What you are looking at, ladies and gents, is what we at A Hamburger Today are calling the Hamburger Fatty Melt. Lemme give you the smack on this meat stack. From top to bottom:
Grilled cheese sandwich as bun top
Four-ounce beef patty
Grilled cheese sandwich as bottom bun
Got that? It's a burger with two grilled cheese sandwiches as its bun.
I wish our R&D department here at AHT HQ could claim this as the product of our grease-addled minds, but we're only following through on a burger we heard about via Serious Eats community member Theadob, who mentioned the "Chubby Melt" at the Mossy Creek Cafe in Fisherville, Virginia (burger between two grilled cheese sandwiches, smothered with sautéed onions and mushrooms and topped with Thousand Island dressing).
I vowed to recreate one of my own, but with some tweaks. I thought Mossy Creek pretty much had it right until it ladled on the toppings. Something as glorious as a burger with TWO GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES AS ITS BUN needs little else adorning it.
So stop what you're doing right now and go out and get the following ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
Pepperidge Farm Very Thin white bread
Kraft Deli Deluxe American cheese slices—yellow, not white, fool!
Ok, now this is something! Where's Elvis, he'd be all over this thing ... Is the tomato slice supposed to add a "healthy kick"? I'm not so sure about the white pread though. This almost cries out for four slices of thick Texas toast.
Ya' know, there's gotta be a way to deep-fry this beasty ...
We're still reeling from our love affair with the burger at The Dressing Room in Westport, Connecticut, but oh, my, that double grilled cheese idea is fine. We agree with Shale, though, about the addition of a few slices of bacon, and maybe some grilled onion . . .
I really really really really want to make one like Robyn is telling me to do. But the only bread I have in the house is sliced too thick to use 2 slices on each side.
i was at this bar called the Vortex in Atlanta, GA...and they had this burger on the menu...unreal......they served it tators tots...awesome
DOUBLE BYPASS BURGER
Our big sirloin patty topped with a fried egg, three
slices of American cheese, four slices of bacon, and
a big fat side of mayo with two grilled
cheese sandwiches replacing the buns
This is why I love AHT! A group of my friends/coworkers have been talking about trying this at our work cafeteria. Thank you for your dedication to all things burgery.
i like hamburgers, love cheeseburgers, and grilled cheese is my desert island food... but i don't know if this appeals to me very much. too much of a good thing? i'd try it once, though.
Again, in the abstract, I love the bacon idea, although I'd put it in the grilled cheese sandwiches. You'd have to make sure the bread was spread with mayo prior to the frying as well. ;D
Also, I'd want some really crispy fries with that. hehehe
@PhotoKirk, all we gotta do is put the whole of it into a sheep's stomach, snug it up around the burger before tying it off, and into the deep-fryer it goes!
yeah...one grilled cheese with the bacon, the other one with the tomato, then a fried egg on the burger with some dark mustard and crunchy lettuce. i'd flatten out the burger a bit though and try to square it up for maximum coverage. (this is like food porn-ha.)
Great find and so decadent!!! I'd have to substitute swiss cheese - the only one that makes a burger perfection. The perfect toppings are mushrooms, carmelized (or raw) onions, bacon, tomato and lettuce. Remember, if you add lettuce, you can call it a salad. ;-D
I think I may have learned that from Paula Deen???
@foodinmouth, @ESNY: Obvs you didn't click thru and read the recipe, where we give putting tomato INSIDE the grilled cheeses as an option. In fact, we did do that with the final sandwich we made.
Actually the Waverly Diner on 6th & Waverly in the Village has an awesome patty melt delux! Always use Rye!!
A cheddar patty melt on rye!!! YUM!!!
Actually come to think of it I miss McD's Cheddar Melt!!! It was just so good while it lasted... That was back in the days when McD's had real hamburgers...
