Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Hamburger

For Christmas, I got a book called Hamburger America. It's about hamburger places from all around the country.

As I looked through it, I thought the dedication was funny. Here is what it said: To anyone who appreciates a good burger, and to my vegetarian wife, Casey.

Can you imagine being vegetarian while your spouse travels the country sampling hamburgers and practices the same obsession while at home?

So imagine my surprise this morning when on the Hamburger America blog, I see the former vegetarian wife enjoying her first hamburger in 17 years. The look on her face (click here to see) is bliss; the hamburger in her hand is a Green Chile Cheeseburger from the Bobcat Bite.

Welcome home Casey!

I have had a thing for hamburgers since I was a small child. I have fond memories of going up to the window at Tastee Freeze and ordering a sack for our family. We usually got them on a Sunday evening after spending the afternoon visiting friends. My dad would let me have three of them.

I loved family vacations because I could get hamburgers for breakfast at many of the restaurants where we went.

I remember becoming infatuated with the hamburgers from a place called Griffs at 742 South Broadway in Denver. There was something amazing about the mustard they used. I found out it was Kraft and bought a gallon of it, as that was the only way I could get it. Through the years, I would find it on occasion in smaller bottles, sometimes having to buy a case. One time my son Tom scoured the city with phone calls trying to find some for me. We headed way across town on the quest. Even though Griffs is still one of my favorites, I don’t think they use Kraft mustard any more.

Another great place for burgers is Jim's. The original location on south Federal is now called Grandpas (just as good). Their buns are about 6 inches and they smash the meat thin so it cooks up nice and crisp. I would rather have a burger that way instead of the thick ones that some places do. Lettuce, tomato, onions and mustard finish it out. Just like the giant hamburgers at Griffs.

I'm sitting at the park writing this while my kids play...I wonder what’s for dinner.

Philip

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