On Serious Eats, we've got a bit of a running joke about all the ways in which Food Network superstar Paula Deen is trying to kill us (see P.D.I.T.T.K.U. Parts 1, 2, and 3). Introducing the Lady's Brunch Burger, her doughnut-bun burger. Sure, we've championed doughnut burgers on A Hamburger Today before, and Ms. Paula's isn't all that much different:
Sandwiched between sticky glazed doughnuts? Check.
Bacon? Check.
But the Lady steps it over the top by adding ... a FRIED EGG!
The nearest Whataburger: 13880 US Highway 19 S, Thomasville GA 31792; 229-551-9377. The nearest In-N-Out: As the crow flies, it would be in Tucson, Arizona, but as a human flies, via a jet, it's in Phoenix, about 21.2 miles from Sky Harbor Int'l Airport: 21001 North Tatum Boulevard, Phoenix AZ 85050
The Shake Shack, as it is famously and whimsically called, has now become an urban attraction of such renown that you could probably raise, slaughter and cook your own cow in the time it takes to get a burger and fries there. The last time I visited, I was offered one of those plastic gizmos that look like stun guns and was told it would throb when my order was ready. I stared disconsolately at it for 30 minutes before it made a peep, by which time I was nearly ready to give up.
Like many Brown Zoners, my feelings for the Shake Shack have progressed from enthusiasm and pride to distant affection and veiled dislike. I resent that it has relegated my adored Madison Square Park to being a backdrop to a fry joint.
The Shake Shack; southeast corner of Madison Square Park, 23rd Street and Madison Avenue
I missed this last week, but apparently The Artist Formerly Known as Prince Who Is Once Again Known as Prince had Pop Burgers served at a performance in the oh-so-tony Hamptons on Friday. Also from the same "We Hear ..." item in the New York Post was an aside that Pop Burger, the mini-burger burger joint in Chelsea, will be opening a location at Fifth Avenue and 58th Street in September. Seems like a gratuitous mention to me.Pop Burger; 58-60 Ninth Avenue, New York NY 10011; 212-414-8686
AHT reader Nick alerted me to this video here, saying, "David Hasselhoff celebrates national hamburger month."
Heh, heh. That's pretty funny.
But, as Elvis Presley once sang, "Don't be cruel to a heart that's true." And who but Michael Knight has a truer heart? Therefore, instead of embedding the video right here in this entry, I am making you click the link above to view Mr. Hasselhoff, a man who has battled alcoholism, eating a hamburger as he falls off the wagon. (It's not like you haven't seen it already, though.)
As a fan of Hasselhoff (Knight Rider was brilliant), I would like to believe that this statement was made with all sincerity:
Because of my honest and positive relationship with my daughters, who were concerned for my well-being, there was a tape made that night to show me what I was like. I have seen the tape. I have learned from it and I am back on my game.
I would also like to know where that hamburger came from.
Posted by Adam Kuban, February 27, 2007 at 2:16 PM
Oh, the stars. They too love the burgers. Who'd have thought "the Queen" (Helen Mirren) was up for a bit of the ol' In-N-Out? In what seems to be a Hollywood tradition, a stand providing the famous California treat was set up at the back of the Vanity Fair Oscar party.
Friend of AHT Fred Schwarz emailed us with this heads-up. —The Mgmt.
Here’s the opening paragraph from an interview with Norah Jones in the March issue of Blender (not available online as far as I can tell):
Norah Jones could really go for a hamburger. Nestled in an armchair in a downtown Manhattan recording studio on a wintry afternoon, she has a craving no mere soy substitute can satisfy. "I’ve been on a health kick lately," she says, patting her tummy. "Right now I’m trying to make tofu taste good. But I love me some burgers. I used to live over by this place Corner Bistro, in the West Village? Man, that’s a damn good burger. I’d end up there at four in the morning, really, really drunk. You don’t even remember it till you wake up the next morning—like, why do I smell like onions?”