Are we sure Paula Deen didn't invent this recipie though? It reminds me of her burger with donuts as the bun. That's right, if you haven't seen that episode you've missed out on pure Americana: Paula and her friend smashin an all beef pattie between two donuts fresh from the fryer.
This sounds tasty. It's fun and is actually a recursive sandwich, since it's made of other sandwiches.
It looks yummy, but I'm worried that there would be too much bread and meat flavor. Maybe it's worth adding mushrooms and bacon to the grilled cheeses? I bet it also solves the filing creep of ingredients sliding off the burger meat!
This is impressive & makes me think of the infamous Quesadurrito.
You can find this at Pedro's Tacos, a small taco shop in San Clemente, California.
The Quesadurrito is, of course, a delicious burrito filled with carne asada, beans, rice, cheese, fresh salsa & guacamole. The burrito is wrapped not in a simple tortilla but in a grilled Quesadilla.
The obvious answer to the tomato and bacon sliding around problem is just to use more cheese. Yes, PUT MORE CHEESE BETWEEN THE GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES. It can't really be that much more bad at this point. Toss some onion rings in there too.
This is also done at The Vortex in Atlanta, its called the Double Coronary Bypass(sp?). its an 8oz burger with lettuce, tomato, mayo, red onion, fried egg and bacon in between the two grilled cheeses. If anyone from AHT would ever come down to ATL to check out the burger scene...they would know this! ;) hahaa hint hint
Yep I think it may be a lunch feature today where I work I will get the correct bread on my way in. Maybe a rye variation too. Wait till the boss asks me the lunch feature!!! Ha
this is totally when im going to wake up thinking about next time im hungover. and i will totally not be ambitious enough to make it. maybe if i slip my perkins cook a 20, they'll make it for me?
We need a Sourdough version here. Thinly sliced sourdough grilled cheese. I think both american and swiss should be used with some tomato and bacon melted into it. Then maybe a thin patty or two and a little thousand island. Toss in some raw red onion on top of the patty and dressing.
@smo10: I have tried the regular burger at Applebee's, and it was enough to turn me off *any* Applebee's burger. If you can't get a regular burger right, you have no business branching off into creative burgers. As they say, "You've gotta know the rules in order to break 'em."
My college roommate invented this at the Oswego, NY college dining halls in 1980 when he would take a grilled cheese apart and stick a double cheeseburger (just the patties) in the middle. It got to the point where he would just say "Bob Burger" and they would do it for him.
I for one, a burger nut, rarely touched the low grade, over-cooked institutionalized burger meat. How sad since it was all prepaid and all you wanted to eat. Still managed to gain 20+ pounds anyway!
well my diet gets pushed back one more day, GOTTA have one today. my TO DO LIST 1. schedule by-pass surgery
2. go to store for ingredents
3. make and eat this erotic burger porn (maybe two)
4. take a nap
5. check-in to hospital
6. recover
7. repeat
I'll be cooking up my version of the fatty melt burger today. No bacon, but I'll probably do a double patty with an extra slice in-between, and add wasabi mayo for some kick.
Has anyone tried a burger between 2 pizza slices with the points cut/chewed off? (Plain or pepperoni?) The $1 pizza place is around the corner, so I'm thinkin'...... cheese, tomato, bread, burger......
Gotta love it! I will try it soon using the thin bread squashed down. Here's one that everyone already knows, but as long as we are trying for the ultimate heart attack:
Much to the shargin of my wife I am going to try this idea out tonight. The biggest challenge to me is to ensure proper timing so that everything is at the proper heat to ensure that the butter, cheese and beef blend together properly and not congeal.
Lettuce? Whaddya, crazy? Why? It adds nothing. Maybe some arugula (strong flavor) under the burger if you need a built-in salad, but plain old lettuce would just disappear.
But tomato in the grilled cheeses sounds good. Gotta have tomato on a cheeseburger.
