A note from the editor: The following is an original review from the "Casper Food Critic." The purpose of this review is to offer a single consumer's opinion about an establishment's food and service. At K2 Radio, we believe anonymity to be of paramount importance - this is to ensure that the Casper Food Critic receives the same quality food and service as any other customer. We encourage you, the reader, to join the conversation and leave your own reviews in the comment section at the bottom of the page.


What could I do? As a red blooded American, how could I turn down the allure of a restaurant that specialized in burgers? My buddies and I watched with eyes agape as we drove by the new Wyoming Burger Company and their big sign. We counted down the days until we could munch some excellent Wyoming beef. Little did we know, we would end up longing for the heavily processed meat of even the crappiest fast food dive.

Arriving at the eatery, we found parking easy, if you drive a sub-compact shoebox. This is Wyoming, home of the fuel guzzling 4 wheel drive V8. I can’t ding them too much for this as it is a trend in parking lot design, but it still put me off.

Walking through the door of the historic building, we were greeted with a hodgepodge of cliché western décor and pseudo modern remnants from the former tenant. Hay bales thrown in the corner, random rodeo photos collaged onto the walls while being framed by cheap ropes. It was something that would appeal to only the most touristy of tourists.

A dimly lit food display was our hostess as we waited for a table. Finally, a nice young feller showed up and led us to our seats. Menus in hand, we vowed not to dismiss the building too early and focus on the food. Our hopes were quickly dashed as we saw the confusing and disappointing menu. It was a visual cacophony of underwhelming options and scattered text.

The menu boasts rather exotic beef, mostly from Wyoming sources. You can pick any style of beef in either their specialty burgers or in a “make your own” compilation. Looking at the specialty burgers however, I found the disclaimer of “no changes or substitutions”. How odd in the service industry. I cannot change any aspect of MY burger? The waitress confirmed the writing, the specialty burgers are of a fixed design.

Creating our own burger, we were shocked to learn that we could not get a traditional bun. Our only choice was either a buttered or a yeast roll thingy. Our hopes of the good ol’ American hamburger were quickly vanishing. Also, as a word of warning, the specialty burgers come with fries but the others do not. Again, this is not spelled out on the menu and was only found out after asking the waitress. Assume nothing with this menu and read the fine print as if it were a contract. Meals were ordered and drinks requested.

I drink water most of the time but my followers usually opt for soda. We were both shocked when the waitress brought my lunch mate’s drink, in a can. It seems that, if I am paying for a $13 burger, they would at least have a fountain to fill my drinks. At very least, maybe fill my glass in the back of the house and throw the can away before bringing my drink out. We tried to attribute this to it being a new restaurant, but it still rubbed us wrong. My water was as I expected, wet. It was however brought out in an odd vessel that may have once been a wine bottle. This slender necked glass container was dirty on the inside. I could see chunks of something stuck to the lining of the bottle every time I poured myself a drink.

With the order to the kitchen attaining all of the speed of a rigor mortise tortoise, I looked around further. We noticed a mostly empty restaurant. Some tables had table cloths, some did not. Some walls had abandoned fixtures, some did not. The décor was very busy and almost offensive to this longtime Wyoming resident. It really took the western theme to a new and aggravating level.
After 30 minutes of wait, we FINALLY received our meal. The other two tables of patrons were commenting on the same wait. Seems they were none too pleased. We had to ask for napkins and silverware. We had to ask for refills. The staff hid at the farthest point of the building and only interacted with the customers as a last resort.

First views of the burger were promising. It was a decent sized burger on a functional plate. The accompaniment was the burr in the saddle. A small pile of “fries” were presented to us. They were thin, soggy sticks of what were once potatoes. My friend had ordered a spicy seasoned version while mine were supposed to be sea salted. Both came and were indistinguishable from one another. No spicy, no salt, no flavor.

Our burgers were completely inconsistent. Mine was thin and overcooked while the others were almost an inch thicker and even more overdone. To my complete surprise, they were utterly flavorless; The “bun”, the meat, the dressings, everything. The beef was good. It was there, ready to be made amazing but it was just left to it’s own devices. Even the basics of salt and pepper could have made this beef a force to be reckoned. The bun (or lack thereof) crumbled and cracked after the first bite and made the entire mess fall apart in our hands.

After a poor meal in an optically assaulting restaurant, bills were FINALLY brought to our table. It seemed to take forever as we stared at the half eaten burgers adorning our plates. It was absolutely shocking to us that we could sit for so long, obviously finished with our meal, and not a staff member came to check on us. They seemed too busy behind the counter at the far end of the dining area.

Perhaps with work related tasks, perhaps not.

I looked again at the menu and realized I had seen a portion of it before. It had the web address of Gegis.com. Sure enough, this eatery was a re-branded version of Gegis. This burger joint had the same stuffy feel of it’s patriarch, un willingness to alter menu items and over the top pricing.

Total, we ended up spending $30+ dollars for two flavorless burgers, incorrect and soggy fries, a can of root beer, and some chewy water. The whole meal took around an hour in an eatery which was devoid of customers. I can cut some very small slack due to the fact they had been open for only two weeks, but something tells me a return trip would be no different. Suddenly, the burger seemed less American and more of a sellout than anything. Maybe I can get a good burger in some former Soviet block country?

Because of the above, I give Gegis ERRRRRR . . . . . . I mean Wyoming Burger, a paltry rating of 2/10 soggy fries. I gave a little credit for the beef which was obviously decent. I also credit them for having nice chairs. At least I suffered in comfort. I predict a collapse of this eatery unless they make some drastic changes, soon.

2/10 Rating
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Wyoming Burger Company

1775 W. 1st Street
Casper, WY 82604
(307) 234-9796

The Casper Food Critic is an independent author and is not employed by K2 Radio or Townsquare Media, LLC. The views expressed by the Casper Food Critic do not reflect those of K2 Radio or Townsquare Media, LLC.

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