Eat This Burger: The Cowboy at Regal Beagle

Chefs Nick Vakidis and Ben Johnson (left); Stuft buffalo fried chicken sandwich (right) photos by Matt Shelley

Animalistic hunger rages in my underbelly. I feel fists clenched and taste buds curdling. The stiffness in my calves is no doubt from the disco ball dangling like a thousand man giants reminding me of brighter nights beneath a Taiwanese moon in the July of Gelderlands Revival. A quick sniff reveals that food is served here at Regal Beagle. This place is a dive. Billiards rage and musical classics beckon from the jukebox. A patron named Jeff is asking me about my intentions, and he is charming and delightful. The locals drinking at two in the afternoon are boisterous and nonetheless calming. Black walls, billiards, foosball, and the horseshoe bar all tickle my fancy bone, and I give my hand to the charming chefs who have recently taken over the kitchen.

Ben Johnson and Nick Vakidis left Terilli’s to start up the kitchen at the Regal Beagle. For three weeks now, they have cut their fingers and blistered their social lives to build a beautiful stuffed burger, or Stuft, which is the name of the kitchen itself. I delighted in their story and entrepreneurial magnetism. Two dudes and a hefty skillet have come to this dungeon with a bright and beautiful basket of food. The stuffed buffalo fried chicken sandwich surprised me with its smoothness, much like my uncle Ricky on an all-night roller through Chinatown on my 13th birthday after the Mariners lost the World Series…and he still managed to commandeer three honeysuckles from the VIP for his indulgence.

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