. Make a Manhattan with it or use it for old fashioneds, Sazeracs, or boulevardiers. Or mix it into your eggnog during the holidays.
2. Blanton’s Straight From The Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
This expression is the purest form of Blanton’s Single Barrel Bourbon. The whiskey in these bottles is from the same Blanton’s barrels, but they’re perfect just the way they are. This whiskey goes into the bottle straight from the barrel with no proofing water whatsoever.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is full of very bespoke dark chocolate-covered salted hard caramel toffees encrusted with almonds and pecans — the kind you get from a chocolate shop that imports their goodies from somewhere like Belgium — next to full fall leaves falling on wet grass outside musty old warehouses with a hint of well-worn boot leather lurking beneath it all.
Palate: The nutty toffee carries through into the taste as oily vanilla pods mingle with cedar boxes of dried tobacco leaves and a touch of floral honey jars with old wooden spoons and more of that old boot leather before sharp winter spices and dried red chili pop on the mid-palate.
Finish: The end is very long and lingers in your senses with a hot buzzing thanks to the barky spices and dry chili that subtly fades through all that sweetness before ending up in an old cedar box full of choco-chili tobacco layered with old dark fruit leather sheets.
Bottom Line:
This is hot whiskey. That makes it the perfect candidate for an on the rocks pour, preferably over one big ice cube. Still, that heat can be a lot, depending on what the proof of the version is that you actually find. So while it’s not perfect, it’s still pretty goddamn awesome.
This single-barrel masterpiece was made for the international market but is now available widely in the U.S., albeit for a hefty price. The juice is all about the refinement of the single barrel aging process, with masterful finishing to bring this down to a very drinkable 102-proof.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a big greeting on the nose with notes of spicy tobacco leaves dipped in honey next to dried red berries dipped in salted caramel and dark chocolate before the richest eggnog drives your senses toward soft notes of winter fruit orchards and barks with a hint of moss and cellar dirt.
Palate: The palate carries those notes forward while leaning into the spiced cherry-chocolate tobacco and amps up the chili pepperiness and then balances that with a layer of buttery toffee creaminess, maple syrup-covered pecan waffles, and the softest of saddle leathers.
Finish: The finish takes its time fading out as notes of buttercream vanilla, winter spice bards, and orchard bark with a final billow of rich pipe tobacco popping at the very end with dry cedar kindling and the fleeting sense of a 100-year-old rickhouse.
Bottom Line:
This is the one. This is perfectly balanced and proofed to truly highlight everything great about Blanton’s. You can sip this neat. You can pour it over a big rock, allowing the creaminess to really go deep and reveal marzipan, eggnog pudding, and more buttercream. You can also put this into your favorite whiskey-forward cocktail to truly elevate it into the stratosphere.
If you aren’t drinking aged spirits once the sun goes down on hot summer evenings while you sit on a deck or around a campfire, you’re totally missing out. You should definitely be enjoying some well-made long-aged whiskey, tequila, and dark rum as the fire crackles and the lightning bugs pop off in the summer night air. Today, we are specifically turning our attention to the latter, dark rums.
White (un-aged or rested) rum has its place too, don’t get us wrong. It’s sweeter and lighter but more suited to mixing into a summer mojito or daiquiri. Dark rum, on the other hand, has matured in oak barrels and just speaks more to late-night summer sipping. While still sweet like its un-aged counterpart (thanks to the use of sugarcane juice or molasses), the aging process imparts flavors like vanilla, caramel, spices … and oak too (of course).
And while you can’t go wrong with some of the mainstream stuff from your local liquor store or online retailer (the Bacardis and Capitan Morgans if you will), there are other wonderful options available. To find them, we asked a handful of well-known bartenders to tell us the best dark rums to sip on a cool summer evening. Keep scrolling to see them all.
Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months
Pampero Aniversario Rum is my go-to summer sipping dark rum. This is a world-class slow-sipping spirit. This Venezuelan rum is known for its balanced, fruity, sippable flavor profile.
