My Favorite St. Joseph (& Surrounding Areas) Burgers

How do I judge a burger?

First thing I always do is eat just a piece of hamburger meat with nothing on it. Does the meat have its own flavor? Is it juicy? Is it cooked correctly at medium and no more than medium well (exception made for smash/slider)? Is the bun too dry or does it perform the job of sopping up juice and add flavor and depth to the burger? Do the condiments and add-ons actually add to the flavor or detract/distract from it?

Honestly, there are not a lot of great burgers in St. Joseph, so I had to include surrounding areas extended out to Kansas City, Topeka, Omaha, etc. A burger has to at least be great to make my list (an amazing will bump a great every time), but what I’m always on the lookout for is pure bliss, what I call a “hallelujah burger.” The burger that hits your mouth and sends you to that special place in your head where you’re at peace with yourself. It should be noted that not all the burgers are from exclusively “burger joints:” a great burger can come from anywhere.

I fully acknowledge that taste is subjective. I don’t think judging a burger on the quality of the meat, how it’s cooked, if it’s juicy and has flavor on its own is subjective, or whether the bun is too dry or performs its function is subjective, but once you get to condiments, and add-ons, then you enter subjective taste. I fully expect people to disagree with my list and that’s okay. I encourage you to post your own top burgers from the area!

The List

So here is my list. It’s still growing since I only moved to the area in May of 2022. If you have a suggestion of a place that’s not on my list that you think I’d like, by all means let me know and I’ll try them!

• 10 Ford’s Drive In (St. Joseph)
  • 5028 Lake Ave, St Joseph, MO 64504
  • Ford’s is all sliders and those rarely make my list. Ford’s is one of those “don’t judge a book by its cover” places and you could easily drive by it: and you would be wrong to do so. Ford’s is vastly underrated. Their burgers are juicy and loaded with condiments. Get the double bacon cheeseburger and a shake! If you’re a larger person, seating will be uncomfortable, so you may want to get your food to go.
• 09 Vogel’s Burgers (St. Joseph)
  • Vogel’s is a food truck, so check their FB page for daily locations.
  • You’re going to wait for your burger as they are hand made to order. A variety of styles of burgers are available. Vogel’s locations and hours vary, so make sure you check their FB page ahead of time.
• 08 D&G (St. Joseph)
  • 1918 Frederick Ave, St Joseph, MO 64501
  • D&G is one of the few places in town open for lunch on Sunday and their rock & roll themed menu makes perfect sense if you know the quirks of the rock & rollers their items are named after, like the Elvis with peanut butter or the Lemmy with pulled pork on the burger. I recommend both for sure! While there, you can also try one of their amazing tenderloin sandwiches and I definitely recommend the hushpuppies as an appetizer!
• 07 Tay’s Burger Shack (Kansas City)
  • 1019 Armour Rd, North Kansas City, MO 64116
  • I love that their menu is simple: they make what they make and they’re good at it. It’s a matter of how much meat you want! The Triple is the perfect amount for me (I’m not sure I can get my mouth around the Homerun). These are smash burgers and they’re juicy and lots of delicious char in the grooves. I get grilled jalapenos and and bacon as an add-on to give that Triple some extra goodness. My only gripe is that I wish they seasoned the meat a bit more.
• 06 Sinful Burger Sports Grill (Bellevue)
  • 4005 Twin Creek Dr #101, Bellevue, NE 68123
  • Each of their burgers is named after one of the Seven Deadly Sins. The Wrath is my favorite, because I love the hot stuff! If you’re extra hungry, try the Gluttony!
• 05 First Ward House (St. Joseph)
  • 2101 St Joseph Ave, St Joseph, MO 64505
  • When I finally got around to trying this place I knew it was an instant on my list. The SJFD Fire Burger is absolutely phenomenal. From the perfectly seasoned meat, perfectly seared for those crunchy notches on the side with complimenting condiments, crunchy and flavorful bacon, and an amazing overall flavor profile. The excellent fries on the side are a bonus. I’m looking forward to trying their other burgers for sure! Bonus is they are open Sunday from lunch until late, so this will likely now be part of my Sunday routine.
• 04 RC’s Lunch Car (St. Joseph)
  • 505 Francis St, St Joseph, MO 64501
  • RC’s is 100% my favorite place to get a burger in St. Joseph. In addition to their normal burger, they offer specialty burgers almost every week that are absolutely worth trying. I basically eat dinner at RC’s every Friday night. Also worth trying is one of their hand-spun milkshakes and their BBQ Pork Tacos.
• 03 Beer Kitchen (Kansas City)
  • 435 Westport Rd, Kansas City, MO 64111
  • The Smokestack is probably their most sold burger and for a reason, a perfectly cooked (get it medium like you’re supposed to) and seasoned burger with burnt ends, jalapeno straws, smoked gouda, whiskey glaze, and chipotle aioli come together for a flavor extravaganza. Ask for a little extra chipotle aioli (trust me). Add that smoked chipotle and smoked bacon sauces for your fries as well. Definitely an amazing burger.
• 02 Pennant (Topeka)
  • 915 S Kansas Ave, Topeka, KS 66612
  • The Triple Threat is my favorite and if you like spicy, definitely give it a try: it’s a hallelujah burger for sure. Also check out the P.B.J. which uses Thai peanut butter sauce for some kick. Using Thai peanut butter sauce has been my recommendation over a regular peanut butter on burger for a long time and I was so happy to see a place using it on a burger. Also worth checking out is their tater tot nachos.
• 01 Brewer’s Kitchen (Kansas City)
  • 3107 Gillham Road Suite 100, Kansas City, MO 64109
  • Every one of their burgers is a hallelujah burger. My favorite by far is their Blueberry Stout Burger. It’s over-indulgent and I love everything about it. Bonus is that it’s situated in an area you should explore more of!

