The Counter, a LA-based “build your own burger” chain which opened a decade ago, now has more than 35 locations around the world, and Clifton, NJ is one of them.
In my opinion, nothing goes better with a burger than a really good beer and that’s my favorite thing about The Counter. It has a full liquor license offering local craft beers. They also have domestic and draft beers, cocktails, wine and the adult shakes — ice cream shakes with added shots of liqueur, like  the Dulce de Leche, which is a vanilla shake and Baileys caramel Irish cream.
The Counter says it’s mission is “to challenge the way people think about burgers.” It offers dozens of ways to invent, or “build” your own burger. You get a checklist and a pencil and choose everything from the type of meat (hormone & antibiotic free beef, ground turkey, vegan veggie, chicken breast, organic bison, or Ahi tuna) to the type of bun, cheese, sauce, and toppings (traditional choice like dill pickle chips to the more inventive crushed peanuts or quinoa topping).
Of course, if you don’t want to fill out a checklist, you can choose from a list of “Expert Builds” and just order a damn burger.
Either way, you’ll be paying at the minimum $10 for a burger, and it can go up to $18 – $20 depending on your choices. Fries and other sides will cost you $3 and up.
The Counter also offers many starters, salads, sandwiches and “Burgers in a Bowl,” which is basically a salad with the ground of meat of your choice.
What we tried and liked:
My husband and I both chose to build our own burger, which is nice if you really want to personalize your meal. I went with a 1/3 beef patty on a brioche bun, with mixed greens, dill pickle slices, grilled red onions, tomatoes, Tillamook cheddar and ketchup. My husband chose the beef, brioche bun, bacon and BBQ sauce. We both agreed the burgers were good. The smallest offering, the 1/3 lb was plenty — a good size for a meal. Brioche buns were awesome and my husband loved the bacon.
The Brooklyn Blast beer I ordered paired nicely with my traditional burger.
The kids loved the mini cheeseburgers, which came with shoestring french fried. The fries were so good, we kept stealing them. They washed their meals down with the homemade lemonade, which was freshly squeezed with just the right amount of pulp and lightly sweetened.
Verdict:
The nice decor, craft beer and full liquor license, and so many offerings make The Counter a welcome addition to burger joints in the area.
 The Counter, 374 Route 3 West, Clifton, NJ
It’s in the space where the Caribbean chicken joint was. I liked that place and was sorry it couldn’t make a go of it. Lately it seems like you can’t throw a rock without hitting a specialty burger joint. And in the midst of all this burger hoo-ha one of the best burger places in the region was flattened to make way for a CVS. For what it’s worth: The Cloverleaf on Bloomfield Avenue has a burger that often wins The Best Of Essex award. I guess I’ll schlepp over to Route 3 to see what the noise is about.
Forgot to say that it’s Bloomfield Avenue in Caldwell for a world-class burger (and a craft beer on tap).
my son and i had 2 good experiences here, burgerwise but i ordered the grilled veggie skewers on our second trip and was disappointed. the zucchini and the onion were hard as rocks – i asked them to throw the skewer on the grill for a bit longer as they were undercooked and had to debate for a bit before finally got the waiter to tell the chef and i was promised better cooked veggies. these were not al dente – they just weren’t cooked. 20 minutes later i got another order – still not cooked, i took them to go and finished the cooking at home. not sure what the problem was but they are a burger place so…