Burger and fries

Eastside Road, December 2, 2012—

AFTER LOOKING AT all that meat, I said joking in bad taste to the company, I'm hungry for a hamburger. We'd just seen the movie Lincoln — an impressive movie, I think; I hope our president watches it — and our guest suggested the joint right next door. It didn't look too promising to me, but I know, like Lincoln, when to keep my mind. (And when to speak it, some will add.)

So here it is, the classic American burger and fries. The beef wasn't bad. The patty was thick and the "mayonnaise" copious, giving a man with a beard a problem. Tomato, raw onion, lettuce; dill pickle on the side.

The fries, as you see, crinkle-cut, never a good idea in my opinion as the crinkles sop up too much of the cooking fat, but the potatoes were organic, so they were healthful.

red wine, "Más," what we used to call Dago red, fifty years ago. Unobjectionable.

• East West Café, 557 Summerfield Road, Santa Rosa, California; 707-546-6142