As a bonus, Mr. Schwarz wrote us a little Norah Jones–burger limerick:
There once was a singer named Norah
Who said, "I could surely go for a
Yummy burger. Bean curd
Tastes completely absurd
And I'm so tired of vegetable pakora.
Thanks, Fred!
CORNER BISTRO Address: 331 West 4th Street, New York City [map] Phone: 212-242-9502 Website: cornerbistro.citysearch.com
Posted by Adam Kuban, January 23, 2007 at 11:27 AM
The National Restaurant Association is burning up over a Nationwide insurance ad whose tagline is "Life comes at you fast," that depicts K-Fed (aka Fed-ex) going from rapping to burger flipping:
The NRA, in a letter to Jerry Jurgensen, the CEO of Nationwide, said the ad "would give the impression that working in a restaurant is demeaning and unpleasant."
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 15, 2006 at 10:32 AM
From People.com:
During her stay, [Britney Spears] paid a visit to longtime family friend Nyla Price, 55, owner of Nyla's Burger Basket in nearby Osyka, Miss. – a Spears family favorite – along with her kids and other friends and family.
Rachael Ray's got TV shows, a magazine, and who knows what else. Oh ... how 'bout a burger joint? Media blogger Dylan Stableford has the deets:
Ray told an audience at the American Magazine Conference in Phoenix on Sunday she will open the yet-untitled "burger joint" in New York, based on 190 burger recipes she has cooked up. "We'll rotate them," she said. "Tuna burgers, swordfish burgers, turkey burgers," Ray said, "I like anything you can pick up with your hands — portable food." Ray said she also plans to open fast-food versions of the flagship.
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 13, 2006 at 11:10 AM
Daisy Martinez, host of the public television cooking show Daisy Cooks, recently served as a judge for the Sutter Home Build a Better Burger contest. If you want the lowdown on judging such a contest, click over to her site. A clip:
We each were served half of 10 burgers, and those burgers were separated into 2 classes: Alternative and Beef. The winner of the Alternative category would win $10,000 and the winner of the Beef category would win $50,000. As luck would have it, I was so busy tasting burgers that I didn’t photograph them, but the winner of the alternative burger was Elizabeth Bennett and her Opa! Burger, which featured flavors of the Mediterranean (lamb, feta, oregano, and the secret ingredient: 2 slices of soppresata!), and the winner of the beef burger was Camilla Saulsbury and her Born in Berkeley Burgers (showcasing lemon-grilled fennel and arugula-fig topping, teleme cheese, and crispy bacon). Not too shabby!
nycslice: something must be on TV nycslice: about burgers nycslice: lots of traffic to AHT in the last hour hamburger matty*: ha ha. why? hamburger matty: oh, awesome. nycslice: all searches about "best burger in america" hamburger matty: that's funny. nycslice: or "20 burgers to try before you die" nycslice: i wonder if it's a repeat of the Oprah best burger show hamburger matty: oh, it might be. hamburger matty: that would be a good guess. hamburger matty: http://www2.oprah.com/index.jhtml nycslice: oh yeah. it is! nycslice: Dude. The Counter's business totally spiked b/c of her hamburger matty: amazing. nycslice: did you read any of those stories? nycslice: their business went crazy nycslice: and they were able to open more locations hamburger matty: i'm not surprised. hamburger matty: she is a machine. nycslice: no kidding nycslice: it's INSANE nycslice: she's like the Slashdot or Boing Boing of the real world hamburger matty: ha ha. nycslice: definitely hamburger matty: that should be her tagline. hamburger matty: "Oprah: the Boing Boing of the Real World"
This is a world away from that crazy late-'90s incident in which the Texas cattle industry sued Oprah for defamation.
Did you know Bryan Adams used to wash dishes at a North Vancouver restaurant noted for its unique burgers? Here's the story ...
