Westchester Burger Company Adds Rockland County Storefront

Grand opening celebration for West Nyack location coming soon

Culinary visionaries Vincent Corso, Michelle Bernal and Angelo Difeo continue their ascent in the world of restaurants as this week Westchester Burger Company officially opened a location in West Nyack, Rockland, marking its fourth location overall and its first outside of namesake Westchester County, NY.

That’s not bad progress for a company that just got its start in 2010. The Westchester Burger Company opened in White Plains that  year and one year later expanded to a second location in Rye Brook and six months after that a third in Mount Kisco. Now a  year or so later number four.

It’s all part of a plan, said Corso, to turn the Westchester Burger Company concept into a regional or even national chain. “We see this as the next Cheesecake Factory, as far as being a popular quality restaurant chain,” said Corso, a co-owner of the company.

So what has allowed this restaurant to defy the odds presented by a slow economy and become an old-fashioned American success story? Corso said the key is the customer-first attitude of staff and management. “It comes down to customer service. Catering to customers is first and foremost,” Corso said, noting, “It’s family-oriented.”

Okay, great food and presentation doesn’t hurt either. The ribs, burgers, salad, pastas, seafood are all accurately advertised as “quality dining at a reasonable price.”

Angelo Difeo oversees the kitchen operations of the restaurant, while Bernal is the expert “mixologist” who manages the bars. There’s plenty of room for mixing, the bar runs 20 chairs deep.

Some of the entrees have impressive presentations, such as the burgers, which as you’d expect by the name of the Company, have a special focus here. You can see the menu for yourself at  http://www.westchesterburger.com/tag/menu/, but for a sense of what’s offered, take these four examples:

1) The Tex-Mex Burger features an 8 oz. patty with guacamole, salsa, pickled onion quesco fresco and tortillas crunchified on a brioche bun.

2) The Firehouse Burger features a 10 oz. patty with chili, cheddar cheese and crispy onion rings on a brioche bun, served with sesame soy, wasabi mashed potato.

3) The Pretzel Burger features a 8 oz. patty with mild cheddar, maple bacon and fried egg on a pretzel bun.

4) The Original WBC features a 10 oz. patty with smoked mozzarella, beefsteak tomato, pickles, frisee and WBC sauce brioche.

Corso said he loved the location in West Nyack, which sits just across the Palisades Mall all on Route 303. When asked, he confirmed he’s aware that a prior restaurant, Fiesta Sunrise, had a moment of infamy at the same location. That restaurant’s owner “Vic” made the mistake of inviting Gordon Ramsey to his kitchen and the celebrity chef found the place a total wreck and proceeded to make Vic look dumber than Jim Carrey in “Dumb and Dumber.”

Corso said his crew has totally rebuilt and rearranged the restaurant since those days and he welcomes all of Rockland County and neighboring Bergen to stop and experience it for themselves. Gordon Ramsey will not be needed.

A grand opening celebration will be held soon, he noted.