Special Burger Review: Peters' Drive-In

Photo by/Mark Avila

Date Visited: June 22, 2020
Location: Edmonton, AB
BurgerTours Rating: 9.5/10

Taste	Messiness	Price	Venue	Pluses
Excellent	Clean	$11-$15	Restaurant	Veggie

Website

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Mark's Review

I’m back in Edmonton once again for another special burger tour!

Seeing that we are still in the middle of a pandemic, some places in Canada have started to lift restrictions on social gatherings. Alberta is one of few Provinces where COVID cases have trended downward, so it was perfect timing that malls and restaurants began to open prior to my visit.

Photo by Mark Avila

Now that “life” has somewhat returned to normal in Edmonton, I was curious to see how the dining experience would be like where social distancing has become the new norm in public spaces. After searching from one burger joint to another, it was actually pretty easy to find a spot where dining in was available. But, once I had made a choice of where to go… I came across Peters` Drive In. Reading about its popularity within the Alberta burger scene, I knew I had to experience the hype for myself. Peters` is one of the few restaurants not permitting dine in or walk in orders due to their health and safety policies, so the only choice was to as the name suggests… drive in!

Their slogan is “the drive in you can’t drive by”, which I found to be true. You definitely can’t miss the line up of cars sitting on Calgary Trail just to get into the parking lot. I’ve read people waiting in line up to 4 hours for a burger, but luckily I came in the late afternoon and waited under an hour.

This location in south Edmonton opened in May 2020, and is the newest addition to their chain of three restaurants. The other two are based out in Red Deer, and Calgary where the first Peters` Drive In opened in 1962.

I was genuinely excited to try this place.. mainly for their commitment to "realness" They claim to serve burgers from real grade A Canadian Beef, special sauces made daily, and milkshakes made with real ice cream and real fruit. Gus Pieters, the man who started it all, established his restaurants to buying the best ingredients, providing the highest level of customer service, and offering a clean and welcoming environment for its guests.

My first impressions of seeing the restaurant… the blue and white exterior, and logo made it look like a car dealership, Ford in particular, which I found rather amusing. Looking at the menu online there weren’t much options for burgers. You could only select from the basic cheese and veggie burgers with the options of single, double, and triple stacks. They also offered hot dogs, poutines, ice cream, sundaes, and milkshakes.

I opted for the Double Cheeseburger - a double beef patty topped with cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, mayo, and Peters` special sauce. On the side I had onion rings and a mango milkshake.

The Double Cheeseburger/Photo by Mark Avila

Peters` Drive In is also known for their Milkshakes with over 4,500 different flavour combinations to choose from.

Taking that first bite… it was an explosion of flavour! The patties were nicely cooked and juicy, but the highlight of it all was the special sauce. It was smoky, sweet, and savoury. Three flavour combinations that I’m not a huge fan of, but it worked all together in this masterpiece of a burger! They serve a generous offering of onion rings, golden brown and crispy. The mango milkshake was probably one of the best I’ve had in a long time. Knowing they used real mango made this more enjoyable for my tastebuds.

(already craving a milkshake as I’m typing this…)

Peters` Drive In certainly lived up to the hype. This is probably a rare burger joint that claims to serve “good food” that’s fresh, and actually delivers with tasty and well made burgers. In addition, the service was also commendable. My drive thru experience was quick, efficient, and no hassle waiting for my order. It’s nice to see a restaurant with a systematic approach to food preparation, despite having just opened with staff that were recently trained. Overall, this is probably my favourite burger joint so far. Peters` will definitely be my go to place whenever I’m in the Edmonton or Calgary area, and craving a good burger.

9.5/10