But What About?

Where are the standard ones you see on so many other lists from St. Joseph? A lot of the ones on those lists seem to be based more on nostalgia than taste. For example, I’m always going to get me some Town Topic burgers in Kansas City because of the nostalgia (and they’re good), but they’re not in the Top 10 unless you’re doing a nostalgia-based list. If I’m being honest, a lot of the ones on those lists are just not good. There’s one at the top of most people’s lists for St. Joseph that I don’t include because the burgers are always overcooked and as dry as a hockey puck. It doesn’t matter how good your condiments flavor profile is if your burger is a hockey puck.

No Man’s Sky: Galactic Economy Materials

NOTE UPDATE RELATED TO RELEASE OF NEXT:  The NEXT update ruined most of this. Parts no longer exist, new parts now exist, some stuff was renamed, and some of it you can now manufacture on your own. You are also less likely to get a mission where you have to purchase one of these items. Since the NEXT release, the overwhelming majority of “acquire” missions have been fulfilled by mining. “Delivery” mission you are given the part and asked to deliver it in a different system.

One thing you’ll definitely need and will come in handy is the refiner recipe page that’s being maintained over gamepedia:

ORIGINAL ARTICLE, WHICH IS NOW 50%+ IRRELEVANT:

In the latest No Man’s Sky update, there is a galactic economy. You can look for systems where your materials will sell for more or systems where you can buy cheaper. That is all fun and games, but the real reason to know this stuff is because you have to locate them during missions and deliver them to customers. You have to install the economy scanner in order to use the filter (you can purchase it from nanite traders in certain space stations).

Economy filter turned on in the galaxy view.

It took me days to go through all of these because I got tired of looking for them one-by-one. So I went to every single color-type (each type of economy is color-coded, just use the filter in the galaxy view to see the economy colors) and identifying all four sub-types within the man types.

These items can be obtained at either space stations or trading posts. If you don’t find it at the space station, then try the trading post. Keep an eye on the status of the economy (failed, average, moderate, opulent, etc.) as it will let you know how likely you are to find these items (and quantity) in each system’s economy. It should be noted that it is possible I missed something. If you find an items that’s sold in one of the economies, let me know and I’ll update the list!

