Atlanta etc.: Marilyn Wolf's Food Blog and Restaurant Blog

The name Just Hamburgers was particularly appealing around dinner time. The restaurant is located behind Kentucky Oaks Mall in Paducah. The service was efficient and staff friendly. I ordered a classic double burger and was rewarded with the classic burger taste that I craved. The meat was filled with umami and just the right texture. The bun was soft, big enough to complement the meat but not so big as to compete. I also snagged a couple of excellent onion rings. This restaurant is a hidden gem, clearly decided to the craft of burgers. Thanks, folks!

I drove right past Jim's Burger Haven so how could I not stop? (I did pass by a well-known Korean BBQ spot; just another excuse to come back.) Jim's has been around for years and still offers a classic burger experience. Nothing fancy, just satisfying. And pretty darn big, too. Their burger is huge and comes with a good assortment of adornments. I ordered the special that came with excellent fries and included that delicious chocolate shake. Everything was very reasonably priced. The food was great, the service and atmosphere were very friendly. It's easy to see why they have been here so long.

Justin and I met for burgers and proposal planning at Dino's in South Lincoln. The staff made sure he had his usual table and everyone was very nice. We started with chips and a creamy nacho sauce. I ordered the burger bunless. I wish that the lettuce had been used to wrap the patty a la In-n-Out but the Nebraska beef was excellent and wonderfully prepared. The fries with a little rosemary were flavorful and comforting.

I wanted to cap my first day in Copenhagen with a satisfying, simple meal. A burger at Cock's & Cow fit the bill. I started with a mini salad. The dressing was tangy and quite tasty. I ordered my burger bunless; I compensated with some cheese and bacon. The result was meaty and satisfying.

Our meeting took a break for lunch at Hopdoody, located on the Pacific Coast Highway in Redondo Beach. The theme is customized burgers. I seem to have been too hungry to grab a photo of my order, but it was a basic burger served protein style. The result was satisfyingly meaty. The lettuce wrap presentation was also done nicely.

I enjoyed a great Chile burger at Carmen Cantina. The beef is wagyu and is laced with jalapeno peppers. The result was both juicy and with a nice kick of heat. The jalapenos were very nicely balanced with the beef. The fries were great, too. I ordered my burger protein style but the standard delivery is on a rich brioche bun.

I hit the ground in Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show. I hadn't had much to eat but I didn't want to spend a lot of time on a meal. In-n-Out Burger turned out to be an excellent solution. My double-double burger protein style (two patties, two slices of cheese, no bun) was flavorful and juicy. My fries were also excellent. Their style is more old fashioned---thinner and seemingly without a coating. Everything I needed for the afternoon.

I stopped by Tucker Meat Market to try one of their burgers. I asked for protein style, which isn’t their typical style, but they accommodated me nicely. Here is my beauty. It was huge and delicious. Using freshly ground beef clearly makes a difference: the taste is beefier, the texture is looser. It turns out that ground beef isn’t supposed to feel like Play-Doh in your mouth. The burger’s aftermath left a huge smear of wonderful juice across my face. I also picked up a steak to wet age. I will report on that later.

I decided to try grinding my own beef. This exercise goes beyond simple do-it-yourselfism or a desire to use as many KitchenAid mixer accessories as possible. Ground beef is much more exposed to air than are larger cuts. Waiting to grind the meat until it is ready to cook helps to keep it in the best shape possible as it hits the pan or grill. I bought some chuck roast, saved a chunk, and cut the rest, about one pound, into fairly small chunks. I had kept my grinder in the freezer---keeping the grinder cold helps to avoid smearing the meat into a paste. I pulled it out, attached it to the mixer head, and put in the meat. The first few pieces of meat required some pushing to get them into the grinder mechanism. But once the process started, the meat fed itself into the grinder neatly. However, the process moved slowly, even with the mixer at medium high speed. Unfortunately, freezer cooling doesn’t last all that long. The meat eventually started to smear into a light pink pas...

Bluetop is a relatively recent addition to the historic Chamblee (vieux Chamblee?) scene. The menu is modern, de/reconstructed burgers and craft beer. They did a great job of repurposing and renovating their old garage. The service was extremely welcoming and helpful. Even though the burgers come with a side of chips, I decided to order an extra bowl for starters. They are excellent. The Yukon gold flavor comes through very nicely, a noticeable difference from typical chips. They come with a healthy dose of salt that I think really drives their chippiness home. My burger was an exemplar of the form. This is a double-barreled, two patty burger with great meat. The Bibb lettuce was excellent. The condiments rounded out the burger's taste and juiciness. I was also very impressed with the chocolate fudge cake. Its texture and density were very reminiscent of fudge but without losing its cakiness. Very rich, very chocolaty. Its moistness made sure that every crumb stuck ...

Grant has said good things about Martin's, which has several locations around town. A fly-by during lunch time gave me the opportunity to orbit and land the Martin's on Jimmy Carter Boulevard. This is my deluxe burger, which did not disappoint. The quarter-pound patty was hand formed and cooked with just a bit of char around the edge. The deluxe toppings were fresh. The bun was pretty good and gave a platform for a mayonnaise-style sauce. The result was just sloppy enough to be fun without embarrassing myself. The result was a very satisfying burger experience.