I'm thinking maybe blue and swiss/Gruyère/Comté for the cheeses (one each), if not all extra-sharp cheddar. If using jalapeño cheddar (or better yet, habanero cheddar), only in one sammy, plain cheddar on the other. Otherwise the chiles will overwhelm everything else.
Bacon only if using cheddar. And not too much. Still have to taste the burger. Balance is important.
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74 Comments:
Ok, now this is something! Where's Elvis, he'd be all over this thing ... Is the tomato slice supposed to add a "healthy kick"? I'm not so sure about the white pread though. This almost cries out for four slices of thick Texas toast.
Ya' know, there's gotta be a way to deep-fry this beasty ...
LunaPierCook at 8:41AM on 10/02/08
For dessert you can have a double by-pass. :-O
izatryt at 8:53AM on 10/02/08
I wouldn't want to mess with perfection, but I would be tempted to add a few slices of bacon......
shale at 8:55AM on 10/02/08
I'd have to do it on thin deli rye bread.
1stmakearoux at 8:57AM on 10/02/08
@shale, good call! Adam shoulda caught that one. Nice slab bacon, sliced extra thick ... yup, that'll work. ;-)
LunaPierCook at 8:57AM on 10/02/08
Bacon is the perfect accent to everything.
I put it in my coffee.
jonny509 at 8:58AM on 10/02/08
We're still reeling from our love affair with the burger at The Dressing Room in Westport, Connecticut, but oh, my, that double grilled cheese idea is fine. We agree with Shale, though, about the addition of a few slices of bacon, and maybe some grilled onion . . .
SteveandSeanan at 8:59AM on 10/02/08
This was one of the most delicious things I have ever digested.
EVERYONE SHOULD GO MAKE ONE!!
Robyn Lee at 8:59AM on 10/02/08
@Robyn, but did you actually finish digesting it? I get the impression some of it may linger in there for some time to come. ;-)
LunaPierCook at 9:04AM on 10/02/08
I really really really really want to make one like Robyn is telling me to do. But the only bread I have in the house is sliced too thick to use 2 slices on each side.
wunami at 9:12AM on 10/02/08
roll the bread flat with a rolling pin first and cut off the crust.
csbrown at 9:18AM on 10/02/08
...cure for the common hangover? It looks fantastic.
JustinH at 9:26AM on 10/02/08
i was at this bar called the Vortex in Atlanta, GA...and they had this burger on the menu...unreal......they served it tators tots...awesome
DOUBLE BYPASS BURGER
Our big sirloin patty topped with a fried egg, three
slices of American cheese, four slices of bacon, and
a big fat side of mayo with two grilled
cheese sandwiches replacing the buns
i didn't get one (i know, i know) but the guy next to me did....check it out
http://justwhenyouthink.com/nighthawk/pl_images/IMG_0635.jpg
nighthawk at 9:26AM on 10/02/08
I can just feel my arteries hardening in delight!
peachfish at 9:36AM on 10/02/08
This is why I love AHT! A group of my friends/coworkers have been talking about trying this at our work cafeteria. Thank you for your dedication to all things burgery.
jessward at 9:48AM on 10/02/08
I can hear my arteries clogging just reading about it.
. o O (As I live vicariously through AHT...sigh.)
therealchiffonade at 9:59AM on 10/02/08
i like hamburgers, love cheeseburgers, and grilled cheese is my desert island food... but i don't know if this appeals to me very much. too much of a good thing? i'd try it once, though.
j at 10:06AM on 10/02/08
I'd eat that, no problems. I'd have to ride my bike quite a bit afterward to pay for it, but it looks too good not to try.
Robyn, great pictures yet again. You have a gift.
philn at 10:10AM on 10/02/08
@LPC: There might be some residual butter left in my veeins...
@philn: Thanks! Helpfully, the burger was quite photogenic. :D
Robyn Lee at 10:12AM on 10/02/08
Makes me wish I ate beef again. Sigh.