Economy items at the space station terminal.

So here you go:

RED ECONOMY SYSTEM

Energy Supply

• • 1. Spark Canister, Fusion Core, Ohmic Gel, Experimental Power Fluid, Industrial-Grade Battery

Fuel Generation

• • 1. Fusion Core, Ohmic Gel, Industrial-Grade Battery, Six-Pronged Mesh Decoupler, Spark Canister

Power Generation

• • 1. Fusion Core, Industrial-Grade Battery, Spark Canister, Ohmic Gel

High Voltage

• 1. Ohmic Gel, Fusion Core, Spark Canister, Experimental Power Fluid

CYAN ECONOMY SYSTEM

High Tech

• • 1. Welding Soap, Ion Capacitor, Autonomous Positioning Unit, Quantum Accelerator

Nano-Construction

• • 1. Autonomous Positioning Unit, Welding Soap, Decommissioned Circuit Board, Quantum Accelerator, Ion Capacitor, Neutron Microscope

Engineering

• • 1. Autonomous Positioning Unit, Ion Capacitor, Welding Soap, Decommissioned Circuit Board

Technology

• 1. Welding Soap, Decommissioned Circuit Board, Ion Capacitor, Quantum Accelerator, Autonomous Positioning Unit, Superconducting Fiber

WHITE ECONOMY SYSTEM

Alchemical

• • 1. Superconducting Fiber, Carbon Nanotubes, Self-Repairing Heridium, Five Dimensional Torus, Optical Solvent

Scientific

• • 1. Neural Duct, Organic Piping, Neutron Microscope, Instability Injector, De-Scented Pheromone Bottle

Mathematical

• • 1. Neural Duct, Organic Piping, Neutron Microscope, Instability Injector, De-Scented Pheromone Bottle

Metal Processing

• 1. Optical Solvent, Five Dimensional Torus, Carbon Nanotubes, Superconducting Fiber, Neural Duct, Self-Repairing Heridium

GREEN ECONOMY SYSTEM

Mercantile

• • 1. Star Silk, Ion Sphere, Decrypted User Data, Teleport Coordinators

Shipping

• • 1. Star Silk, Decrypted User Data, Comet Droplets, Ion Sphere, Optical Solvent

Trading

• • 1. Comet Droplets, Star Silk, Teleport Coordinators, Ion Sphere, Decrypted User Data

Commercial

• 1. Teleport Coordinators, Comet Droplets, Five Dimensional Torus, Decrypted User Data, Ion Sphere

YELLOW ECONOMY SYSTEM

Mass Production

• • 1. Non-Stick Piston, Enormous Metal Cog, Holographic Crankshaft, High Capacity Vector Compressor, Six-Pronged Mesh Decoupler

Construction

• • 1. Non-Stick Piston, Six-Pronged Mesh Decoupler, High Capacity Vector Compressor, Enormous Metal Cog

Manufacturing

• • 1. Non-Stick Piston, Enormous Metal Cog, Holographic Crankshaft, High Capacity Vector Compressor

Industrial

• 1. Non-Stick Piston, High Capacity Vector Compressor, Enormous Metal Cog, Six-Pronged Mesh Decoupler, Holographic Crankshaft

ORANGE ECONOMY SYSTEM

Mining

• • 1. Re-Latticed Arc Crystal, Unrefined Pyrite Grease, Bromide Salt, Polychromatic Zirconium, Dirt

Prospecting

• • 1. Re-Latticed Arc Crystal, Bromide Salt, Unrefined Pyrite Grease, Dirt

Ore Extraction

• • 1. Polychromatic Zirconium, Dirt, Bromide Salt, Unrefined Pyrite Grease, Non-Stick Piston, Holographic Crankshaft

Minerals

• 1. Polychromatic Zirconium, Unrefined Pyrite Grease, Re-Latticed Arc Crystal, Bromide Salt

Leaving the Scene

I am at the point in my life where I’m focusing on doing things that make me happy and eliminating stress in my life. I’ve retired from activism, removed a few negative things and people from my life, and unfollowed people on social networks who irritated me. I removed things that made me feel obligated to debate and get irritated at stupidity. It’s all about making my life happy and as stress free as possible.