Tasting Notes:
It has great flavors of butterscotch, pipe tobacco, coffee, and black walnut. With a rich, creamy texture, it has a buttery thick feel with lovely baked layered flavors.
When it comes to the best dark rum, you have to try Brugal 1888 from the Dominican Republic. It is truly exceptional with rich flavors of bourbon and sherry casks.
Tasting Notes:
It is smooth, full of flavor, and perfectly balanced. Dried fruits, vanilla, chocolate, and toffee, make for a very sippable palate.
Diplomático Reserva
Diplomático
Michael Carlisi, Beverage Director at Barrio in San Francisco
Outstandingly smooth and balanced, I reach for Diplomático Reserva. This balanced and complex dark rum is a blend of copper pot still distilled rums all of which are at least 12 years old.
Tasting Notes:
It’s a complex and elegant rum. The fruity baked banana flavors are delicious.
Ron Zacapa Centenario 23 Solera is a premium rum produced in Guatemala. It’s named after the town of Zacapa in eastern Guatemala, and the “23” in its name refers to the maximum age of the rums in the blend, not the minimum. Ron Zacapa Centenario 23 Solera has won numerous awards for its quality and taste, including a Gold Medal at the International Rum Festival. Ron Zacapa uses a process known as “Sistema Solera”, where the rum is aged in a series of barrels that previously held American whiskeys, sherries, and Pedro Ximenez wines. The rum is not distilled from molasses but from the first press of sugar cane, known as virgin sugar cane honey.
Tasting Notes:
It’s known for its balanced sweetness and spice. It has a full-bodied, rich, and complex taste with notes of caramel, honey, vanilla, and dried fruits. The finish is long and smooth with a hint of toasted oak, making it an approachable option to sip and savor on a cool summer evening.
R.L. Seals 12 Year
R.L. Seals
Matty Clark, General Manager at Dutch Kills Bar in Long Island City, New York
I’m a Bajan Rum guy, so I would say R.L. Seals 12 Year if you can find it (we still have 1/2 a bottle at Dutch Kills). This complex dark rum is aged for a minimum of 12 years in ex-bourbon barrels.
Tasting Notes:
It’s deep and rich but not sugary with notes of vanilla and burnt sugar. There are also notes of coconut, chocolate, and toffee. Delicious.
Plantation Original Dark Rum
Plantation
Lorenzo Zappacosta, restaurant and bar manager at Manetta’s Bar in London
The most popular dark rum at Manettas Bar is Plantation Dark Rum. It’s enhanced by meticulous blending and further maturation in France. Plantation Dark Rum is an ideal companion for our signature cocktail ‘Atypical Christie’ which you can sip on a cool summer evening.
Tasting Notes:
The result is a profound structure spiced with notes of cinnamon and clove whose smoky quality adds texture.
The best rum to sip on a cool summer night would be Barbancourt 5 Star 8-Year-Old Dark Rum. It gets its smooth easy-drinking nature after spending eight years maturing in French Limousin oak.
Tasting Notes:
It almost tastes like cognac because of the way it’s aged. Vanilla and oak flavors make it great to sip on a cool summer evening.
Coconut Cartel Special Rum
Coconut Cartel
Javier Pastrana, Food and Beverage Director at YOTEL in Miami
I would have to go with the delicious Coconut Cartel Special Rum. The aged rum is cut to proof with fresh coconut water. This is the best and easiest sipping rum for the summer.
Tasting Notes:
It’s a fruity complex trip to an island paradise in every sip with tropical hints of caramel, vanilla, banana, and mango.
On a recent episode of his podcast, Rogan chatted with regular on-air commentator Patrick Bet-David about Carlson’s recent firing and his pivot to Twitter. Fox News axed Carlson after the network settled a massive defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems. He’s since tried to restart his misinformation-spreading career on Elon Musk’s platform with a show that sparked his former employer to issue a cease-and-desist order. But, according to Rogan, if this whole schtick doesn’t work out for him, Carlson’s got a bright future in politics that could lead him to the White House.
