Nation’s Giant Hamburgers & Great Pies

Nation's Giant Hamburgers & Great Pies.

I had never heard of this place, but it is a diner chain, with 28 locations, that has been around since the 1950s.  Started as a hot dog stand, expanded from there.  I guess pretty successful.

As you can guess from the name, they serve burgers.  Large burgers.  The burgers are all 3/4 of a pound.  Along with regular hamburgers/cheeseburgers/bacon burgers, they also offer wild salmon, chicken, and meatless alternatives, plus hot dogs and grilled cheese.  Fries.  Shakes.  Pretty standard diner menu, plus all the breakfast classics (french toast, pancakes, eggs, toast, hash browns, etc).

Since the other half of the restaurant name is "& Great Pies", of course, they offer a slew of pies, including fruit pies (apple, berry, cherry, no sugar-added apple), classics (custard, pumpkin, pecan, lemon meringue), and a bunch of cream pies (banana creme, chocolate creme, coconut creme, lemon creme).  And cheesecake (is that a pie?).  Pies are available whole, half, or by the slice, either a "regular" slice, aka a full 1/4 of a pie, or, perhaps more reasonable, a "small" slice that is only 1/6 of a pie.  Yes, finally, a place that understands "Parent family" slices!  It is still inconceivable to me that normal people think a pie can serve more than ~4 people.

Anyway, as a dessert lover, I've only indulged in the pie section of the menu, so I can't comment on the rest of their offerings.

Update Review, May 2024

You would think that after my abysmal review of the fruit pie I tried from Nation's nearly 10 years ago, that I wouldn't be interested in trying more of their pies.  And yet, I did.  

In the 10 years since my last Nation's experience, not much has changed.  They still have exactly the same pie lineup.  You can still order by slice (1/4 of a pie), half, or full size 9" pie.  Prices have gone up nearly double (!), with slices now ranging from $6.50-8.50, half pies $11.60-14.25, and whole pies $16.95-23.25.

Banana Crème (slice). $6.95.

"Fresh hand-cut bananas in crème inside a flaky pie crust with whipped topping."

The pie from Nation's I was most excited for was the banana cream, er, "crème".  It is their most popular, and the one that gets all the rave reviews.  

It looked much like any grocery store calibre banana cream pie, although it had a strange scattering of sliced almonds in the very center (that aren't mentioned on the menu, so, beware if you have nut allergy!).  The crust wasn't really what I'd describe as "flaky", but it was a good blonde style crust, soft, pleasant enough.  The style of crust often used for this kind of pie, and definitely better than a graham crust (which they do use for the cheesecakes), but not as good as a true flaky style like used for most fruit pies.  So, good enough crust of this style.  ***+.

Above that, the bananas.  Sliced bananas, a bit mushy, a bit darker brown indicating that they weren't super fresh, but, I think we all know how quickly bananas turn brown.  Less fresh tasting than most actual bakery banana cream pies, but on par with a grocery store style.  ***.

The "crème" was a thick pudding, well set, and I think it may have had a touch of banana flavor, but it might have just been vanilla.  It was good pudding, and the ratio was done well.  ***+ crème.

And finally, the whipped topping, that was super fluffy, super sweet, and although not rich cream forward whipped cream, it worked well enough.  ***+.

Essentially, all slightly above average components, but ones that did come together to be greater than the sum of their parts.  The balance and ratios were all right, and although no component was high quality on its own, they worked together in a very classic comfort foods way.  One of the better banana cream pies I've had really, particularly for this style that isn't trying to be something more upscale.  Low ****?

And yes, a "slice" is a full 1/4 of a pie, so the $6.95 price that might sound high for a slice, really is more reasonable if you consider it 2 (or even 3) slices.

Coconut Crème (half). $11.60.

"Refreshing coconut cream filling inside a flakey pie crust. Topped with whipped topping."

For the coconut cream, I opted for a half pie.  I think I sorta got a smaller half though, this looked more like 40% of a pie.  The construction was much the same as the banana: blonde crust, thick set crème filling, lots of fluffy white topping, garnish in the center (this one, coconut flakes).

And indeed, it was quite similar in taste too.  The middle layer was slightly coconut flavored, well set, thick pudding.  The topping was sweet but not cloying, super fluffy.  The toasted coconut on top added a bit of texture and additional coconut flavor.

It wasn't the most coconut forward coconut cream pie out there, but, the pudding and the topping really are quite good for their style, so I enjoyed it.  ***+.

Peaches & Crème (slice). $6.95.
May/June Seasonal Pie of the Month.

"Peaches in cream in a flaky pie crust with whipped topping."

Every month Nation's has a pie of the month.  They follow the same schedule, year after year.  The month prior, April had a very tempting looking blueberry cream pie.  I knew that after this, July would bring the cherry pie.  But for May and June, it was peach, which struck me as slightly odd, as it seemed a bit early for fresh local peaches.

