Posted 10:02 pm Wednesday, August 29, 2012
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Burgers: I built it my way
This week I asked where your favorite place to go for a burger is and what do you have on that burger to make it complete. Quite a few opinions and answers that appeared were a little strange, but I know better than to call people picky.
I was reminded of the line from the movie “When Harry Met Sally.” Billy Crystal's character says to Meg Ryan's character, “There are two kinds of women: high maintenance and low maintenance. ... You're the worst kind. You're high maintenance but you think you're low maintenance.” She responds by saying, “I just want things the way I want it.”
When it comes to burgers, we are definitely that way — high maintenance and determined to have it the way we want it.
And in this category men are guiltier of being high maintenance than women. The men I spoke to and many who responded to the poll were very specific about their burger toppings and it has to be exactly the way they want it with no debate — even down to the type of onions and cheese and toppings allowed to touch the mayonnaise side of the bread.
It's comical. We share pizzas and agree on those toppings all the time, but I doubt we could ever share a burger or agree on what to put on it. Everyone has a unique plan when it comes to dressing their burger and I pity the waiter who gets it wrong.
My own father was disappointed that I didn't include his favorite burger place in the poll and complained the poll didn't have enough choices. He had a couple of choices that relied strictly on circumstances.
I was reminded of the line from the movie “When Harry Met Sally.” Billy Crystal's character says to Meg Ryan's character, “There are two kinds of women: high maintenance and low maintenance. ... You're the worst kind. You're high maintenance but you think you're low maintenance.” She responds by saying, “I just want things the way I want it.”
When it comes to burgers, we are definitely that way — high maintenance and determined to have it the way we want it.
And in this category men are guiltier of being high maintenance than women. The men I spoke to and many who responded to the poll were very specific about their burger toppings and it has to be exactly the way they want it with no debate — even down to the type of onions and cheese and toppings allowed to touch the mayonnaise side of the bread.
It's comical. We share pizzas and agree on those toppings all the time, but I doubt we could ever share a burger or agree on what to put on it. Everyone has a unique plan when it comes to dressing their burger and I pity the waiter who gets it wrong.
My own father was disappointed that I didn't include his favorite burger place in the poll and complained the poll didn't have enough choices. He had a couple of choices that relied strictly on circumstances.
His first preference is a burger at home, but if he is out he wants Whataburger because it reminds him of high school. He still goes to the Whataburger on Broadway once a month on cruise night to check out the old cars.
I was surprised he picked a fast-food place. I expected him to say Chili's (my high school favorite), The Shed in Edom or East Texas Burger Company in Mineola. The only time we ever ate fast food growing up was on car trips. And I didn't even go to a Whataburger until I went to college.
In a way, I agree with him because the one time in my life I craved a fast-food burger, it was a Whataburger. It was the first time I came back to Texas after living in Colorado and I couldn't wait to go through the drive-thru. They didn't have Whataburger in Denver and I got tired of eating buffalo burgers.
I believe what makes Whataburger great is the toasted bun and extra mustard. If we are talking about meat, I will always pick a burger at home over a burger at a restaurant.
The other place he mentioned was the Tyler airport. He used to spend a lot of time there when I was younger and would always come home talking about sharing the one-pound burger that was as big as a 12-inch plate with his flying buddies.
I never believed him until one day he took us to the airport and we had this burger. I couldn't believe it was so big and kept wondering where they found such a big bun.
That burger is back on the menu at the Skyline Cafe at the old Pounds Field terminal and the place is as popular now as 30 years ago.
These days, I stick to eating burgers at home. I was happy to see that home was the second most popular vote in the poll. Nothing beats a thick, juicy burger grilled to my definition of perfection with melted cheese, toasted bun, lots of mustard, tomato and my favorite topping – barbecue sauce.
Christine Gardner can be found on Facebook at Christine Gardner Tyler Paper Food and on Twitter and Pinterest @TylerFlavor or send an email to food@tylerpaper.com or write to 410 W. Erwin, Tyler, TX 75702.
I was surprised he picked a fast-food place. I expected him to say Chili's (my high school favorite), The Shed in Edom or East Texas Burger Company in Mineola. The only time we ever ate fast food growing up was on car trips. And I didn't even go to a Whataburger until I went to college.
In a way, I agree with him because the one time in my life I craved a fast-food burger, it was a Whataburger. It was the first time I came back to Texas after living in Colorado and I couldn't wait to go through the drive-thru. They didn't have Whataburger in Denver and I got tired of eating buffalo burgers.
I believe what makes Whataburger great is the toasted bun and extra mustard. If we are talking about meat, I will always pick a burger at home over a burger at a restaurant.
The other place he mentioned was the Tyler airport. He used to spend a lot of time there when I was younger and would always come home talking about sharing the one-pound burger that was as big as a 12-inch plate with his flying buddies.
I never believed him until one day he took us to the airport and we had this burger. I couldn't believe it was so big and kept wondering where they found such a big bun.
That burger is back on the menu at the Skyline Cafe at the old Pounds Field terminal and the place is as popular now as 30 years ago.
These days, I stick to eating burgers at home. I was happy to see that home was the second most popular vote in the poll. Nothing beats a thick, juicy burger grilled to my definition of perfection with melted cheese, toasted bun, lots of mustard, tomato and my favorite topping – barbecue sauce.
Christine Gardner can be found on Facebook at Christine Gardner Tyler Paper Food and on Twitter and Pinterest @TylerFlavor or send an email to food@tylerpaper.com or write to 410 W. Erwin, Tyler, TX 75702.