One of the things that made me happy was doing standup comedy in Huntsville. I never had any intention of going “mainstream” or even really doing gigs outside of Huntsville (although I did a few). Doing standup was something that brought a smile to my face and helped alleviate the anger, frustration, and stress in my life.

But my life has changed. I’m happy now and no longer the frustrated and angry man that I was just six months ago. That anger and frustration was where my comedy came from. So now my standup is stressful to me because I have to reinvent myself and as hard as I’ve tried, I simply cannot find the comedy in my happiness. Sure, a joke or two here or there, but nothing to sustain the hobby of standup.

So after much deliberation, mulling, and thinking, I have decided to no longer do standup comedy. I will continue to be silly on Facebook and Twitter and I will continue to do The Critical Eye Podcast because those things still make me happy and are stress free.

While it took me some time to come to this decision, I’m not feeling bad about it, and that’s a good sign that I made the right decision.

Thank you to everyone who supported my standup over the years. You will always be appreciated. I hope you’ll continue to follow me on Facebook/Twitter and at The Critical Eye Podcast.

In addition, I hope you’ll stay and watch for my storm chasing stuff. I’ve been chasing storms at an amateur level for a very long time and recently decided to get more involved and dedicate myself more to it than normal. I’m now part of the Spotter Network and I’m looking forward to helping out my community and helping the NWS study tornadic activity, especially in the new Tornado Alley that is Alabama and Mississippi. I now have two dash cams ready to go and new apps that will help me chase better than ever before. I’ve also formed the North Alabama Storm Chasers on Facebook, so if you chase in the north Alabama area, please join the group and share your stories and ideas!

Netflix, Thou Doth Fucketh Me!

Netflix Bait & Switch Gifting

Oh Netflix, why do I love thee, even though thou doth fucketh me?

So back in December of 2012 I purchased a two-month gift subscription for two friends. They redeemed their gift on December 19th. And then in February and March of 2013 I was billed twice: once for my account and once for the gifted account.

So I contacted Netflix Customer Support today (3/21/2013) and they told me that at the end of the two months the subscription defaults to the “card on file,” which was the card I used to purchase the gift. Wait, how is my card the “card on file” when I just used it to purchase a two-month gift? I didn’t purchase a recurring membership: only a two-month gift subscription. At the end of the two months, Netflix should have asked the gift recipient for their credit card (even better, at the beginning when they first created their new account with my two-month gift).

Netflix said that it’s in the Terms of Service that it will default to the card on file. Again, why is my card the “card on file” since I didn’t purchase a recurring membership? You cannot tell me that I’m purchasing a two-month gift and then hide in the TOS somewhere that I’m really purchasing a recurring monthly membership.

Netflix did give me my money back. They also canceled the gifted account. That was the only way to resolve it, which means the recipients now have to create a brand new account and redo their Instant Queue list (sorry guys, I wish there had been another way).

While they did return my money and fix the issue, they insisted the entire time that they were not at fault and it was my fault for not reading the TOS about the “card on file.” Bullshit! I didn’t give them a “card on file.” I used a card to purchase a two-month membership for a gift. It stated explicitly that I was purchasing only two months and the gift card that was sent to the recipient stated explicitly that they had received a two month subscription.

This is classic Bait & Switch bullshit tactics and it should be considered credit card fraud on the part of Netflix since I clearly did not authorize my card for a recurring membership.

Shame on you Netflix! I wonder how many other people out there are paying for recurring memberships for other people when they only gifted a month or two. The small charge of $7.99 can easily be overlooked. After all, it took me two months to notice that I was getting billed twice since the charges were over twenty days apart.

I will never gift Netflix again. This is a serious flaw in Netflix’s gifting system that needs to be addressed, but as long as they’re using Bait & Switch and insisting the TOS covers their ass, people are going to get fucked over.