Before you commit to a New Year’s diet of kale and quinoa, you might want to hit up Bred Gourmet between Kendall and Central squares for some of the most sinful – and flavorful – burgers in town. The twist to Bred burgers is that they’re smoked, and the menu boasts Caribbean accents courtesy of owner Tambo Barrow’s West Indies roots. The location marks the second for the burger joint; the mothership that started it all 10 years ago is in Lower Mills Dorchester, part of a Dot-to-Cambridge Caribbean narrative that includes the eatery I wrote about last week: nearby chicken shack Pollo 2Go. Cambridge is blessed by warm winds of the Antilles bringing new flavors to this side of the Charles.
At the base of newly constructed MIT lab space at the tail end of Main Street as it funnels into Lafayette Square, Bred is spacious and spare with clean lines, plenty of cafe tables and a bar. Open for lunch and dinner, it specializes in the smoked burger, but has a “Not Doing Meat” section with jerked salmon, Impossible meat and veggie burger options, as well as a chicken sandwich slate. Burgers can also be done with turkey.
The burgers are inventive and mouthwatering. A broad menu makes it hard to choose. The Maui brings the luau (smoked pork belly, plantains and pineapple) to your bun, Somewhere in Wiscansin (can sin, or will sin?) comes with Badger State cheddar, caramelized onions, pig candy (sweet and crispy bacon), butter and maple bourbon aioli. For even bigger handhelds, the très rich Parisian comes with applewood smoked bacon, a fried egg, caramelized onion, sautéed mushroom, brie and truffle aioli. Challenging one’s hand span is the Monte Carlo, a stack of two smoked patties with more of that smoked pork belly, onion jam, double cheese (cheddar and gouda – yum!) and aioli. They’re monster eats guaranteed to be a messy pleasure.
I tried the Wiscansin with turkey on a brioche bun (the default is a standard potato roll, but you can customize and add to any Bred offering; for me a brioche bun upgrade is a must). It was one of the juiciest and most gloriously gooey turkey burgers I’ve had, and the sweet crispiness of the bacon and touches of butter and Nola-inspired aioli added to the hearty nosh. The Wiscansin comes with fries (sweet potato, Cajun and truffle options), but other fries and other sides are a la carte: Creole slaw, sweet plantains, onion rings and an amazing creamy potato salad with a bit of a mustard bite.
On the chicken sandwich menu, you can get your bird grilled or fried – there’s a classic chicken and waffles dish, an essential Nashville hot and a Kobe that comes with Korean gochujang. I tried grilled versions of the Kodak smoked bacon, lettuce, avocado and tomato with cilantro lime aioli (intriguing in a building formerly owned by Polaroid) and the Rude Bwoy of jerk chicken, habanero pepper sauce, pineapple and barbecue sauce.
Bred serves up Caribbean-themed cocktails as well as beer and wine and, if there’s room for desert, offers Bred (bread) pudding and Orleans-styled beignets. Bred, so named as “born and …” is also open for brunch on Saturday (adding a bacon breakfast sandwich) and offers happy-hour slider deals. Before opening in Cambridge, Bred was featured on “Good Morning America” as one of the best comfort eats in the county. As far as those resolutions go, just double down in the gym.
Bred, 730 Main St., The Port, Cambridge
Cambridge writer Tom Meek’s reviews, essays, short stories and articles have appeared in WBUR’s The ARTery, The Boston Phoenix, The Boston Globe, The Rumpus, The Charleston City Paper and SLAB literary journal. Tom is also a member of the Boston Society of Film Critics and rides his bike everywhere.
This post was updated Jan. 13, 2025, to correct information about sides.
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