Burger Friday: Yes, a Beef Wellington-style burger, in Stillwater

The burger: The Beef Wellington burger at Revé Bistro & Bar more than lives up to its name.

While it's not a carbon copy of the classic dish -- beef fillet covered in foie gras or duxelles and wrapped in golden pastry -- it certainly hits many of the right high points while simultaneously remaining fluent in burger-speak.

Beef Wellington has long been a favorite dish of chef Mike Willenbring. When the seventh-annual Best Burger in the Valley competition rolled around earlier this year (Revé took the 2012 crown), Willenbring decided to make his entry really stand out. After a bit of tinkering, the Beef Wellington burger made its debut.

It's too late to participate in the contest, which ended yesterday (the winner will be announced later this month), but there's no deadline for enjoying Willenbring's creation; he's decided to keep it on the menu, post-challenge. Phew. This offbeat burger is one that's definitely worth checking out.

It starts with a 80/20 blend (that's 80 percent lean ground beef and 20 percent beef fat) that Willenbring liberally seasons with garlic, brown sugar and salt and pepper, then forms into noticeably thick patties. Each patty gets wrapped in three layers: provolone, prosciutto and a commercially prepared puff pastry. Then it goes into the oven.

"Because the chef bakes them, your burgers are going to take about 20 minutes," cautioned our server. No problem. Her calculation was right on the money: we were eating 22 minutes later.

"The amount of time it takes for the puff pastry to bake to a deep golden brown is the exact amount of time it takes for the beef to cook through, so it works out really well," said Willenbring. "The puff pastry gets nice and crisp, and the cheese is perfectly melted."

That thin blanket of cheese adds a familiar burger-like ooziness, and the prosciutto suggests a more refined solution to the frequent bacon criss-cross. The flaky, delicate puff pastry creates an entirely different – think ingenious, rather than unpleasant – stand-in for a soft, toasted bun, and while it takes a bit of mental adjustment, the substitution works. Once again, it's puff pastry to the rescue.

"I really like how you can hold it as a burger," said Willenbring. "Or, if you want to be fancy, you can use a fork and knife."

The sole condiment? A side of the same sauce that Willenbring pairs with his Beef Wellington entree.

"I call it 'red wine gravy,'" he said. "It's reduced red wine and beef stock, mixed with a roux." It's also a welcome change to everyday ketchup. Especially in this situation, since pairing ketchup with Beef Wellington – even when it's a Beef Wellington Burger – is like wearing flip flops, cargo shorts and a Hooters t-shirt for a meet-and-greet with the Archbishop of Canterbury.

As novelty burgers go, this one is definitely worth trying. And debating.

Price: $14.

Fries: None, by necessity. "We don't have a deep fryer," said Willenbring. Instead, he serves kettle chips, or, for a $2 surcharge, a wild rice salad.

Movin' on up: After five years in the Grand Garage building on Stillwater's busy Main Street, the restaurant moved up the hill in November 2014 to far roomier digs, converting a former bank building into a series of nicely appointed dining rooms and a bar. There's also a patio, on-site parking (a major plus in popular downtown Stillwater) and a much larger kitchen, elbow room that has allowed Willenbring to similarly expand his menu. Including, naturally, Beef Wellington ($40).

"It has been on the menu ever since we moved," he said.

The Beef Wellington burger is one five burgers on Willenbring's menu (enjoy them with one of the bar's Belgian beers). The next one on my to-do list: the Orchard Burger, topped with smoked Gouda and an apple-cranberry-fennel chutney.