Editor's note: Burgermeisters! Here's another excerpt from George Motz's book Hamburger America. George and his publisher were kind enough to allow us to run them here, along with George's beautiful photos. Eat up!
Taylor’s does not serve hamburgers. Taylor’s serves the only “loosemeats sandwich” in this book. For those not familiar with the popular Iowa hamburger-influenced sandwich, a loosemeats, or Maid-Rite (and sometimes referred to as a “tavern”), is basically a deconstructed hamburger, or a sloppy joe without the slop. The recipe is simple: fresh ground-on-premises beef is steamed and crumbled in a cast iron cooker. Nothing is added but salt. Upon ordering, a member of the extended Taylor family or long-time employee grabs a bun that has been “doped” with pickle and mustard and with the other hand scoops up an impossible amount of the pebbly moist meat. That’s it, and there’s nothing else on the menu but shakes, ice cream, pie, and soft drinks, and they have been doing it this way since 1929. The order is wrapped up even if you are eating at the counter.
Taylor’s is a bright, clean, friendly place with floor to ceiling windows in the front of the restaurant. A large horseshoe counter surrounds a short order kitchen that offers amazing views of your food being prepared.
The loosemeats sandwich may be some of the fastest food you’ll ever come across because the meat is already cooked and warm. An order can arrive at your spot at the counter in under a minute. Unwrap and sink your teeth into one of the softest, tastiest sandwiches around and you’ll start wondering why the rest of the country has not caught on yet.
The last time I visited the Central Iowa eatery there was a debate going on about the proposed introduction of ketchup—not to the sandwich, but to the counter. The sign out front announced “STOP IN VOTE YES OR NO FOR KETCHUP.” The votes were tallied, and in August 2006 ketchup was introduced to the counter, seventy-seven years after opening day.
Taylor’s Maid-Rite
106 South 3rd Avenue, Marshalltown IA 50158 (map)
641-753-9684 taylorsmaidrite.com
Mon. to Sat., 8 a.m. - 10 p.m.; Sun., 10 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Hamburger America is available at Amazon and comes with a DVD of George's movie of the same title.
Folks, I just had a serious flashback and while I left Iowa 30 years ago and vowed never to return, Maid-Rite could entice me. Essence of food. The freedom to make it whatever you want it to be. You now can even put ketchup on it. And no, that is not catsup. In Iowa you can only get ketchup. Book a flight. Go. But be careful because you might be tempted to stay. (Until it gets ten below zero in January and the snow drifts won't let you out of the house.)
We have a Maid-Rite in our town in IL, but I'm sure it's not as good as the original (and they have chicken on the menu).. I've never had one, but they always make me think of "Roseanne" :)
I went to college in Iowa and had these . . . once. They are dry, and you can't help but shake the feeling that it is a lazy sloppy joe, which in my book is one of the great American foods.
If you hold some bizzare nostalgia for these things, then by all means enjoy. All others would be better off with a pound of ground beef and a manwhich mix.
We used to have 'Aunt Diane's Hamburgers'. Browned ground beef with onion, mixed with shredded cheese, and cooked in a moderate oven, open-faced on a toasted and buttered English muffin. Add salt and pepper to taste. Delicious. You can chuck some thick-cut bacon on there as well.
My third grade teacher was from Iowa, and we used to have Maid Rite sales (50 cents a pop!) to raise money to save the spectacled bear. :)
Apparently my grandmother (from Iowa) used to make them for my mom growing up. My mother had actually forgotten about them until we started doing these sales, and once reminded would make them from time to time. I believe she used soy sauce rather than salt to season, though.
I remember my parents talking about the Maid Rite in their hometown of St Joseph MO! It's still there (although I've never been there) might go check it out! But my question - WHAT ABOUT THE SIDES?
I've heard of these for years, courtesy of the occasional glimpse on TV, but like others, I don't understand the attraction. A hamburger is easy to deal with, a Sloppy Joe is redeemed by it's sauce, but this...is just sloppy, with hardly any enhancements. I imagine half of it gets left on the plate, unless you fork it up.