And then I got my slice.  And I understood.  It didn't matter when peach season was.  Because, um, these weren't fresh peaches.  If this photo looks like canned peaches, a thick cream filling, and light orange fluffy whipped topping, that is exactly what it was.  The crust was the same as the other cream pies, a decent enough simple pale blonde crust.  The cream layer was nicely set, thick, but pretty flavorless.  The canned peaches were ... um, canned peaches?  Sorta soft, some goo around them, and just not fresh tasting.  The lofty light orange whipped cream was remarkably fluffy, very light, but tasted extremely fake, more akin to "whipped dairy-adjacent topping" than whipped cream, in the direction of Cool Whip that had been extra whipped up.  It had mild peach flavor ... I think?

So overall, this did feel a bit like someone took a pre-baked pie shell, added canned peaches, some pudding from a container, and generic non-dairy sweet topping, and made a pie in <2 minutes flat (ok, maybe a little longer given the piping skills), but it certainly didn't taste fresh baked, homemade, or made with quality ingredients.  If you go into it wanting and expecting that, it is perfectly fine, but I was really hoping for actual fresh peaches.  Low ***, as it wasn't bad exactly, just, not very good.

Original Review, June 2015

I haven't actually visited any Nation's restaurants, but I got to try a pie when a co-worker brought one in.

Boysenberry Pie.  $9.95.

If you've read my posts about blackberries, and in particular, blackberry pie, you might know where this review is going.  I hate seeds.  And boysenberries have seeds.

But there was much more wrong with this pie than just my non-liking of seeds.

The filling reminded me of ... goo.  It sorta seemed like they just took a jar of jam and put it inside a pie.  It was sweet and well, gooey.  And, of course, loaded with seeds since it was boysenberry.  I really did not like the filling.

But the filling is only one component of a pie.  Even if a filling isn't good, I am more than happy to just devour crust, and this was a double crust pie.  As a crust lover, this made me excited.  Twice the goodness!

Except, the crust was really dry.  It wasn't decadently buttery, but rather oily instead.  I normally steal extra crust from others, and in this case, I didn't even want all of my own crust.

So I didn't enjoy a single thing about this pie. *. $9.95 for a whole fresh pie is a good price though.

Restauracja Kogel Mogel, Krakow

I was excited when I found out that one of our business dinners was taking place at Restauracja Kogel Mogel, while we were in Krakow.  They had Michelin star at one point, and reviews looked good.

"Fine-dining restaurant with stylish decor presenting refined takes on classic Polish cuisine."

The setting was nice - a rustic building, filled with many different rooms, so it felt fairly private.  The menu was, well, Polish.  

This will be a quick review since I didn't have time during my business trip to write this up or even take notes.  But, the summary is easy: do not recommend.  Very average, if that. 

Service was slow.  Our server upsold every guest on something, somewhat forcefully pushing people to order entree size salads instead of side salads as starters, doubling up orders of shared dishes, etc. The food was all under-seasoned.  Overall, fairly bland, boring food really.  We ordered a large swath of the menu, as every person got an individual starter, and an individual main, AND about 7 other dishes (for a group of 10) that our server pushed on us, so 27 dishes + bread.  We left before dessert, as no one was inspired to try more (even though I liked the sounds of their dessert menu, I had no faith, and knew it would add another hour or so to our already drawn out dining experience ... so I stopped elsewhere on my way back to the hotel to satisfy my sweet tooth).

Asparagus. PLN 52.

"Asparagus, Hollandaise sauce, Bursztyn cheese, cherry tomatoes, truffle oil."

To start, a seasonal offering: asparagus!

I love fresh asparagus.  I love Hollandaise.  I like truffle.  This ...  just fell flat. The asparagus didn't taste fresh and vibrant, it just was there.  The Hollandaise lacked depth and acidity.  It all badly needed seasoning; salt and pepper would go a long way here.  I tasted absolutely zero truffle oil. 

This dish really seemed like someone forgot the final finishing steps of seasoning and drizzling with truffle oil.  Sadness, as these are all things that should have been good.  It also was served cold, which maybe was expected?  **.

Goose Liver Pate. PLN 64.

"Goose liver pâté, wine gel, port jelly, Maldon salt, caramelized brioche."

And then, liver!  Yes!   But ...

Meh.

The caramelized brioche was actually interesting, lightly caramelized, fluffy brioche. ***+.

But the rest again fell flat.  The pate itself was very liver forward, which is good, but it lacked needed salt (despite being a listed ingredient), and there wasn't any on the table.  Very one dimensional.  **.

The wine gel and the port jelly didn't have enough sweetness to really accent the strong liver, and the gel texture was a bit off putting.  **.

The crumble, which I'm not sure what it was, was good.  ***.

Overall, just not very good, particularly compared to the great one we had the night before at Padre.  **+.

Dumplings.  PLN 54.

"Dumplings with white cheese and potatoes, fried onion."

I didn't actually have the vegetarian cheese dumplings pictured here, but rather tried the veal filled ones in mushroom cream sauce (sorry, no photo).  The wrapper was thick and too doughy, the filling just dense.  Cream sauce was ok.  **+.

Bread and Butter.  PLN 16.

The bread arrived after the starters.  Additional fee for bread, which wasn't mentioned when the server suggested we get several for the table.

There were two kinds of bread. I didn't have.

Halibut. PLN 82.