Last night, I wrote the following email:
Dear Tomahawk Restaurant,
Several weeks ago, one of A Hamburger Today's readers sent in a photo of her Skookum Chief burger, proclaiming it the best burger in North Vancouver. I posted her photo on my site, and, lo and behold, just this evening I get a comment from another reader—one of your former employees, in fact—who said, "What a surprise to see the Skookum featured on the web! I used to work at Tomahawk in 1980 and I tell you, the burgers are GREAT! The urban legend is that Bryan Adams used to work there as a dishwasher! Ah, the memories!"
So, I'm wondering, Tomahawk Restaurant, to the best of your knowledge, did Bryan Adams ever work there?
And today, I received this reply from Tomahawk owner Chuck Chamberlain:
Yes, it is true Bryan Adams worked here at the Tomahawk as a dishwasher. I also had the pleasure of working with him. He informed me that he was only working to save enough money to buy a guitar and some spare strings, as he was going to be a rock and roll star. And the rest is history.
Amazing. Rock on, Tomahawk. Rock on, burgers. Rock on, Bryan Adams.
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 12, 2006 at 9:59 PM
From what we at A Hamburger Today have read, the stars are loath to eat in public lest a paparazzo shap a photo of them mid munch. But trying to snarf some McD's in the privacy of your own car looks even crazier. To wit, Ben Affleck, driving while dining.
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 11, 2006 at 11:42 AM
What follows is from a New York magazine Q&A with fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier, who made a rare appearance on these shores last week. Mr. Gaultier is perhaps best known (as least in my mind) as the creator of Madonna's cone-shaped bra [scroll down to third photo] for her 1990 "Blonde Ambition" tour.
What do you want to do while you're here?
I want to eat a hamburger first. A real big, good hamburger. I want to go to a vintage shop for clothes. I want to walk in Soho to see galleries. I want to see movies. I want to see the one with Andr� 3000 of OutKast. And I want to see The Devil Wears Prada. And I want to see a musical. Which one do you recommend? It must be visually nice—dazzling design, nice choreography.
Anyone know if and where Mr. Gaultier dined on l'hamburger?
Postscript: On Friday Gaultier woke up, went vintage shopping in the East Village and Soho, visited Commes de Garçon and Balenciaga, ate a burger at the Soho Grand, finally finished off the night with a double-header of Idlewild and The Devil Wears Prada. He is a man of his word.
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 7, 2006 at 3:20 PM
A little bitta the ol' In-N-Out for you, Paris? ...
Celebrity Paris Hilton was arrested in Hollywood early on Thursday for suspected drunk driving, but she said the incident had been blown out of proportion and that she may have been speeding to get a late-night burger....
"I had one margarita (and) was starving because I had not eaten all day," she said. "Maybe I was speeding a little bit and I got pulled over. I was just really hungry and I wanted to have an In-N-Out Burger."
Shouldn't she have been speeding to get a Carl's Jr.? ...
If you could go back in time, what period in history would you like to live in, and why?
Wallace: There's no doubt that I'd like to live back in the Happy Days era -- back in the '50s -- back with Fonzie.
I think it was the hot rods and the challenge of 'how fast could you go?' It was the drag racing and stopping to get you some cheeseburgers and somebody coming up on roller skates to take your order.
"It's just like if I opened up a restaurant I'd sell hamburgers and cold beer - they'll never go out of style. That's what appealed to me." —George Thoroughgood, on why he plays the blues
According to last Friday's Gawker, there was an In-N-Out truck doing its part to make the Vanity Fair Oscar party the place to be. Now comes photographic evidence of one of the party's attendees, Beck, eating some of In-N-Out's tasty wares.
Posted by Adam Kuban, February 14, 2006 at 12:51 PM
Call it a new burger war:
... When asked if she was planning on starting a family now she has tied the knot with motocross racer Carey Hart, Pink fumed: "F**k no. I'm not gonna do a Britney and pop out some kids. I'm not a Happy Meal. My husband's got the burger, but he's not getting the fries and shake to go with it."