I grew up (in NOLA) eating a version of these we called "loose ground meat" sandwiches. My mom browned (not steamed, ew) the meat with onions and bell peppers. It was delicious. It was even better when she used it to make Toast-Tite sandwiches.
Until I saw it on Roseanne, I didn't even realize that other people ever ate anything like this.
FWIW, to me the meat on the sandwich in the picture 1) doesn't look steamed and 2) has a distinct brownish-reddish cast that you can't get from just salt.
Maybe you do have to grow up with it. I did. In Newton, we had Maid-Rites, Cheese-Rites, Joey-Rites (small ones) and really great crisp skinny fries. You can glop up ground meat patties with anything you want, but these are simple beef and taste oh, I don't know, honest.. As I indicated in yesterday's 'lengths you go to' post, Neutrons have been known to Fed-Ex Maid-Rites to Naples, Florida and yes, to the Upper East Side. And yes, I will have a slice of raisin pie for dessert. And chanterelle, they are not in need of redemption; they give you a spoon.
In that photo, I can understand why people would think it was a disastrous mess but where I eat them they wrap the wax paper around it snugly so it all stays together - especially with a little ketchup or mustard (or both).
It is a tasty local way to serve ground beef - not supposed to be gourmet or even pretend to be a complex recipe. To the folks who believe :
"The problem with the mid-west in general is they have no appreciation for tasty food ... they don't know how to cook ... so they eat stuff like this."
You have no idea how educated the palates of the people here are, what types of local and other tastes have developed here - there are as many well educated chefs and eaters in the Midwest as anywhere. One example would be: http://www.laquercia.us/
Producers of some of the best prosciutto in the world - loved and eaten here in the Midwest.
It is unfair, misguided, and silly to sterotype all Midwesterners as clueless when it comes to food, but I will say that some of the worst home-cooked food that I have ever eaten was prepared by my dear departed aunt from Dayton, Ohio.
Her famous spaghetti is an example. Boil one pound of cheap pasta (such as Ronzoni) in 3-4 cups of water. When the water is absorbed, dump the sticky, messy clump onto a platter. Top with unseasoned tomato sauce from a can (Hunt's, or similar) and slice into portions to serve.
burger 365 said the loose meat sandwiches look dry. Here's the deal. I have been eating them for years. You simply order them "Wet". If you ask for a "wet one" they pull the meat up from the low side. The steam box slants to the side slightly to allow the burger juices to gravitate to down to one side. You will know you got a "wet one" as the wrapper will glisten with the hot greasy dew. Ah yes just a whiff of this juicy all natural flavor enhancer will know a vegan into next week. You will know when you have reached hamburger heaven when the juices rundown your forearm while snarffing down this little handful of sin. The only drawback for some is that these little grease bombs tend rumble a bit in your tummy later in the afternoon. The upside is you get to enjoy lunch all day long over and over again.
burger 365 said the loose meat sandwiches look dry. Here's the deal. I have been eating them for years. You simply order them "Wet". If you ask for a "wet one" they pull the meat up from the low side. The steam box slants to the side slightly to allow the burger juices to gravitate to down to one side. You will know you got a "wet one" as the wrapper will glisten with the hot greasy dew. Ah yes just a whiff of this juicy all natural flavor enhancer will know a vegan into next week. You will know when you have reached hamburger heaven when the juices rundown your forearm while snarffing down this little handful of sin. The only drawback for some is that these little grease bombs tend rumble a bit in your tummy later in the afternoon. The upside is you get to enjoy lunch all day long over and over again.
