Smashburger

We know - everyone is doing a review on Smashburger and other burger joints in Calgary these days.  But, it's not surprising we'd jump on board considering that these places are more often seafood-free than not.  If you check out the American allergen information sheet, it appears that the only risks are in the salad dressings and sauces, and the beefy chili.  While we both enjoy salads, neither of us actually like chili so that didn't bother us at all.

When we went to Smashburger this past Saturday, the line-ups were long but the tables turned over quickly so we were able to enjoy our food in no time.  Since we both only ordered burgers and fries, we didn't even need to think about seafood allergies!  This was a relief because one of the biggest frustrations we've had is in hearing that we can't have restaurant fries since they are cooked in the same deep fryer as the seafood (will restaurants one day have two separate fryers for this purpose?).  This has resulted in the wife having to change her order to a salad while longingly eyeing her husband's fries (the wife admits she should eat more salads but that it's less fun when she doesn't have a choice in the matter).  This time, however, there were fries in abundance on our table, which we realized at the end of the meal when we needed a bag to take half of them home after consuming pretty large burgers.  The following are what we ordered and practically inhaled:

The wife's Spicy Baja burger and sweet potato Smashfries with chipotle dipping sauce.  The avocado and the jalapenos created the perfect tang while the rest of the burger was actually spicy (just like they advertise).

The husband's Calgary burger and sweet potato Smashfries with chipotle dipping sauce.  The bacon really stood out and the spice level was just right.  While on their website, we noticed that the ingredients in the Calgary burger are the same as in the Colorado burger....

Seafood-free friendliness: Extremely, as long as you stay away from the Caesar salad dressing that has fish in it.  It would also be best to avoid the dressings/sauces and chili that have been produced in the same facility/line that fish and shellfish have come into contact with.  Other than that, we're thrilled that we can eat the burgers and fries here without any thoughts of allergies.