@burgeryeti (aka The Cheeseburger Show) announces that Chicago chef Graham Elliot will be offering the GrahamSexyBurger—a burger made with a chicken fried burger, tomatoes, fried egg, Tabasco ketchup, Jimmy Dean sausage mayo, white cheddar, mushrooms, caramelized onions, and Texas toast—for three days starting this Thursday, May 7. [via Helen Rosner]
This burger can be found in an unassuming gyro stand in Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood called Morse Gyros. The burger itself is the typical sort of greasy diner burger you'd expect to find at a small gyro stand, although it is always prepared with the utmost care. It's never overcooked, and the cheese is always fully melted. The deal sealer, however, is that it's also topped with gyro meat and tzatziki sauce. This combo is so amazing it makes you wonder why anyone ever bothers with lettuce and tomato.
—Paul S.
Morse Gyros
1335 W Morse Avenue, Chicago IL 60626 (map)
773-743-2665
Every week Kevin Pang of the Chicago Tribune hosts The Cheeseburger Show, "a show about cheeseburgers with famous people and lots of close-up food shots." Formula for success? Yes. Despite knowing that I won't be in Chicago anytime soon, I'm glued to my cheeseburger-blessed monitor.
Today marks the premiere episode during which Pang takes us behind the scenes of Top Notch Beefburgers and Goldyburgers. He also interviews chef Homaro Cantu of Moto, Q101 DJ Electra, Hot Doug's Doug Sohn, and host of NPR's Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me!Peter Sagal, about burgers. Go to cheeseburgershow.com to watch the episode.
Custom House in Chicago is offering a $5 burger with fries for lunch, Monday through Friday, until January 30 (in other words, next week is your last chance). The burger is topped with caramelized onions, house-cured bacon, and house-made steak sauce. More photos and reviews at LTHForum.com. [Tip o' the hat to Jacob H.]
Mike Doyle of Gapers Block says the Angus Burger from Marc Burger, opened by chef Marcus Samuelsson in the food court at Macy's in Chicago, is "good enough to roll around naked in," even if he finds the $13 price tag too high. The half-pound grass-fed Angus beef burger comes topped with cheddar and a fried egg and is accompanied by cole slaw, garlic fries, and cayenne-infused ketchup. Doyle says it ties with Muskie's for his favorite burger in Chicago.
Kevin Pang of the Chicago Tribuneeats at five burger chains in the Chicago area in five hours (accompanied by a bottle of antacid): Sonic Drive-In, Fatburger, Meat Heads, Five Guys, and The Counter. Thankfully, all five pass the "decent-if-not-better" test. Read his review for more details than anyone needs, including the heights, diameters, and circumferences of the burgers he ate.
The special burger this month at Kuma's Corner in Chicago is called the #@(*&%^ Blagojevich, in honor of the Blagovich scandal, made with a 10-ounce patty, thick sliced bologna, and yellow mustard between two grilled cheese sandwiches made with American cheese and Wonder Bread. For the final touch, a large dollar sign is written on the "bun" in mustard. All this for only $10! If you try it, let us know how it is (and take a photo of it, wink-wink)—if you don't end up in a food coma. [via Chicagoist]
Kuma's Corner
2900 West Belmont Avenue, Chicago, IL 60618 (at North Francisco Ave; map)
773-604-8769
Chicago Tribune reviews the first Five Guys in the Chicago area in Oak Park, which just opened on Monday. "Cheeseburger Bureau Chief" Kevin Pan loved the Cajun spice-dusted fries the most, followed by the hot dogs and cheeseburgers.
SaveTheChooChoo.com has been set up by The Choo-Choo's owner Jean Paxton in response to the announcement that her beloved burger joint in Des Plaines, Illinois, may be torn down to make way for a new police station. Fans can sign a petition through the website to be sent to city officials. The Choo-Choo has been open for 57 years and features a toy train outfitted with baskets that goes around the counter to delivers burgers.
Des Plaines mayor Tony Arredia says there are no current plans to build anything due to lack of funds, and that there are two other locations in the running, but Paxton's landlord told her last December that the the city contacted was interested in buying the property. The city may not make a decision for the next year or two.
