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Grilled: 'Famous Fat' Dave Freedenberg

Posted by Adam Kuban, January 16, 2007 at 5:37 PM

Ladies and gentlemen, this installment of Grilled puts in the hot seat one Dave Freedenberg, aka "Famous Fat Dave" aka "The Hungry Cabbie." Mr. Freedenberg recently made the Saveur 100, a yearly list of all sorts of cool food things compiled by Saveur magazine. Mr. Freedenberg is a New York City taxi driver who moonlights as a food tour guide, ferrying his patrons around the city in his cab. His blog, The Hungry Cabbie, details his adventures and food finds. And now, without further ado, let's get Grillin' ... —The Mgmt.

Name: "Famous Fat" Dave Freedenberg
Location: New York City
Occupation: Cab driver, tour guide

How often do you eat burgers?
It depends on what season it is. If it's BBQ season, I eat more burgers than are healthy. In the winter, my consumption drops to maybe one a week, if I'm lucky. I've gone more than a month without eating one, though. Trying times. It was as though a great void was forming in my soul.

American, cheddar, other?
It depends on what else is on it, doesn't it? But I have no preference, really. I like cheese.

Ketchup or mustard?
Both. Or neither. Or only ketchup. Mustard only might be good, but in that case, the mustard has gotta be great.

Sesame-seed or plain?
Either one.

Grilled, griddled, or broiled?
Barbequed, I suppose. So I guess I mean grilled.

And how would you like that done, sir?
If the meat is really good, oh, baby, I like it raw.

Would you do us the favor of describing your perfect burger? (Price and ingredients are no object.)
As you could see, I don't really have a perfect burger. I try to go with the flow wherever I eat. I'm not too into chili burgers, but if I'm at a place where chili burgers are what they do, that's what I get.

The hamburger is a food item with which most Americans have strong childhood associations. Do you remember your earliest encounter with this delicious dish?
I remember my first Big Mac. My mom taught me, "Big Macs are so big, you're gonna wanna put it down between each bite and get a better handle on it for the next bite." [I like how the assumption here is that you'd never put a burger down under normal circumstances. —Ed.]

What's your favorite fast-food burger?
I went out to Los Angeles last year and just returned from a last-minute trip there a few days ago. In-N-Out made me want to stay there. And when I found out you can order it however you want, I went crazy. I had a 4-by-4 animal style. OK, that was a little much. But I love the concept.

What topping or condiment, in your opinion, should never grace a burger?
I had one with beet and pineapple at Ruby's on Mulberry Street, and it was one of the best things I've ever tasted. I didn't see that coming. So I'll never say never again.

What's the most unusual burger you've ever eaten? (Or most unusual burger experience you've had?)
My high school cafeteria served disgusting thin little patties. But occasionally I'd get them because everything else was disgusting as well. The bigger problem was that all the veggies to top it with were nasty. And no one used the ketchup because our classmate Cecilia would stand over the vat and ladle ketchup into her mouth like ice cream. The only thing to put on it was pickles, so I loaded up with those until it just tasted like a pickle sandwich. It actually wasn't half bad. I still do that every once in while when I've got a bad burger and plenty of pickles around.

What's the most overrated burger you've tried? Most underrated?
Most overrated was Jack in the Box. Granted, I was super hyped about it, so it was unlikely to live up to my expectations. I still haven't tried the Burger Joint for that reason (that and there's no parking in Midtown while they're open). I'll go with that Ruby's pinapple and beetroot burger for most underrated. Although it came highly recommended by Aussies, most other people seem to have missed it.

For some crazy reason, you're going vegetarian. Where do you go for your final burger?
I get two burgers at Corner Bistro. One Bistro Burger rare with pickles, tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, ketchup, and bacon. For the second one, I just get a plain, rare burger with nothing but the bun. I take it to the park across the street. I eat it slowly and then shoot myself.

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BURGER JOINTS REFERENCED
In-N-Out Burger: Various locations in California, New Mexico, and Arizona; in-n-out.com
Ruby's: 219 Mulberry Street, New York NY 10012; rubyscafe.us
Jack in the Box: Various locations; mostly in the West and Southwest; jackinthebox.com
Burger Joint: 118 West 57th Street, New York NY 10019 (in the lobby of the Parker Meridien hotel)
Corner Bistro: 331 West 4th Street, New York City 10014; cornerbistro.citysearch.com

FURTHER READING
Mr. Freedenberg blogs: The Hungry Cabbie
Mr. Freedenberg is a food tour guide: Famous Fat Dave's Five Borough Eating Tour on the Wheels of Steel
Mr. Freedenberg blogs some more: The Hungry Cabby Eats the Outer Boroughs [Gothamist]
Famous Fat Dave on his favorite burgers in the New York City area [AHT Archives]
Other Grilled interviews [AHT Archives]

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