I grew up in Marshalltown, Iowa and Porkchopguy is exactly right. Ah I can smell them now. Ordering "Wet", with everything (pickles, chopped onion and mustard) is the only way to go. Filled with so much meat that you have to use the spoon to eat all the meat that falls out. Why fill up on sides when you can eat two or three and maybe some potatoe chips, all washed down with a chocolate malt and a glass of water. The best maid-rite anywhere. And for the Maid-Rite franchise chain, no ketchup or cheese is ever needed on Taylor's Maid-Rite. Please remember these are not the same restaurants or maid-rites.
I worked with a guy who used to bone out beef front quarters in the basement butcher cooler at Taylor’s. He told me all of the meat he boned off of the front quarters went into the grinder and not just the trimmings or the lesser valued cuts. I think that has a lot to do with why the flavor of their ground beef is so good and why you have to stand in line during the lunch hour to get a seat at the counter. My daughter and son in-law are home from Japan on military leave. The first place they said they wanted to eat when they got into Marshalltown was at Taylor’s.
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Taylor’s does not serve hamburgers. Taylor’s serves the only “loosemeats sandwich” in this book. For those not familiar with the popular Iowa hamburger-influenced sandwich, a loosemeats, or Maid-Rite (and sometimes referred to as a “tavern”), is basically a deconstructed hamburger, or a sloppy joe without the slop. The recipe is simple: fresh ground-on-premises beef is steamed and crumbled in a cast iron cooker. Nothing is added but salt. Upon ordering, a member of the extended Taylor family or long-time employee grabs a bun that has been “doped” with pickle and mustard and with the other hand scoops up an impossible amount of the pebbly moist meat. That’s it, and there’s nothing else on the menu but shakes, ice cream, pie, and soft drinks, and they have been doing it this way since 1929. The order is wrapped up even if you are eating at the counter.
35 Comments:
I just don't get "loose meat sandwiches." It's like they're not finished.
lambowner at 11:23AM on 08/14/09
Looks dry? Never had one, but I'd give it the ole college try.
Burger365 at 11:31AM on 08/14/09
What that needs is a liberal amount of gooey melted cheese to hold all that shit together! Would be delightful.
Adam Kuban at 11:42AM on 08/14/09
Maybe some kind of hot sauce would help the cause.
Kerosena at 11:52AM on 08/14/09
I thought the book was called "Hamburger America". That's no burger in my book.
gratefulted at 12:00PM on 08/14/09
Folks, I just had a serious flashback and while I left Iowa 30 years ago and vowed never to return, Maid-Rite could entice me. Essence of food. The freedom to make it whatever you want it to be. You now can even put ketchup on it. And no, that is not catsup. In Iowa you can only get ketchup. Book a flight. Go. But be careful because you might be tempted to stay. (Until it gets ten below zero in January and the snow drifts won't let you out of the house.)
Michael Z at 12:02PM on 08/14/09
I remember seeing a special on PBS that talked about this place. It looks good.
Cassaendra at 12:03PM on 08/14/09
My mom made a mean Maid-Rite sandwich. I personally prefer them to burgers...good ones are not definitely not dry. Never needed cheese, either.
July at 12:14PM on 08/14/09
We have a Maid-Rite in our town in IL, but I'm sure it's not as good as the original (and they have chicken on the menu).. I've never had one, but they always make me think of "Roseanne" :)
kellybelly223 at 12:33PM on 08/14/09
I went to college in Iowa and had these . . . once. They are dry, and you can't help but shake the feeling that it is a lazy sloppy joe, which in my book is one of the great American foods.
If you hold some bizzare nostalgia for these things, then by all means enjoy. All others would be better off with a pound of ground beef and a manwhich mix.
KilgoreTrout at 12:35PM on 08/14/09
WTF???? manwich mix?
bisbee at 12:39PM on 08/14/09
Nothing but hamburger and salt? I'll pass. Hell even I can cook better than that.