The Choo-Choo
600 Lee Street, Des Plaines IL 60016 (at Miner Street; map)
847-391-9815 thechoochoo.com
It's not on the menu, but on Friday nights you can order a burger at contemporary American restaurant Vie in Western Springs, Illinois. Sky Full of Bacon reviews the burger, made with "bits of the whole steer they dry-aged at Eickman's in Seward, Illinois." The burger comes with fries, pickled onions, ramps, and homemade ketchup. [via Gaper's Block]
In honor of their new 40-day dry-aged hamburger,Primehouse in Chicago is selling the normally $15 burger for only $5 this week. Phil Vettel of Chicago Tribune's food blog The Stew reports that the "seriously good" half-pound burger is topped with garlic spinach and fried onions on a potato bun with smoked-bacon mayonnaise. The burger is only available at lunch (11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.) until Friday, so Chicagoans, get your burger now!
Primehouse
616 North Rush Street, Chicago IL 60611 (b/n East Ontario Street and East Ohio Street; map)
(312) 660-6000
Serious Eats Chicago correspondent Michael Nagrant reviews three recently opened burger spots for Newcity Chicago in search of the best griddled patty: Epic Burger in the South Loop, Marc Burger in the Macy’s food court, and The Counter in Lakeview. Here are some key points of his impressions of each place, with Marc Burger being the best:
Marc Burger: "I might even say this particular burger was one of the best I’ve had in the city, though the patty was a little thin, making the ratio of beef to bun found in a Kuma’s Corner burger still supreme." Macy's, 7th Floor, 111 N State Street, Chicago IL 60602 (map); (312)781-4884
Epic Burger: "What held Epic back was the dense, extremely fine grind and thinness of the patty. While it was seasoned well and juicy, it was also grilled to well-done, with nary a shade of pinkness." 517 S State Street, Chicago, IL 60605 (map); 312-913-1373; epicburger.com
The Counter: "The burger was thick and cooked with a nice amount of pinkness, but lacked juiciness or seasoning." 666 W Diversey Parkway, Chicago IL 60614 (map); 773-935-1995; thecounterburger.com
The rapper, producer and sometimes political activist isn't the first celebrity franchisee to stake new territory for the 56-year-old chain. Fatburger has focused on African-American tastemakers to aid its expansion. Last year, talk-show host Montel Williams opened stores in Colorado and rapper Pharrell Williams opened the first locations in New York. Former Baltimore Raven Orlando Brown also bought rights to open Fatburgers last year in Washington.
Get psyched—tomorrow is National Hamburger Day! Of course, this is a holiday that should really be celebrated every day (just like Earth Day... well, sort of). But for those Midwesterners who want to make it a truly special occasion, Patty Burger will be offering a free single with cheese, an order of fries, and a drink in exchange for a burger from anywhere else.
As owner Gregg Majewski has proclaimed, "No one should have to celebrate this special day with a bad burger." He also added, "Give me your tired, your poor, your underweight, overcooked, neglected patties. Bring me your soggy buns, wilted lettuce, under-ripe tomatoes, and other tasteless toppings."
The offer is good from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, May 28, 2008, at Patty Burger's Chicago and Milwaukee locations.
Patty Burger
72 E. Adams Street, Chicago IL 60603; 312-987-0900
1952 N. Farwell Avenue, Milwaukee WI 53202; 414-271-3800 pattyburger.com
Posted by Adam Kuban, December 18, 2006 at 11:55 AM
After a brief hiatus, ladies and gentlemen, Grilled is back. This week's installment is Peter Meehan, who has discovered and relayed the news of some of New York's finest burgers in the pages of the New York Times. Because he wishes to retain his anonymity for the purposes of his reviews, we do not have a photograph—apologies to those of you who enjoy rating the relative hotness of each new Grilled subject as compared with my sister. Without further ado, let's get Grillin'! —The Mgmt.
Name: Peter Meehan Occupation: "$25 and Under" columnist for the New York Times Location: New York City
How often do you eat burgers?
Once or twice a week at most. Back before I was reviewing restaurants, I probably ate three or four burgers a week.
Where did you eat your most recent one?
BLT Burger. I’ve taken a short burger break after bingeing at BLT.
Cheese: American, cheddar, other?
American, I guess. Seems like the patriotic answer. But I am open to almost any melty cheese on a burger. I have more specific feelings about what cheese choices I object to: I love blue cheese and mozzarella, but I don’t think either belongs on a hamburger; and I don’t like burgers blanketed in any outré or overly pedigreed cheese.
Ketchup or mustard?
Mustard on the burger, ketchup on the side. I think a truly great burger needs no ketchup. (But I have a very strong affinity for ketchup, so there’s a good chance I’m still going to eat at least part of that truly great burger with it.)
