The weird and wonderful side of the burger
After some extensive research, here is our own run-down of the world’s most unusual hamburgers, singular from one another:
1. “Absolutely Ridiculous Burger” from Mallie’s Sports Bar and Grill, Michigan
If you are a burger lover and a hearty eater at that, then this place might be your burger heaven — Mallie’s Sports Bar and Grill located in Southgate, Michigan. It serves huge burgers as part of its menu. The restaurant’s biggest burger creation yet is the “Absolutely Ridiculous Burger” which was unveiled on May 30 2009. At that time it weighed 84.3 kilograms (equivalent to 185.8 lbs), making it the biggest commercially available burger tabbed by the Guinness Book of World Records.
2. The $777 burger
One of the most unusual burgers can be also found at Le Burger Brasserie in Las Vegas, Nevada. The restaurant’s signature dish is its $777 burger that consists of main ingredients: Kobe beef and Maine lobster, two of the most exepensive food sources and especially meant for upscale type of cooking and dining. The inclusion of the Maine lobster makes it even more unusual. The burger is then topped with caramelized onions, prosciutto (an Italian dry-cured ham) and Brie cheese.
3. Burgers with truffles
Another gourmet burger is the creation of celebrity chef Daniel Bouloud. Sometimes called the “Royale” double truffle burger, it consists of ground sirloin stuffed with foie gras, off-the-bone short ribs braised in red wine and black truffles. For all of the burger’s premium quality ingredients, the price tag comes out as no surprise – $120.
4. Biggest burger ever yet
Back to the biggest burger department – the Black Bear Casino Resort near Carlton, Minnesota, holds the record of the biggest artery-clogger. Its bacon cheeseburger measured 10 feet in diameter and weighed 2,014 pounds (or 914 kgs.). Its toppings consisted of 60 pounds of bacon, 50 pounds each for lettuce and onions, and 40 pounds each for cheese and pickles. Guinness Book of World Records made this confirmation on September 2, 2012.
5. Black burger in Thailand
Casper Burger is a fast food restaurant located in Bangkok, Thailand. Like other fast food joints, it serves primarily burgers and fries but of wide variety. But their weirdest food item yet is the Beef Black Burger. The rest of the ingredients are ordinary enough — ground beef (100% ko khun beef), relish, tomato sauce and Dijon mustard. But be prepared to be flabbergasted by the buns: they’re black. It is because these buns are treated and flavored with (gasp!) squid ink, which gives the burger a bit of a sea-salty taste.
6. A healthy burger in Tokyo
Still on the Asian hamburgers theme. Japan wants to get burgers out of its unhealthy reputation by giving them a curious (but agreeable) recipe, courtesy of the fast food chain R Burgers. Its burgers have natural salts and are filled with fresh veggies, now that’s really healthy but not-so-out-of-ordinary, just yet. Until you discover about the buns. They’re steamed (similar to Chinese salapao) instead of baked, and have been added with marine collagen. Yep, collagen is that something you treat on your skin to make it supple and younger-looking.
7. Cheeseburger in a can
One of the most bizarre concepts in the field of burgerdom comes out of the can. Literally. The cheeseburger-in-a-can is invented in Germany. And since it is the birthplace of the hamburger, it seems appropriate that they have the right to come up with such a thing. German food company Trekking Mahlzeiten (or Trek’N Eat) is specializing instant meals meant for outdoor activities such as camping. All you have to do is place the can in a pan or pot filled with water, and wait for the water to boil in about 10 minutes. And then… voila! You’ve got a cheeseburger in the middle of the woods. The burger, complete with sesame seed buns (really!) is pre-cooked, so it doesn’t have to take long to prepare it. According to sources, this product is also available in the US, so you might spot it at grocery stores near you and try it out of curiosity.
8. Heart attack on a plate #1
If you want to chow a hamburger and a doughnut in one, you may want to try the Luther burger. It is named so because it is reported to be the late singer Luther Vandross’ favorite. It also comes with other different names such as the doughnut burger and Krispy Kreme Cheeseburger. The origins of the burger are still disputed, although it is widely believed that a suburban bar in Decatur, Georgia called Mulligan’s may be the original creator of the Luther burger. The dish consists of black Angus beef patty, cheese, and two strips of bacon sandwiched between two deep-fried Krispy Kreme glazed doughnuts. Some variations have fried eggs in them. A heart attack on a plate!
9. Heart attack on a plate #2
Still on the subject of cardiologist’s worst nightmare, there’s a burger joint in Las Vegas, Nevada called Heart Attack Grill, which is brutally candid about its foods being really, really unhealthy. Thus, the restaurant dubs its signature burger the Quadruple Bypass Burger whose ingredients include about 20 bacon slices which aren’t drained from the cooking fat as the burger is served — the ultimate recipe for cardiac arrest. Heart Attack Grill also serves other half-pound patty burgers such as the “Single Bypasss”, “Double Bypass” and the “Triple Bypass” burgers.
10. Heart attack on a plate #3
It seems a few more people are experimental about their burgers. Another unusual spin of the hamburger is the “cinnaburger”. As you may have guessed it, large cinnamon rolls from baked goods store Cinnabon are used instead of regular buns. It’s reported that some food blogger came up with this unusual burger idea, which doesn’t only clog your arteries but also raise sugar levels in your blood. Now that’s a “double combo” meal.
Conclusion
There are many other unusual hamburgers, but we think that we’ve picked the most out-of-this-world burgers, just yet. If we’ve still never satisfied your curiosity, we recommend you to try some of these burgers in the list. But don’t forget to exercise your caution, no matter how adventurous you are – some of these can pack a wallop!