Again, in the abstract, I love the bacon idea, although I'd put it in the grilled cheese sandwiches. You'd have to make sure the bread was spread with mayo prior to the frying as well. ;D
Also, I'd want some really crispy fries with that. hehehe
hereandthe at 10:14AM on 10/02/08
doesn't look at all appetizing...
suburbangourmet at 10:18AM on 10/02/08
Ya' know, there's gotta be a way to deep-fry this beasty ...
That sounds like a challenge.
PhotoKirk at 10:21AM on 10/02/08
I think I can die happy now.
Grill_Baron at 10:21AM on 10/02/08
This looks amazing! Just add bacon!
Megs915 at 10:24AM on 10/02/08
@PhotoKirk, all we gotta do is put the whole of it into a sheep's stomach, snug it up around the burger before tying it off, and into the deep-fryer it goes!
LunaPierCook at 10:27AM on 10/02/08
what if you put the tomato in one of the grilled cheese sandwiches? then it won't slide around...
foodinmouth at 10:38AM on 10/02/08
You gotta add the tomato (and bacon) directly to the grilled cheese sandwiches. Get your head in the game, AHT.
ESNY1077 at 10:45AM on 10/02/08
yeah...one grilled cheese with the bacon, the other one with the tomato, then a fried egg on the burger with some dark mustard and crunchy lettuce. i'd flatten out the burger a bit though and try to square it up for maximum coverage. (this is like food porn-ha.)
gastronomeg at 11:22AM on 10/02/08
Yep. That might be the prettiest hamburger I've ever seen.
JustNancy at 11:27AM on 10/02/08
Perfect color on that burger. Nice joerb.
Spanno at 11:38AM on 10/02/08
Great find and so decadent!!! I'd have to substitute swiss cheese - the only one that makes a burger perfection. The perfect toppings are mushrooms, carmelized (or raw) onions, bacon, tomato and lettuce. Remember, if you add lettuce, you can call it a salad. ;-D
I think I may have learned that from Paula Deen???
PerkyMac at 11:40AM on 10/02/08
Now to take it to the next level you need to batter and fry it ala Monte Cristo! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monte_Cristo_sandwich
Hd00g at 11:40AM on 10/02/08
@foodinmouth, @ESNY: Obvs you didn't click thru and read the recipe, where we give putting tomato INSIDE the grilled cheeses as an option. In fact, we did do that with the final sandwich we made.
Adam Kuban at 11:44AM on 10/02/08
I would try this - Specially with Bacon!
phauxtoe at 11:58AM on 10/02/08
Actually the Waverly Diner on 6th & Waverly in the Village has an awesome patty melt delux! Always use Rye!!
A cheddar patty melt on rye!!! YUM!!!
Actually come to think of it I miss McD's Cheddar Melt!!! It was just so good while it lasted... That was back in the days when McD's had real hamburgers...
burgerboy at 12:13PM on 10/02/08
I would add the bacon to the grilled cheese sandwiches so when you bit into it you get
bread
bacon
cheese
bread
tomato
beef
bread
bacon
cheese
bread
redfish at 12:31PM on 10/02/08
Hate you. Hate you all.
...throws out oatmeal and runs to kitchen...
scarletini at 12:37PM on 10/02/08
Oh. My. God. This actually sounds delicious.
Are we sure Paula Deen didn't invent this recipie though? It reminds me of her burger with donuts as the bun. That's right, if you haven't seen that episode you've missed out on pure Americana: Paula and her friend smashin an all beef pattie between two donuts fresh from the fryer.
But this is a way better idea. Seriously.
seashore7 at 12:55PM on 10/02/08
Ooooh! I would eat that, no problem.
sulin at 1:13PM on 10/02/08
Wow. Not the thing to be looking at when I'm trying to eat healthy and lose post-baby weight.
buffy at 1:42PM on 10/02/08
This sounds tasty. It's fun and is actually a recursive sandwich, since it's made of other sandwiches.