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 28, 2005 at 1:26 PM
"When you're 25, you can eat hamburgers and pizza and drink beer and stay out all night and come out the next day and drink a couple cups of coffee and just play. If I did that today, my heart would stop and I'd need a stretcher and an IV. I started kind of noticing that in my early 30's, and now that I'm in my mid-to-late 30's, it's even that much more." — Mike Piazza, catcher, New York Mets
As Bodies Mull Retirement, 2 Aging Baseball Stars Play On [New York Times]
Photograph by Sue Ogrocki/ReutersThanks to Jen for the heads-up on this one.
ARCHIVES > AHT REVIEWS>CALIFORNIA>LOS ANGELES Seeing as the Fourth of July is the biggest burger-munching day for Americans, I could hardly stand to face it alone. Using the scant wits I could muster up, I employed a scheme certain to get ravishingly gorgeous AHT senior editor Honey P. to Los Angeles for the weekend. Knowing Honey P’s heart to be as deep as the livid pools of amber she refers to as her "eyes," I placed an urgent call to her on behalf of Irv’s Burgers, the legendary West Hollywood burger stand which has been fighting to stay alive amid plans for neighborhood redevelopment. I told Honey P. she must help me help Irv’s, and before I knew it, the kind, sweet soul was westbound from New York City for four wonderful days.
The sad news is that we never made it to Irv's. My search for something to surf on during a flat weekend and her desire to explore L.A.'s farthest reaches kept us too busy. The good news is that Irv's recently won a battle to overturn the designation that would see it demolished, though it's not in the clear yet. However, Honey P. and I did find ourselves at Santa Monica's The Counter, a popular designer diner with a unique Build Your Own Burger concept.
Entering the sleek eatery, with its Emeco chairs, giant open garage door, and photo exhibition of the Dogtown skate days, we were seated immediately by one of the Counter's friendly and gorgeous young waitresses (ours even scribed a smiley face and heart on our bill). Meeting us at our table were small clipboards holding smaller pencils and a checklist of everything a control freak could desire while crafting a perfect burger.
The Counter is no doubt cool, bringing a bevy of families, dates, and coworkers to the old-school-classic-meets-contemporary space. Candles line the doorway, and a long bar sits opposite a roomful of satisfied-looking guests. Browsing the menu, we found a great selection of interesting, adventurous treats to indulge in. Fried dill pickle chips, a cold meatloaf sandwich, PB & J, and something called "taco turkey" bit our interest. But the burger possibilities seemed endless. In addition to its six signature burgers and the build-your-own device, there was burger-in-a-bowl for the carbophobic, mini burgers, shakes and 50-50 onion ring–french fry combos.
We decided to build the burger of our dreams, a challenge given the Counter's seemingly endless combinations. Diners are given a choice of beef, turkey, or veggie in 1/3 pound, 2/3 pound, and 1 pound weights. Ten choices of cheese are available, from Greek feta and Danish blue to horseradish cheddar and herb goat cheese. You can choose four toppings (additional ones are 50¢ each), which range from standards like red onion and lettuce to the exotic (for burgers, anyway), such as dried cranberries, grilled pineapple, and roasted corn and black bean salsa. $1 premium toppings include avocado, fried egg, Black Forest ham, and honey-cured bacon. Next comes the sauce section, with a staggering display of 23, ranging from apricot sauce to peanut to sweet barbecue. Bun choices are a bit more limited: English muffin, honey wheat bun, and the traditional style.
I put together something not too unconventional, a 1/3-pounder on a regular bun with jalapeño Jack, a lettuce blend, roasted red peppers, grilled onions, tomaters, and dill pickles with roasted-garlic aioli. Hot-as-a-firecracker-on-the-Fourth Honey P. put together, on a traditional bun, a 1/3-pounder with grilled onions, sautéed mushrooms, Tillamook cheddar, and the same aioli I chose. (You can see her creation toward the top of this entry.) We went with the 50-50 and refillable Cokes, and soaked in the atmosphere. Honey P. was excited to spot actress Jennifer Elsie Cox, who debuted as Jan in the Brady Bunch Movie. Soon, our 50-50 came. The wispy onion rings topped the standard fries by leaps and bounds.