The problem with the mid-west in general is they have no appreciation for tasty food ... they don't know how to cook ... so they eat stuff like this.
redfish at 12:41PM on 08/14/09
This looks delicious to me! I would love to try that. Looks a bit odd but it sounds like it would be wonderful =]
Isn't that the beauty of the hamburger though? Appreciate the meat. Don't mess around with it. This place sounds awesome!
bks1210 at 12:45PM on 08/14/09
We used to have 'Aunt Diane's Hamburgers'. Browned ground beef with onion, mixed with shredded cheese, and cooked in a moderate oven, open-faced on a toasted and buttered English muffin. Add salt and pepper to taste. Delicious. You can chuck some thick-cut bacon on there as well.
NotAmerican at 1:14PM on 08/14/09
@ redfish: Perhaps "tasty" is in the tongue of the beholder.
PommeDG at 2:23PM on 08/14/09
My third grade teacher was from Iowa, and we used to have Maid Rite sales (50 cents a pop!) to raise money to save the spectacled bear. :)
Apparently my grandmother (from Iowa) used to make them for my mom growing up. My mother had actually forgotten about them until we started doing these sales, and once reminded would make them from time to time. I believe she used soy sauce rather than salt to season, though.
meleyna at 2:36PM on 08/14/09
@Notamerican - mmmmmm me likey!
Lvn4life at 3:08PM on 08/14/09
I remember my parents talking about the Maid Rite in their hometown of St Joseph MO! It's still there (although I've never been there) might go check it out! But my question - WHAT ABOUT THE SIDES?
Lvn4life at 3:10PM on 08/14/09
Reds and Trudys in Southern Tier NY has been making these since they 20s and they are oh so delicious. A must visit whenever we go see the in-laws.
lexophile at 3:30PM on 08/14/09
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/19/travel/driving-halfway-there-a-family-stops-to-eat.html?sec=travel&spon=&pagewanted=1
lexophile at 3:32PM on 08/14/09
ugh. obviously I meant the 20s not they 20s. yeesh.
lexophile at 3:38PM on 08/14/09
I've heard of these for years, courtesy of the occasional glimpse on TV, but like others, I don't understand the attraction. A hamburger is easy to deal with, a Sloppy Joe is redeemed by it's sauce, but this...is just sloppy, with hardly any enhancements. I imagine half of it gets left on the plate, unless you fork it up.
chanterelle at 3:46PM on 08/14/09
A "hamburger" that needs a spoon is just so wrong.....
deetroitMI at 4:04PM on 08/14/09
I grew up (in NOLA) eating a version of these we called "loose ground meat" sandwiches. My mom browned (not steamed, ew) the meat with onions and bell peppers. It was delicious. It was even better when she used it to make Toast-Tite sandwiches.
Until I saw it on Roseanne, I didn't even realize that other people ever ate anything like this.
FWIW, to me the meat on the sandwich in the picture 1) doesn't look steamed and 2) has a distinct brownish-reddish cast that you can't get from just salt.
RegrettableFoodie at 4:07PM on 08/14/09
Maybe you do have to grow up with it. I did. In Newton, we had Maid-Rites, Cheese-Rites, Joey-Rites (small ones) and really great crisp skinny fries. You can glop up ground meat patties with anything you want, but these are simple beef and taste oh, I don't know, honest.. As I indicated in yesterday's 'lengths you go to' post, Neutrons have been known to Fed-Ex Maid-Rites to Naples, Florida and yes, to the Upper East Side. And yes, I will have a slice of raisin pie for dessert. And chanterelle, they are not in need of redemption; they give you a spoon.
jayveejay at 4:15PM on 08/14/09
I only have two words for that mess:
dog food
salpico at 5:25PM on 08/14/09
In that photo, I can understand why people would think it was a disastrous mess but where I eat them they wrap the wax paper around it snugly so it all stays together - especially with a little ketchup or mustard (or both).
lexophile at 6:49PM on 08/14/09
It is a tasty local way to serve ground beef - not supposed to be gourmet or even pretend to be a complex recipe. To the folks who believe :
"The problem with the mid-west in general is they have no appreciation for tasty food ... they don't know how to cook ... so they eat stuff like this."