After Bet-David asked if he thought Carlson might make a run for president in 2028, Rogan had this to say.
“When someone’s involved in politics in that extent where you’re talking about it constantly and you know the insides and the outsides, you know all the bullshit and all the shenanigans. I guess you would probably have at least an idea of how you would do it differently and better,” Rogan said.
Shocking “logic” there. Rogan claimed to know plenty about vaccines and COVID-19 treatments and yet, he shouldn’t be handing out bandaids on a street corner, never mind running the CDC. Rogan also claimed that Carlson’s pivot to Twitter has been “very profitable” and that the host is making “a tremendous amount of money” despite suffering an 86% decline in viewership since his show launched.
Still, here’s more of why Rogan thinks the guy who made a doc about testicle tanning should run the nation.
“He’s also got a very popular voice, like if he decided to run for president — let’s just make a scenario. Trump wins in 2024. He has four years. If Tucker went to run in 2028, he could win. He really could win, because it would be kind of carrying those policies. But also he’s sort of a no-nonsense guy who exposes bullsh*t, you know, pretty humorous way and a very insightful and biting way,” Rogan continued before adding that Carlson has “red-pilled a lot of left-wing people.”
Usually when an NBA player goes up against a fan in a game of 1-on-1 during the offseason and gets one over on them, the whole thing happens pretty organically. It’ll be at a basketball camp where children get embarrassed (see: Turner, Myles) or on a park where a player walks by, sees a game happening, and hops in (see: Green, Jalen).
We now have a new one thanks to Sean, known as @dangercant on TikTok, and Chicago Bulls center Andre Drummond. Apparently Sean’s held a long-standing belief that he had a shot to beat Drummond in a game of 1-on-1, and thanks to something called Celebrity Sports Academy, he was able to pay $299 to see how that would go. Credit to him, as it would have been very easy to just sit on the internet and talk about this instead of paying to get an answer, but you can probably guess how this all went.
Sean posted the entire video over on his Twitter account, and correctly said that he’s one of the few who get to say they’ve been put on a poster by an All-Star.
Both Sean and Drummond seemed to find the whole thing pretty funny, in large part because it is pretty funny. Kudos to everyone involved on being a good sport here.
While the haters and losers out there believe getting indicted so many times is a bad thing, Mike Lindell thinks, counterpoint, it’s actually good for Donald Trump. While appearing on Steve Bannon’s podcast on Monday, the pillow guy made a bold prediction for the 2024 election. “And I and you know, if they keep indicting our real president, Donald Trump, he’ll have more votes than we have people in the United States,” he said. “It’ll be like Pennsylvania, that has more votes than voters! Every time they attack him, his numbers go up.”
There are approximately 340 million people in the United States. If every one of them (including the babies!) voted for the MAGA lord in the 2024 presidential election, that would be over four times as many votes as he received in the 2020 election. Also, it would be illegal. Very, very illegal.
You can’t blame Mike for not knowing this. He’s been preoccupied by losing millions of dollars after Bed, Bath, and Beyond and Walmart stopped carrying MyPillow products. “It was a massive, massive cancellation,” Lindell said last month. “We lost $100 million from attacks by the box stores, the shopping networks, the shopping channels, all of them did cancel culture on us.”
If there’s one thing billion dollar corporations love, it’s to “do” a cancel culture.
(WARNING: Spoilers for this week’s The Chi episode will be found below.)
Nearly a year after season five ended, The Chireturned over the weekend to kick off season six and return us to the rollercoaster lives of Kevin, Jake, Emmett, Victor, and more. Change is in order for the show’s main cast to start the season. Kevin finds new love after moving into an apartment, Jemma has to deal with a new woman in her father’s life, Emmett has new success with Smokey but it comes with a price, and Victor finally learns whether or not his campaign for city council was a successful one.
