The Beef, In Reference to The Art of War

Amidst all the hamburger joints in Manila vying to be one of the best by creating crazy and mind blowing burger concoctions, The Beef at Hole In The Wall dived into the battle field armed with one zen-like philosophy that goes against the tide; Unclutter the Hamburger. 

While everyone is stacking up their burgers to outrageous proportion, The Beef has ditched all the notion to become just a mere eye candy with high possibility rate of falling short. Instead, its stratagem focuses on the strength of its core - the beef.

"So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong, and strike at what is weak." - Sun Tzu, The Art of War. 

The Beef could have been just another burger joint, yes. But the thrilling part here is that this one is playing on its opponents' blind spot - and they are so goddamn good at it they are actually winning.

Everyone is all gungho in strengthening its stance by creating a sometimes circus-like stack of burgers to lure people into thinking that the more outrageous, the better. And I have nothing against that, really. As a matter of fact, there are some creations in which to this day I stand as a fan (I am looking at you and you and you.)

But at the end of the day, when I am hankering for a really good and downright comforting burger, that is because I want to savor the true taste of beef against delicious bread and all the other humble things in between meant to compliment the meat and not to overshadow it. 

"There are not more than five cardinal tastes, yet combinations of them yield more flavours than can ever be tasted." - Sun Tzu, The Art of War

That is how The Beef is upping its game. No frills and no fancy toppings which resulted into one of the best one could ever taste. The Beef allows the flavor of the meat to shine - a feat more often than not neglected when one focuses on elaborate toppings instead of sticking to the basic.

The anatomy of the hamburger at The Beef is basically made up of freshly ground beef seasoned with just salt and pepper - grilled to diners' liking, lettuce, onion, tomato, and cheese if one opted for it. These things are sandwiched in between warm and soft buttery brioche buns or it can be requested that the veggies may be served on the side.

One can also thrown in a side order of fries if so desired. Condiments such as ketchup, mustard, and mayo are readily available near the counter, but trust me, the burger can do without these stuff. Remember, the beef got the spotlight.

“The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.” - Sun Tzu, The Art of War

So I must say that whether it is a tactic or just plain business decision, sticking to the basic and being so freaking good at it while everyone else is trying to shake the earth in its axis with the food combination they could all muster to combine with their burgers, is a good call. 

It is not playing safe, it is the art of war. In my book, they are winning.

The Beef
Hole In The Wall
4/F Century City mall
Kalayaan Ave., Makati City
Contact No 631-5961