Just a heads up that tonight Morgan Spurlock, also known as the man who was willing to die to save your child from Happy Meals, kicks off his show 30 Days on the FX network.
Riding the wave of activism-by-example that he touched off with his Oscar-nominated film Super Size Me, which featured a lot of burgers, Mr. Spurlock for the next six weeks will conquer as many evils as producers allow. His method? Using die-hard tactics—but with other people walking the plank this time—to teach us (and them) a lesson. These include de-programming fundamentalist zealots, educating a straight man on homosexual domesticity, and turning MADD moms into drunk drivers to really get the point across. OK, we're just goofin' on that last one, but one episode does feature a mother binge-drinking to teach her sorority-girl offspring a lesson.
Interestingly, he told the New York Times that he shopped the idea around to four major networks before FX bit. Mr. "My Liver Loathes Micky D's" only appears in the series premiere, living with his fiancée on minimum wage in Columbus, Ohio [The home of White Castle — Ed.] And, sources tell me that he's been shooting at a "drive-thru burger joint." Whether it's for the show or something else, we're not sure.
Kudos to Mr. Spurlock for not giving up on the world. We love a burger lover who has lofty ideals. As for his vegan honey, well, we'll just pretend we don't know about that.
The verdict, as you know, is in. Jacko is completely free to drink Jesus juice, fondle 'tween cancer victims, and pop all the sedatives he pleases. Tonight, Michael Jackson returns to Neverland, perpetually young playmates, and exotic animals. If you're reading this, you're probably not one of the crazed fans who staked out territory beside the Santa Barbara County courthouse; then again, if you are, be sure to check out nearby Char West after you decamp and head out.
Attempting to understand the beginnings of Mr. Jackson's predilection for pint-sized playmates, filmmaker Dave Greene created Michael Jackson's Secret Childhood, a documentary that aired January 29 on VH1. A major topic of the film is the questionable friendship between Webster star Emmanuel Lewis and Mr. Jackson during their respective heights of fame in the 1980s. In the film, Mr. Lewis's mother told a telling tale in which Jacko pulled a seriously twisted Lolitaesque move and checked into a hotel with Mr. Lewis, claiming the two were father and son. Needless to say, she pretty much put an end to all future playdates.
But Lewis wasn't the only 5-year-old "kin" of Jacko's back then. Former friend and TV-spot burger boy Rodney Allen Rippy also chilled with MJ quite a bit when Rippy wasn't singing his "make life a little easier" song.
If you didn't grow up on the West Coast and so don't know who Rippy is, all I really need to say is that he was the cutest damn kid on television in the '70s (that's him in the photo at right). And, he spent a good 14 years of his life joyously eating Jack in the Box burgers in front of the American public. Strangely enough, when he wasn't playing his part, he was busy dodging a teenage Mr. Jackson.
"Michael used to call my house every single Saturday and talk to me on the phone," Rippy says in the film. "My mom wondered and said, 'You know, I wonder why he doesn't have any friends his own age.' "
Sadly, Rippy, some things never change. Except, of course, those fast food burgers. A few weeks ago Jack in the Box debuted the Ciabatta Burger. Check out the Italian-inspired sandwich and let us know what you think.
Why does A Hamburger Today care? Read it and weep: " ... Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke playing Legos with their son by the snack stand at Madison Square Park ..."
For other folks, the bigger issue here might be whether these two are getting back together or just having a joint-custody jaunt in the park. We're more interested, however, in the "snack stand." We don't know of any other "snack stand" in that park besides the Shake Shack, so we wonder if that child of divorce was building a Legoburgerstand in its shadow.