You have no idea how educated the palates of the people here are, what types of local and other tastes have developed here - there are as many well educated chefs and eaters in the Midwest as anywhere. One example would be:
http://www.laquercia.us/
Producers of some of the best prosciutto in the world - loved and eaten here in the Midwest.
msdoyle at 8:30PM on 08/14/09
It is unfair, misguided, and silly to sterotype all Midwesterners as clueless when it comes to food, but I will say that some of the worst home-cooked food that I have ever eaten was prepared by my dear departed aunt from Dayton, Ohio.
Her famous spaghetti is an example. Boil one pound of cheap pasta (such as Ronzoni) in 3-4 cups of water. When the water is absorbed, dump the sticky, messy clump onto a platter. Top with unseasoned tomato sauce from a can (Hunt's, or similar) and slice into portions to serve.
salpico at 4:29PM on 08/15/09
I'm not too sure about this one, but I'd give it a try once. After all, how bad could it be? People have been paying for them for 80 years.
beth1 at 12:41AM on 08/17/09
burger 365 said the loose meat sandwiches look dry. Here's the deal. I have been eating them for years. You simply order them "Wet". If you ask for a "wet one" they pull the meat up from the low side. The steam box slants to the side slightly to allow the burger juices to gravitate to down to one side. You will know you got a "wet one" as the wrapper will glisten with the hot greasy dew. Ah yes just a whiff of this juicy all natural flavor enhancer will know a vegan into next week. You will know when you have reached hamburger heaven when the juices rundown your forearm while snarffing down this little handful of sin. The only drawback for some is that these little grease bombs tend rumble a bit in your tummy later in the afternoon. The upside is you get to enjoy lunch all day long over and over again.
Porkchopguy at 9:26AM on 08/17/09
burger 365 said the loose meat sandwiches look dry. Here's the deal. I have been eating them for years. You simply order them "Wet". If you ask for a "wet one" they pull the meat up from the low side. The steam box slants to the side slightly to allow the burger juices to gravitate to down to one side. You will know you got a "wet one" as the wrapper will glisten with the hot greasy dew. Ah yes just a whiff of this juicy all natural flavor enhancer will know a vegan into next week. You will know when you have reached hamburger heaven when the juices rundown your forearm while snarffing down this little handful of sin. The only drawback for some is that these little grease bombs tend rumble a bit in your tummy later in the afternoon. The upside is you get to enjoy lunch all day long over and over again.
Porkchopguy at 9:28AM on 08/17/09
I grew up in Marshalltown, Iowa and Porkchopguy is exactly right. Ah I can smell them now. Ordering "Wet", with everything (pickles, chopped onion and mustard) is the only way to go. Filled with so much meat that you have to use the spoon to eat all the meat that falls out. Why fill up on sides when you can eat two or three and maybe some potatoe chips, all washed down with a chocolate malt and a glass of water. The best maid-rite anywhere. And for the Maid-Rite franchise chain, no ketchup or cheese is ever needed on Taylor's Maid-Rite. Please remember these are not the same restaurants or maid-rites.
steve50009 at 2:31PM on 08/17/09
I worked with a guy who used to bone out beef front quarters in the basement butcher cooler at Taylor’s. He told me all of the meat he boned off of the front quarters went into the grinder and not just the trimmings or the lesser valued cuts. I think that has a lot to do with why the flavor of their ground beef is so good and why you have to stand in line during the lunch hour to get a seat at the counter. My daughter and son in-law are home from Japan on military leave. The first place they said they wanted to eat when they got into Marshalltown was at Taylor’s.
Porkchopguy at 3:59PM on 08/17/09
I see by their web site of one of the original Maid-Rites, that they do mail order
http://www.maidrite.com/send_maid-rite.html
also they were feature on a Travel Channel Show called
"Taste of America"
BeachBumBob at 3:30AM on 08/19/09