The aforementioned events in the first episode of Showtime’sThe Chi season two, titled “New Chi City,” are soundtracked by songs that help to accentuate the emotions behind each scene. You can find a list of them below as well as details about the scenes that the records played behind.
Laya — “Sailor Moon”
This record plays during the opening scene of season six’s first episode. It can be heard during a sex scene with Emmett and Keisha that leads to an argument about who will help the kids get ready for the day as Emmett and Keisha both have to get themselves ready for work.
This song is heard around the 5:50 mark as Deja and Shaad wake up to start their day. Shaad recently moved in with Deja, but it hasn’t been the easiest transition as he struggles to find his footing (and a job) after his release from prison.
She Go Hard — “Make It Go MMMMMM”
The track appears around the 32:03 mark after Victor makes a speech at Smokey’s. Though the speech went well, things take a quick left as someone spills two drinks on him which forces him to make a quick change from his dress shirt and jacket into a Smokey’s t-shirt.
She Go Hard’s “Make It Go MMMMMM” was revealed to be the record that played at this moment after it was Shazam’ed during this episode. Despite this, the song is not available for streaming at this moment.
Mando Beats & Mista Raja — “Victorious”
We hear this record at the 36:30 mark as Kevin kicks off a party at his new apartment. He got the apartment after he fought, and won, to move out of his mom and stepmom’s house to close season five.
J. Howell — “Faithful”
This song is heard around the 37:41 mark after Emmett surprises Tiffany with a new car after she asked him for one. She’s surprised by the gift and her current boyfriend, Rob (played by Iman Shumpert), doesn’t seem too happy with Emmett’s move.
C Rois — “Watch The Clock”
This record plays around the 47:07 mark after an awkward conversation between Jemma’s father, his new lover, and Jemma herself. This transitions into a conversation between Kevin and Maisha at the former’s apartment and it leads to a surprising kiss between the two.
Jazzfeezy & Geek Van Der Beek — “Paid”
This song checks in around the 49:51 mark during a brief sex scene with Tiffany and Rob. The two decided to use the car that Emmett bought for Tiffany at the location for their quick foray.
Breana Marin — “Losing Love” Feat. Z. Rich
We hear this track during the closing credits of season six’s first episode. It plays after Douda successfully wins Tracy over for another night together despite her wanting space from him. She wakes up the next morning full of regret after he’s nowhere to be found in the house.
New episodes of ‘The Chi’ are available through the Paramount Plus With Showtime plan on Fridays at 3am EST/ 12 pm PST. Weekly episodes also air on Sundays at 9pm EST/PST.
Over here at Uproxx, we spend a lot of time eating and comparing the finer points of the best fast-food burgers. Whether we’re talking about big juicy doubles, flavor-packed and mouth-watering decadent burgers, or even a classic and simple single cheeseburger, if it’s built from ground beef, buns, and cheese, we’ve eaten it, ranked it, and found ways to elevate it and make it better. But there is some burger ground that we haven’t explored as of yet — the restaurant burger.
Full disclosure, I’m not a restaurant burger guy. I’ve never looked at a restaurant menu and thought “I’ll just have a burger.” If I ever have, it’s because the rest of the menu failed to catch my attention. So rather than order completely off the appetizer menu (which is a totally valid move), I’ll just grab a burger because, well, how bad can it be right?
So while I consider myself an expert on all things fast-food cheeseburgers, restaurants are a bit of a blind spot for me. So to better familiarize myself with the world of restaurant cheeseburgers, I put the names of a bunch of random restaurant chains in a hat and pulled a single one out to see how their most popular burger compares to our personal fast-food favorite.
The lotto this time came up Chilis. So today, I’ll be tasting Chili’s Double Oldtimer with Cheese against Shake Shack’s Double Shack Burger.
Cheeseburger Methodology
In order for this taste test to be as fair as possible, I decided to order each burger as-is with no alterations. Despite my love for a good burger hack, I think it’s important to experience each burger as both chain restaurants intended.
