Bru Burger Bar – Spiciest Dish in Columbus Series

We’ve been burned before by spicy burgers (figuratively, not physically to this point), but we had heard good things about the Melt Your Face Burger at Bru Burger Bar.

Located in the most northern part of Westerville, Bru Burger Bar turned out to be a much classier place than we expected. The building is split into two levels, with a bar area and high top seating down below with more intimate standard seating up above. For a burger bar, we were surprised by this, but the environment was welcoming and still had a decent slew of televisions for all of your sports desires.

Seated upstairs, we lorded over all the plebs in our burger tower, ready to consume the “best local meats, topped with the freshest ingredients and placed in our freshly baked bun.”

We were with my parents (the father of the farm and the mother of the farm), who opted to split a Memphis BBQ Melt, with “Pulled Pork, White Cheddar, Housemade BBQ, Fried Onion, Southern-Style Slaw” but I neglected to take a picture, so you’ll just have to imagine it.

With 19 “Chef Burgers,” Bru has a burger for everyone, touting a Black Bean burger, gluten-free buns and even the Impossible patties that have been growing in popularity.

As mentioned in the opening, we were tipped off about the “Melt Your Face” burger and scanned the menu to find all of the ingredients that make it a burger worthy of being on the list. It includes “Habanero Hot Sauce, Habanero Jack, Jalapeño, Habanero Whole Grain Mustard, Garden,” which sounds a lot like “you get a side of burger with your habanero.” Off to a good start.

Behold! A burger.

From the top, it’s hard to tell if there is any spicy goodness lurking below, but check out that bun. Great color, looks a little flaky on the edges, but perfect for smushing if that’s your thing. Two pickles for good measure, a heap of fries (that needed some salt) and what we believe to be homemade ketchup with a tiny kick. Seeing the full spread, we kicked it into Super Troopers mode, yelled “enhance” for the three people around us to get uncomfortable and removed the top bun.

The spicy underbelly of the burger-y beast…

A lot to take in here, but you can start to see the spiciness. In the top left you can catch a glimpse of the habanero whole grain mustard and see some of the pepper flakes in the habanero jack cheese. The mustard and sauce were both spread nicely on not just the top bun but the bottom as well for full burger coverage.

Having thoroughly inspected the burger we dove in. First bite, the bun and burger were the stars. The soft warm bun was as good as it looked and the burger was well cooked and seasoned. Looking in, I noticed something that surprised me. I order all burgers medium-rare with the intention of getting it medium, but Bru nailed it. A solid medium-rare cook with some pink inside, I nodded in approval as I continued.

Getting into the habaneros and the jalapeños toward the middle of the burger, my mouth began to get warm. The spiciness was hitting me and, to my surprise was sticking around. Habanero jack cheese is an awesome combo and the perfect heat to tag along with this burger. With the linger continuing, the habanero mustard started to kick in as well, giving me some spicy tang to think about, while my cheeks started to flush. Coming down the home stretch, I could taste all of the spicy ingredients separately, but together (if that makes sense). The flavors overall come together extremely well in this burger and the burger itself was gone sooner than I had hoped. The habanero was an excellent level of overall warmth, while not tasting overly peppery.

Having completed the burger, the habanero lingered in my mouth while I worked through my fries, the whole time wishing I had some of the habanero mustard. While it’s not the spiciest dish in Columbus, this is spiciest burger we’ve had so far. Comparing sandwiches, we’d say it’s probably in-between the Hot and Holy from Hot Chicken Takeover. As such, we’re placing it close to the 4x Holy we at from HCT a while back, slapping it at #16, just below the GOGi Spicy Chicken Stir Fry and the Meshikou Spicy Mala Ramen.

It’s a bit of a hike for some, but if you’re ever looking for a burger place fit for a date night or want a spot that cooks your burger properly Bru is definitely a good choice. We’ll probably head back any time we’re in the Polaris area.

You can find Bru at 691 North Cleveland Avenue, Westerville 43082.

Look below for more in our spiciest dish in Columbus series and hit us up if you have any suggestions that are not already on our list!

You can find us on Facebook, Instagram or contact us via our contact page.

More From Our Quest To Find The Spiciest Dish