Hamburg Doner, Leesburg, VA

Summary - Not so good, but we might need to go back

Well, we decided to kick off our February with some good ol' German food. This much anticipated visit left a bit to be desired. One caveat, we did decide to take the food carry-out style, which we knew would not be quite as good as eating in; however ...

Getting there and getting food …

The Hamburg Doner is in Leesburg, VA, where the old "Mighty Midget Kitchen" was (ah, MMK, we do miss those ribs!). The new owners have carved out a nice little nook in the building next to the old airplane fuselage. Brightly decorated and slightly rustic, although small (only a handful of tables), the inside is quite inviting and when it's not super cold, you can also eat outside if you desire. Behind the counter was the owner (we presumed due to his great German accent) who promptly took our carryout order. Then we waited in the biergarten, watching football ("soccer" for us Americans) while our order was being prepared.

Argh … we said "carryout" … our meal came unpacked and ready to eat in the bier garten, so we kindly reminded the waiter (er, food delivery guy, they don't really have "waiters" per se) that we were taking our lunch to go. They quickly packaged everything up for us and away we went.

What did we have and how was it?

Doner (Beef)

Wow, unhand the saltshaker! The Doner was a magnificently-stuffed sandwich which should certainly appeal to the American affinity for super-sized everything. The sandwich was chock full of shaved/pulled (plucked?) tiny pieces of dried beef with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, and a few onion pieces (during the week the Doner is made of chicken). Atop the sandwich sat a smattering of the house-made yogurt sauce, which provided some much needed moisture to the super-stuffed handful. The meat was flavorful (although, one reviewer mentioned "not in a good way"), but any potentially flavorful spiciness was thoroughly consumed by the overpowering saltiness. The yogurt sauce provided some relief and balance to the over salted beef. The shining star of this composition was without question the flatbread. Nicely crisp on the outside and moist and fluffy on the inside, the bread was a nice receptacle for the sandwich ingredients.

Falafel Sandwich

Having had more than a few falafel in our times, we could not resist ordering the falafel sandwich. This was the most disappointing of our take home picnic. Aside from the falafel balls, the bread and accompanying makings were exactly as they were in the Doner. The falafel itself was mushy and tasteless (where were the spices??). After one bite from each reviewer, the falafel sandwich did not again move until the trashcan was brought to the table.

Currywurst

Ah ha … we found something, here! The Currywurst was the most memorable dish in this trio. There were slices of a tasty beef sausage (think a heartier kielbasa) with what they term as a "curryketchup" and a few dashes of yellow curry to finish. The sausage was perfectly cooked, with a slight crispiness to the skin. The curryketchup was flavorful and slightly sweet - exactly what you might imagine, given the name (with a bit of a sweeter ketchup - more like European-style ketchup). This was good, but I'm not sure any of us would have to go back specifically to have it again.

Fries

The fries were one of the most tasteful parts of the lunch. Well spiced (but not overdone) with seasoning akin to Old Bay. The fries, of course, were a bit soggy by the time we reached home, but that was expected when we decided to carryout. We can't truly review the fries due to this, but the flavor was great and they were excellent when dipped in the "curryketchup," so get a side of that with your fries … and, of course, in true Euro style, pass the mayo, please!

Well?

We have decided that it would be worthwhile to take a trip back to Hamburg Doner. What would we do differently? Eat in, order some beer from their list of German beers on tap, try the schnitzel and the bratwurst.

Here's the site … check it out and let us know what you think!

Website: http://www.doener-usa.com