I also decided to rate each component of the burger — the bun, the meat, the cheese, the sauce, and the veggie toppings on a scale of one to five. Then, I added up the scores and crowned a winner. Let’s start with the challenger.
Chili’s — Double Oldtimer With Cheese
Dane Rivera
Price: $15.19
Tasting Notes:
Right off the bat, the size of this burger took me aback. It’s f*cking huge. This double cheeseburger is enough to share between two people, and if you’re really into small portions, four. That’s just not found in the fast-food space. The fast-food burgers are, for the most part, relatively small. This thing feels like a statement.
The full build consists of two thick beef patties, two layers of cheddar cheese, pickles, lettuce, tomato, shredded lettuce, and mustard.
Biting into it and dislocating my jaw in the process, I’m greeted by the layers of sumptuous beefy flavors that are further elevated courtesy of sharp slightly nutty cheese, the snap of some crisp tomatoes, and a nice balance of sweet and brine-y flavors from the red onions and pickles. The beef is a real standout, although it’s thick and overwhelming. Every bite melts in your mouth and overpowers the rest of the ingredients. It lacks balance, but it’s hard to care with beef this juicy and delicious.
The Score:
The Bun:4. It’s a basic brioche bun that’s buttery, airy, and most importantly makes way for you to taste the star of the show, the beef.
The Meat: 5. It exceeded all expectations. It’s juicy, thick, and dunks on anything you can get from a fast-food restaurant.
The Cheese:4. It’s good, but I’m of the thought that the best burger cheese is American. Cheddar is a close second though and helps to add a lot of complexity to this burger so that the only note isn’t just BEEF.
The Sauce:3. Mustard? Really? Just mustard? I find it a little boring and with meat this thick and two layers of cheese, it’s hard for the mustard to stand out.
The Veggies:4. It would’ve been a perfect five but that terrible watery shredded lettuce brought it down a point. I love the use of red onion for some delicate sweetness, and the pickles add a nice tang to the aftertaste. Tomatoes are nice and ripe.
Final Score: 20
It’s not a perfect 25, but it’s a pretty great cheeseburger experience, making it hard to be disappointed. Personalizing it a bit will make it a better experience (add bacon, ditch that sauce for BBQ, maybe lose the iceberg, and now we’re talking).
Shake Shack — Double ShackBurger
Philip Freedman
Price: $9.79
Tasting Notes:
Like the Chili’s burger, the beef is the star of the show. It’s savory, salty, and sports an incredible depth of flavor. Since this is a smash burger, you’ve got an audible textural crunch in every bite thanks to that perfect Maillard crust. Helping to accentuate the beefy qualities of the meat, the tomatoes come in with a burst of umami flavor while the onions offer a kick of sharpness. The sauce is tangy and sweet, but not well spread, and a single leaf of green lettuce adds a bit more texture to the whole thing. Lastly, the bun is denser.
Overall, this burger comes across as incredibly small in comparison. That’s not necessarily a bad thing and I think a Double ShackBurger with a side of fries is enough of a meal for anyone. But I do think it’s worth noting that this burger is about 1/4 the size of what Chili’s is working with.
The Score:
The Bun:4. It’s a potato roll which feels a bit more novel than a brioche. It’s soft, sweet, and spongey. But it’s a bit too small for this burger. Too much of the burger lives outside of the bun.
The Meat:3. Look, normally, I’d rank Shake Shack’s beef patties as the best of the best, but this just can’t compare with the melt-in-your-mouth quality of what Chili’s is doing. The flavor is outstanding, but it comes across as a bit too condensed and slightly dry in comparison.
The Cheese:5. Delicious, salty, and simple — a perfect slice of American Cheese.
The Sauce:4. Shake Sauce is a mix of ingredients and features both garlic and a touch of paprika. It’s nice and complex with a bit of spice. Chili’s never had a chance with just mustard. I’m docking a point because ShakeShack tends to glob this sauce in one spot rather than spread it evenly across the meat.
