I noticed this place had a “Grand Opening” sign out front when I whizzed past it on the Bathurst streetcar last nite, and since I happened to be in the area again today, I decided to stop in and check it out.  Located right next door to the CB2 furniture store that used to be The Big Bop, The Burger Press occupies a small storefront in a larger industrial building.  Believe me when I say it’s pretty small.  The restaurant’s seating capacity is a whopping four people, although you could fit a couple more onto the bench out front.  And I gotta say, the decor is pretty classy, as well.  Basically, they took a buncha snotty bumper stickers and put ‘em up on the white walls.  The one up top here is my favourite:

While it’s only a one-man operation behind the counter, that dude’s definitely got a good thing going.  Y’see, what makes this place unique is that instead of pre-formed burgers, they have containers of ground beef behind the counter, with interesting components pressed into the meat.  For instance, I went with the El Press-idente, which had a nice kick from the jalapeno and habanero peppers mixed in.  Basically, you decide what size you want your burger to be (minimum 4 ounces), and they grab a slab of beef, weigh it, then press it into a patty with some fancy machine.  You then choose your toppings once it comes off the grill (I went with the standard lettuce/tomato/onions/pickles as well as some salsa and banana peppers for a little more heat), while all burgers come with a side of oven-fresh potato wedges and some tzatziki dipping sauce.  The end result looks something like this:

While I was impressed by their small-scale meaty magic, one has to wonder if such an establishment can succeed with all the gourmet burgers being served in this city (case in point: Burger Week).  Also, while that location would’ve been pretty hot about five years ago, it’s no longer the hippest part of town; there’s no denying that being next to a furniture store as opposed to a massive concert hall cuts down on the potential late-nite crowd.  That said, I wish them well.  While I went with a mere six-ounce burger this time around, I’m inclined to see how much beef they can pound into a patty for me next time.  Though if I do opt for a 20-ounce Frankenburger (they charge by the oz, BTW), I’ll hafta make sure not to make it a Press-idente.  That wouldn’t feel so good the next morning, if ya know what I mean…