I needed a quick dinner before I boarded my plane at the Delta wing of DCA. I had never before tried Good Stuff Eatery, tucked into the corner, so I decided to give it a try. Here is my basic burger with all of the trimmings. It gave me a satisfying burgery experience: meaty, a bit of carmelization, good texture.

I was in the mood for meat for lunch and 4 Lb. Diner satisfied me. It took me awhile to parse their logo and figure out their name. Inside, I found a brand spanking new version of a classic diner. I pulled up a seat at the counter and was greeted with warmth and efficiency. I enjoyed watching the cooks work. This is my bleu cheese burger. The cheese is packed into the middle of the patty. A little more cheese would have been fun but overall this was an exemplary burger. The salad was good, too.

Sugar 'n Spice is a fixture in central Spartanburg. The sign alone makes a visit worthwhile. The line out the door testifies to the community's affection for this place, which has been here since 1961. The souvlaki on the menu testifies to the owners' Greek roots. But most of the menu is burgers and dogs. This is a hamburger all in (I think that's the term), including onion rings, fries, cole slaw, and pickle slices. The onion rings hit my plate just seconds after they were pulled from the fryer. The food here is comfort food, not gourmet, but everything was good. The hit of the palte was the cole slaw. I am not normally a creamy cole slaw person, but this version was just milky enough without being sloppy. The finely chopped greens gave it a great texture. And here is an inside view of the burger.

True Burger is a relatively recent and welcome addition to the Des Moines airport. It is located past security and opens fairly early so I was able to catch a satisfying meal before the flight. The space is very large with huge windows; the old style restaurant-with-a-view is making a comeback at airports. This is my deconstructed burger; sorry, I got carried away before I remembered to take the photo. The standard burger comes with one patty, I doubled up. The basic toppings are free and they have several fancy, upcharge toppings. The burger was just what I needed---hearty. The burger comes with a choice of fries and I went with sweet potato. They were very well prepared---crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and piping hot. I really enjoyed them.

Blue Creek Farmhouse is at the intersection that is Hollywood GA, located on U. S. 23. This little town is at the edge of the mountains; this area seems to have quite a few pleasant surprises that I need to explore further. The establishment offers a variety of preserves and fresh local foods that seem to be aimed at travelers. But the clientele for the restaurant was resolutely local when I visited. The workers greeted several patrons by name. The restaurant is of the order-at-the-counter variety and with a simple menu---sandwiches, burgers, some BBQ---but it promises fresh, local, farm-to-table ingredients. My burger took some 25 minutes to arrive but once it did, it was pretty tasty. The bun was lightly toasted. All the toppings---tomato, lettuce, onion---were very fresh. The meat was freshly ground and made by hand into a patty. It came out medium well but still very juicy.

Holy Cow is Switzerland's answer to the custom burger craze. It doesn't offer as many options, instead posting a wide range of burger configurations. This is my Big Cheese. They use one thick patty rather than the two thin ones common in the US. Great cheese (this is Switzerland, after all). Bun wasn't bad but a little more crust would have been good. I do have one complaint---their constant use of the word "salad" in reference to stuff on the burger. No red-blooded American would use the S-word in reference to anything on a burger. And that is why the USA, land of the free and home of the brave, remains the world leader in burger technology.

When my plane parked at the gate across from Fly Burger right at dinner time, I took the cosmic hint and tried it. I was able to get a table right away, although not everyone was so lucky. Service was very friendly but the kitchen seemed a little disorganized. I ordered the protein cheeseburger. The meat was nice and juicy, the bleu cheese creamy. It came with only one lettuce leaf per side, which isn't quite as effective as Inn N Out's multiple-leaf system. My cole slaw was a little tangy and a nice complement.

I used my trip to Tucson to do something that has been on my list for quite some time---revisit In-N-Out Burger, the legendary Southern California burger chain. You have to be in the West to eat at In-N-Out; the owners keep careful tabs on the freshness of their ingredients and don't allow locations to be too far from their warehouses. As you can see, the place has an old fashioned, bustling vibe. The staff is unerringly friendly and chipper. In-N-Out has an extensive secret menu. Some of the items are over-the-top but some are quite healthy. This is my Double-Double Protein Style. Double-Double is a style of burger: two patties, two slices of cheese. The Protein Style version replaces the bun with pieces of lettuce, efficiently trimmed. Protein Style was introduced by the owners to give themselves a lower-calorie option. This is a high-quality fast food burger. All the ingredients are of high quality, fresh, and tasty. The patty tastes and chews like meat (imagine th...

Ponce City Market is slowly coming on line. H&F Burger , the latest outpost of the nationally-known Holeman and Finch, has been open for a couple of weeks now. As you can see, the setup is similar to that of the original Holeman and Finch. This location, however, ismore oriented towards takeout service with a counter up front. I think I spied Chef Linton Hopkins in the kitchen. Their meat is prominently displayed in front of the takeout line. Looks great... The menu is pretty straighforward. None of this design-your-own-burger stuff for Chef Hopkins. They also have a large menu of alcoholic beverages. The service was very friendly, but I was given an estimate of 10 minutes waiting time that turned out to be wildly optimistic. But the result of the wait was a very, very good burger. The meat lives up to the promise of the butchery window: juicy, beefy, and with just enough char around the edges. The American cheese is rich but unfussy. The bun gives the carbohydrate co...