Pop Burger is still as hot as ever with celebs. According to our fave gossip column, Page Six, Leo DiCaprio and Gisele Bundchen made a casual appearance there last Thursday. They were "chowing down at the counter," proving that beautiful people eat burgers too (at least mini ones). We'd kinda noticed Leo's consumption of something was up, but it's good to know he's chosen to get fat and old on burgers and Bundchen and nothing too notorious. While that would make for better gossip, we were satisfied to also read that comeback comedy king Bill Murray was simultaneously enjoying his time at the neon establishment chewing the fat with owner Roy Liebenthal. (And who can forget Mr. Murray—along with John Belushi and Gilda Radner—in the famous "Cheeseburger, Cheeseburger, Cheeseburger" sketch on Saturday Night Live?)
Determined to become queen of the screens (movie, TV, and computer), Paris Hilton, who has already graced the tube in nothing and next to nothing, turns up in a black Versace-esque swimsuit eating a hamburger in a TV ad today. The commercial is for West Coast chain Carl's Jr. and will be shown in a "Making the Video" style segment on Entertainment Tonight.
But the news doesn't stop there. As she eats the chain's new spicy burger, which is topped with a signature zingy barbecue sauce and fiery fried jalapeños, Ms. Hilton describes the sandwich in the best way she can. You can guess, I won't bother telling you here. Throw in the fact that, during all of this, she's washing a black Bentley to a punked-up version of the song "I Love Paris in the Springtime" and all we can say is that either Carl is having a midlife crisis or Paris just really is "that hot."
Brad Haley, the burger chain's executive vice president of marketing, explains the shameless scheme:
"The ad plays more like a music video than a typical television commercial. And the message is very simple: Paris, the situation, and the Spicy BBQ Six Dollar Burger are 'hot.' Paris was chosen to star in the ad because she is an intriguing cultural icon and the 'It Girl' of the moment. She fascinates Carl's Jr.'s most loyal customers, 'young, hungry guys,' as well as 'young hungry gals.' "
The commercial will run on the West Coast and will also be edited to air in the Midwest in June for Carl's sister chain, Hardee's. An extended, more scandalous version can be viewed on their site.
Personally, I liked that little star dude, but I guess when it comes to making money, you need a bigger star to get the point across. All we can say is that we hope things don't cool down for Carl anytime soon, 'cause we like their smoky, char-grilled fast-food patties.
Good question: 
AHT reader Nick alerted me to 
Daisy Martinez, host of the public television cooking show Daisy Cooks, recently served as a judge for the Sutter Home 
"When God sees someone hungry, he wants to feed that person, but God doesn’t do that by hamburgers floating down from heaven."
According to last Friday's Gawker, there was an In-N-Out truck doing its part to make the Vanity Fair Oscar party the place to be. Now comes photographic evidence of one of the party's attendees, Beck, eating some of In-N-Out's tasty wares.
Call it a new burger war:
Seeing as the Fourth of July is the biggest burger-munching day for Americans, I could hardly stand to face it alone. Using the scant wits I could muster up, I employed a scheme certain to get ravishingly gorgeous AHT senior editor 
, which featured a lot of burgers, Mr. Spurlock for the next six weeks will conquer as many evils as producers allow. His method? Using die-hard tactics—but with other people walking the plank this time—to teach us (and them) a lesson. These include de-programming fundamentalist zealots, educating a straight man on homosexual domesticity, and turning MADD moms into drunk drivers to really get the point across. OK, we're just goofin' on that last one, but one episode does feature a mother binge-drinking to teach her sorority-girl offspring a lesson.
Interestingly, he told the New York Times that 
But Lewis wasn't the only 5-year-old "kin" of Jacko's back then. Former friend and TV-spot burger boy 
Pop Burger is still as hot as ever with celebs. According to our fave gossip column, 
Determined to become queen of the screens (movie, TV, and computer), Paris Hilton, who has already graced the tube in nothing and next to nothing, turns up in a black Versace-esque swimsuit eating a hamburger in a TV ad today. The commercial is for West Coast chain 