It looks yummy, but I'm worried that there would be too much bread and meat flavor. Maybe it's worth adding mushrooms and bacon to the grilled cheeses? I bet it also solves the filing creep of ingredients sliding off the burger meat!
mrgreenfur at 1:56PM on 10/02/08
This is impressive & makes me think of the infamous Quesadurrito.
You can find this at Pedro's Tacos, a small taco shop in San Clemente, California.
The Quesadurrito is, of course, a delicious burrito filled with carne asada, beans, rice, cheese, fresh salsa & guacamole. The burrito is wrapped not in a simple tortilla but in a grilled Quesadilla.
diskgolf at 3:09PM on 10/02/08
ummmm.......YUM! Just got back my test results from the doctor and my cholesterol levels are normal! Yay - let's eat!
meechiko at 3:14PM on 10/02/08
O..OMG. I think I am in love. I need to eat this!
lorelei76 at 3:55PM on 10/02/08
AK,
You're a burger god. This looks incredible.
What's a man gotta do to get an email response?
NYC Food Guy at 5:43PM on 10/02/08
The obvious answer to the tomato and bacon sliding around problem is just to use more cheese. Yes, PUT MORE CHEESE BETWEEN THE GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES. It can't really be that much more bad at this point. Toss some onion rings in there too.
wunami at 6:45PM on 10/02/08
This is also done at The Vortex in Atlanta, its called the Double Coronary Bypass(sp?). its an 8oz burger with lettuce, tomato, mayo, red onion, fried egg and bacon in between the two grilled cheeses. If anyone from AHT would ever come down to ATL to check out the burger scene...they would know this! ;) hahaa hint hint
bidsa at 6:59PM on 10/02/08
I was at the midtown Vortex Tuesday for a burger followed by a show by Candye Kane. Life just doesn't get better than this.
FMFats at 8:57PM on 10/02/08
Christ, did Paula Deen come up with this? ;)
JigsawJones at 9:21PM on 10/02/08
Ha, never mind, I see someone else was clever before I was. About Paula Deen I mean.
JigsawJones at 9:23PM on 10/02/08
My god that looks just SEXY delicious.
mikaque at 10:26PM on 10/02/08
I go away for a couple days, and THIS is what happens?
Hmmm... actually I should go away more often because this is kick-ass! :-)
FastFoodCritic at 4:10AM on 10/03/08
Yep I think it may be a lunch feature today where I work I will get the correct bread on my way in. Maybe a rye variation too. Wait till the boss asks me the lunch feature!!! Ha
joanpieroni2 at 9:00AM on 10/03/08
If you don't have or can't wait to buy the very thin sliced bread, a panini maker will flatten the grilled cheese out nicely even with thicker bread.
Tonecat at 1:02AM on 10/04/08
I made this for a lunch feature, it was great everyone liked it. The thin bread made it yummy. I put a nice big sliced tomato and leaf lettuce on it.
joanpieroni2 at 9:51AM on 10/04/08
Holy crap! I'm on my to Fisherville, Virginia right now! I gotta have one of those.
Raiders757 at 2:49PM on 10/04/08
this is totally when im going to wake up thinking about next time im hungover. and i will totally not be ambitious enough to make it. maybe if i slip my perkins cook a 20, they'll make it for me?
redzerostar at 6:24PM on 10/04/08
does it come with insurance ?
Q80 BurgerBelly at 9:03AM on 10/05/08
A couple of friends tried this out, with the addition of bacon.
Pictures and description here.
philzabo at 9:26PM on 10/05/08
We need a Sourdough version here. Thinly sliced sourdough grilled cheese. I think both american and swiss should be used with some tomato and bacon melted into it. Then maybe a thin patty or two and a little thousand island. Toss in some raw red onion on top of the patty and dressing.
Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm I know what's for dinner tonight!
amharkness at 10:41AM on 10/06/08
I'm gonna CRY this looks so good. Cry I tell you!
cheezepleeze at 12:16PM on 10/06/08
Has anyone ever tried the Quesadilla Burger @ Applebee's? A burger between two quesadillas with pico! It is delicious!!
smo10 at 3:52PM on 10/06/08
@smo10: I have tried the regular burger at Applebee's, and it was enough to turn me off *any* Applebee's burger. If you can't get a regular burger right, you have no business branching off into creative burgers. As they say, "You've gotta know the rules in order to break 'em."
Adam Kuban at 3:59PM on 10/06/08
HOLY. CRAP.
delilah at 6:26PM on 10/07/08
mmmmmmmmmmmmmm. im going to make this asap.
TurtleSoup at 9:03PM on 10/07/08
My college roommate invented this at the Oswego, NY college dining halls in 1980 when he would take a grilled cheese apart and stick a double cheeseburger (just the patties) in the middle. It got to the point where he would just say "Bob Burger" and they would do it for him.
I for one, a burger nut, rarely touched the low grade, over-cooked institutionalized burger meat. How sad since it was all prepaid and all you wanted to eat. Still managed to gain 20+ pounds anyway!
joshua362 at 9:35PM on 10/07/08
well my diet gets pushed back one more day, GOTTA have one today. my TO DO LIST 1. schedule by-pass surgery
2. go to store for ingredents
3. make and eat this erotic burger porn (maybe two)
4. take a nap
5. check-in to hospital
6. recover
7. repeat
shipwreck at 2:47PM on 10/08/08
Ew. That is the most disgusting thing I have ever heard of... how can you even joke about that?
yw127 at 3:46PM on 11/08/08
Has anybody else tried the Fatty Melt Cheesy Western?
Grilled Cheese (Seriously Strong Cheddar) w/ Jalapenos
Fried Egg (yolk still slightly liquid)
Patty
Grilled cheese
My husband and I mad these last week and they were delicious, if somewhat difficult to get the mouth around.
jonni at 10:42AM on 11/09/08
I'll be cooking up my version of the fatty melt burger today. No bacon, but I'll probably do a double patty with an extra slice in-between, and add wasabi mayo for some kick.
Has anyone tried a burger between 2 pizza slices with the points cut/chewed off? (Plain or pepperoni?) The $1 pizza place is around the corner, so I'm thinkin'...... cheese, tomato, bread, burger......
drmoze at 1:36PM on 11/11/08
This is the number one most fantastic American innovation.
kittyfishhooks at 5:58PM on 03/21/09
Gotta love it! I will try it soon using the thin bread squashed down. Here's one that everyone already knows, but as long as we are trying for the ultimate heart attack:
http://www.dennysbeerbarrelpub.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=55&Itemid=12
Anyone actually ever been there?
richopp at 1:37PM on 05/01/09
Log time reader - first time commenter...
Love the idea -
Much to the shargin of my wife I am going to try this idea out tonight. The biggest challenge to me is to ensure proper timing so that everything is at the proper heat to ensure that the butter, cheese and beef blend together properly and not congeal.
Cheers!
JasonPeatz at 1:22PM on 05/14/09
Lettuce? Whaddya, crazy? Why? It adds nothing. Maybe some arugula (strong flavor) under the burger if you need a built-in salad, but plain old lettuce would just disappear.
But tomato in the grilled cheeses sounds good. Gotta have tomato on a cheeseburger.
I'm thinking maybe blue and swiss/Gruyère/Comté for the cheeses (one each), if not all extra-sharp cheddar. If using jalapeño cheddar (or better yet, habanero cheddar), only in one sammy, plain cheddar on the other. Otherwise the chiles will overwhelm everything else.
Bacon only if using cheddar. And not too much. Still have to taste the burger. Balance is important.
SuzanneF at 1:46PM on 10/17/09