"Halibut fillet, butter sauce, green asparagus, dill olive oil."

Halibut! More asparagus!  Again, things I really generally love.

This ... was another letdown.  Again, lacking any and all seasoning, and none available for me to fix it.

The asparagus was worse than in the salad, as this was over cooked, and flavorless, and greasy.  I didn't taste dill oil, although there was a tiny drizzle of something green and oily.  I don't even like sunddried tomatoes, but found those bits to be the best elements of the dish, as they actually had flavor.  * vegetables.

The halibut itself was cooked ok, but kinda airplane food quality, just poached I think?  Bo-ring.  No crispy skin or redeeming element.  **.

And then, the butter sauce, which truly seemed to be just that.  Butter sauce.  No lemon for acidity, no seasoning, just, butter.  It made the dish strangely rich.  *.

Overall, it honestly tasted like an airplane meal.  Such a letdown.  *.

The vegetarians who got the only vegetarian main dish, stuffed cabbage, were not pleased with theirs either.  Both said it just simply was not good.

Slow Cooked Beef. PLN 86.

"Slow-cooked beef, parsnip purée, wine sauce."

I didn't try this, but the person who got it enjoyed.

Others got a pork chop that seemed to fare better as well.

Helvetic Airways, WAW-ZRH, Business Class

Flight Details:

• Flight: LX 1343
• Class: Business
• Origin: Warsaw, Warsaw Frederic Chopin (WAW)
• Departing: Friday 17 May 2024 at 9:35AM
• Destination: Zurich, Zurich Airport (ZRH)
• Arriving: Friday 17 May 2024 at 11:35AM

Our inbound aircraft was delayed getting in, but wow, they got people off fast, and turned the plane around in <10 minutes. I was honestly stunned by how fast they got it ready for boarding.  Taxi time was essentially zero, no line for takeoff, runway super close to the gate, made up time in the air, so we didn't arrive all that late (although the connection was still stressful because boarder control lines were crazy long and slow).

Anyway.  No wifi, no power outlets besides USB-A.  Modern enough cabin, layout is 2-2, but with one seat blocked every row in Business, which was quite nice, better than the standard 3-3 with just the middle blocked.  My ears seriously popped both going up and down.  But otherwise, smooth enough flight.

"Breakfast".

Trays were distributed pretty quickly once underway.  "Breakfast?", was the question asked, no choices.  I asked what it was, and the flight attendant told me it was vegetarian.  No further details. It was an adventure through some very random, but relatively tasty items.

Drinks were served from the same cart.  I had my own coffee from the airport, and sparkling water to finish, so I didn't get anything.

Croissant.

After the meal trays were distributed, a basket came by with a choice of bread: brown, white, or croissant.  We were offered butter or several kinds of marmalade. 

I went for the croissant.  It was not warm.  It was clearly not very fresh.  Not flaky.  Generic airline croissant, a poor choice on my part.  I didn't want it. *+.

Vegetarian Adventure.

The main dish was this platter.  I call it an adventure, because, wow, it was.

There was a small grain salad.  A blob on top.  A more mousse-like blob in the middle.  Poached pears.  Radish slices.  Nut crumble.  It was an odd assortment, I don't know what much of it was, but, um, I liked it?  Fairly tasty, and just kinda interesting.  

First up, the small scoop of grains.  They were super flavorful, creamy almost, well cooked with nice texture.  Great level of garlic.  My favorite component.  Somewhat reminded me of the Mendocino Farms cous cous salad that I love.  I wish the scoop was bigger! (And also, this is kinda strange for breakfast ...).  ****.

Next, the blob on top.  Some kind of flavorful, savory aioli.  Didn't seem yogurt based, likely mayo.  It was good, but I wasn't sure what to do with it.  The grains were already creamy, and it didn't seem quite right to just sit there eating aioli by the spoonful.  Good, but, out of place to me.  ***.

The blob in the middle was a mousse I think.  More well set than the blob on top.  Slight cheese flavor?  Lightly savory.  It was fine.  ***.

The poached pears were also fine.  They went well with the mousse blob.  Soft but not mushy, decent flavor.  ***.  The slices of radish just confused me.

And finally, the almond crumble.  This was delicious, provided excellent crunch, and went well with the grains, and the mousse/pears.  ****.

So, overall, pretty enjoyable, not really what I think of as breakfast, and mostly unknown.

Muesli (watermelon?!).

I *love* bircher muesli.  I was so excited when I realized the little pot was bircher.  The pink color made me think it was likely berry infused?  The garnish looked a bit like strawberries, just very ripe one.

I took one bite, and sorta panicked.  Ok, the muesli was actually really awful - complete mush - but the real issue is that I tasted something distinct, that I haven't had in my mouth in a very, very long time.  MELON.  Zomg.  I'm extremely allergic to watermelon, pretty badly allergic to most melons, and absolutely did NOT expect melon in the muesli.  ZOMG.  I spit it out, I washed my mouth out, I tried to calm myself, but, I was pretty terrified.  I had two epi pens with me, but, being on a late flight, with a short connection, and the melon was truly terrifying.  0 stars all around, but it was total mush anyway and not good regardless.