Sesame-seed or plain?
That’s tough. Sesame-seed buns do seem like the platonic ideal of hamburger bun-ness. But there are many seedless buns on burgers I like. Seedless potato rolls are perfect for the Shake Shack burger. The choice of ciabatta for the smaller burger at DuMont burger is inspired. The English muffin as a burger bracket has always struck me as a pointless East Coast affectation, but it serves Gabrielle Hamilton’s lamburger [at Prune] well. Before eating at Royale, I would have said “absolutely no brioche” because every hamburger I’d eaten on a brioche bun up to that point was way too rich. Not theirs. Plus it had sesame seeds. So I’m waffling, but ultimately going sesame. Final answer.
Grilled, griddled, or broiled?
All of the above. Didn’t George Motz teach us that burgers can be steamed and deep-fried, too? Is there even a verb for what they do to the burgers at Louis’ Lunch in New Haven? I find grilling and broiling to be the surest approaches to properly cooked patties, but I have no allegiance to any one style.
And how would you like that done, sir?
Medium-rare. Bonus points if the thing gets a chance to rest for a few minutes before it’s served, though I can’t think of a single restaurant where that happens.
Here's a killer list we've mentioned on AHT but have never elaborated on. It's Alan Richman's top 20 from his July 2005 story "The 20 Hamburgers You Must Eat Before You Die" in GQ. Do click through to read the entire piece; it quickly made its way onto the Required Reading list at AHT HQ. Bon appétit! ...
AOL Cityguide has done it again. In late March, the good folks there brought you the best burgers in New York. Now they've compiled the "15 Burgers to Try Before You Die" (hmm ... strange echo of Alan Richman's piece in GQ last year, "The 20 Hamburgers You Must Eat Before You Die.") Without further ado, they are ...
While wandering Rush Street and Michigan Avenue in Chicago last weekend, I decided I needed a little pick-me-up. Seeing as this is a burger site, that meant sliders. I happened upon Luxbar, which is a fancy-schmancy bar/restaurant from the group that built Gibson's and Hugo's. Like so many other upscale restaurants, they have four different sliders to choose from.
I got a couple burger sliders, one with cheese and one without. The waitress did some recon for me and found out that they use organic ground chuck (20 percent fat) for the patties and that they bake their own sesame seed buns. She explained that the chef tried to use organic products whenever possible. Unfortunately, it didn't result in a spectacular slider. Although it was fairly juicy, it lacked any real flavor, which is even more disappointing in a slider. Restaurants that rely on condiments to provide taste is a growing pet peeve of mine.
Then again, I'm probably being a bit harsh. I finished both sliders quickly and would probably get another if I was there. But that doesn't mean these burgers were memorable, which is my usual litmus test. If I'm still thinking about it a week later, it must be a good burger.
Note: Sometimes doing a full review isn't necessary and sometimes we're just lazy. This is why we've introduced Quick Bites. We want to get you information on as many burger joints as possible and the new format should make that easier. Enjoy.
McDonald's celebrated its 50th birthday today by opening its 50th anniversary restaurant in Chicago. Ray Kroc, who for all intents and purposes founded the McDonald's corporation we know today, opened his first McDonald's burger stand in Des Plaines, Illinois, about 20 miles northwest of Chicago, after striking a deal with the original McDonald brothers, who founded their joint in San Bernardino, California.
We at A Hamburger Today have a love-hate relationship with Micky D's, as I'm sure a lot of you do. When we were young, it was a special treat, and we fondly remember tearing into the cardboard Happy Meal boxes in anticipation of the special toy that was included. As we grew older, though, and our tastes for hamburgers developed a greater sophistication, we came to realize that the prizes were nothing more than cheap junk—a description that could also double for the burgers.
Still, sometimes we crave the weird, unmistakable taste of the burgers we grew up on. And the fries, if done right, are as delicious as ever. And how can you not love the 50th anniversary restaurant (see illustration, top-right image)?
The chain's ubiquity nationwide—and worldwide—make it hard to fathom that it is only 50 years old. And to think it started when Mr. Kroc happened upon the original McDonald brothers' burger stand while working as distributor of the Multimixer machine that the brothers used to brew up milkshakes.
Hmm. Sounds like an order of fries and a shake are in order for a quick after-work snack tonight.
This week from June 1 to June 5 you can get a different burger each day at Rockit Bar & Grill in Chicago. The full menu:
Chicago Tribune reviews the 