The Veggies:3. Love the juicy tomatoes, the green leaf lettuce has a great snap to it, and the onions are sharp and present, but it all comes across as a bit unimaginative. Luckily, Shake Shack has all sorts of veggies to help you elevate the burger further (mushrooms, cherry peppers, pickles, fried shallots). Unfortunately, none of those come as part of the stock build.
Final Score: 19
Shake Shack loses by just one point. I thought many times about tipping the scale in the Shack’s favor. In the end, even though I think the burger is more consistently delicious across the board, Chili’s highs are just too high!
Closing Thoughts on the Cheeseburgers
Chili’s wins this round! The Double OldTimer with Cheese is a jaw-dropping drool-inducing cheeseburger that makes its inflated price tag feel totally justified. Having said that, for under $10 you can get a burger from Shake Shack that doesn’t disappoint, and for a few dollars more you can add bacon, avocado, fried shallots, and so many other ingredients that can easily bring the burger to Chili’s level.
But if your favorite aspect of a burger is beef, Chili’s is where it’s at, hands down. No contest. Also a major plus on Chili’s side — a full bar. Nothing pairs with a burger like a good margarita.
Throughout her Renaissance tour, Beyoncé has issued a fun challenge to her audiences: When she sings the line “Look around / Everybody on mute” from Renaissance highlight “Energy,” the audience is supposed to remain as quiet as they possibly can. Well, Beyoncé was particularly impressed by one tour stop, as she declared one city the winner: Washington DC.
On August 6, Beyoncé performed at FedExField in Landover, Maryland (just a few miles outside of the DC city limits). Fan-shoot footage shows that when it came to the moment of truth, most people in attendance did a terrific job of shutting their mouths and allowing a profound near-silence to settle across the venue. Beyoncé even gave DC an official acknowledgement, writing on her website that the city was the “eerbody on mute war winner.”
— RENAISSANCE WORLD TOUR (@RenaissanceWT) August 7, 2023
While that moment went well, the evening got off to a rocky start: Before the show started, FedExField issued a shelter-in-place order due to lightning in the area. Fans were eventually allowed to return to their sets, but it did cause a delay for the show. Beyoncé came through, though: The singer paid $100,000 to extend the DC Metro trains by an hour, so fans would be able to get home. The money paid to “keep all 98 stations open for customers to exit and operational expenses.”
The schedule is packed from Friday, August 11, to Sunday, August 13.
DJ Miriam will set the tone on Friday from 2:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. local time. DJ Fredy Fresco (3:10-3:30 p.m.), Dei V (3:45-4:10 p.m.), and five other acts will play into the night before Tainy (10-10:45 p.m.), Nicky Jam (10:45-11:35 p.m.), and Wisin Y Yandel (12:20 a.m. to 1:35 a.m.) bring it into Saturday.
The Saturday (August 12) slate features Becky G (9:20-10:05 p.m.), Feid (10:55-11:55 p.m.), and Ozuna (12:40 a.m. to 1:40 a.m.). Gabito Ballesteros is slated earlier in the day (3:45-4:10 p.m.), but it’s possible he’ll join Becky G because the two released their “La Nena” single alongside a strip club-based video in late June.
The final day will welcome 11 total sets — punctuated by Don Omar (10:55-11:55 p.m.) and Grupo Firme (12:45-1:45 a.m.).
The festival notes that all set times “are subject to change.” The official website teases what else can be enjoyed across the three-day event, including a “Baja Wheel” and “Glam Station,” and provides a map of the expansive festival grounds.
See the full lineup and schedule of set times below.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
#Alabamaboatbrawl #montgomerybrawl #riverboatbrawl pic.twitter.com/XcwxmZWfEh
pic.twitter.com/DDEHvpsRqX
(@Naboogi1) August 7, 2023
