In case the greeting card from your mom got lost in the mail, I am pleased to inform you that it is National Cheeseburger Day. Wait, didn’t National Cheeseburger Day happen, like, just a few months ago? No, you big doofus. That was National Hamburger Day (May 28; mark your 2020 calendar). Today is all about hamburgers that for sure have cheese on them, even though hamburgers without cheese are strictly for grumpy Chicago newspaper columnists.
Because National Cheeseburger Day doesn’t exist for much else than the talking about and the thinking about and the eating of cheeseburgers (really, more ritual would help the holiday catch on), we selected six burgers (with cheese) that you should try, if not today, then at your earliest convenience.
The Window at American Beauty
https://www.instagram.com/p/B1MCIcBhd1Q/Stop by the takeout window outside Venice’s long-awaited American Beauty steak house for what might be the best bargain burger on the Westside: a $4 smooshed patty and frizzled onion situation that’s slightly bigger than a slider and comes on a soft Martin’s potato roll. Six bucks will get you a double, which is definitely an upgrade worth making. —Garrett Snyder | 425 Rose Ave., Venice.
Goldburger
https://www.instagram.com/p/B2Cji9phBJz/If you want one of these griddled, smashed-patty wonders, you gotta keep your head on a swivel. Voted best burger at this year’s L.A. Food & Wine Fest, Goldburger pops up all over town, and you have to keep an eye on their Instagram to know where. Burgers aside, they sell some pretty fun merch too. Location varies.
Highly Burger at Highly Likely
https://www.instagram.com/p/BoHaoa5hQTE/Besides serving one of the best sandwiches we ate in 2018, Highly Likely in West Adams has a bitching burger too. Served on a squishy potato bun with a cheddar cheese sauce and a secret sauce, the griddled, grass-fed-beef Highly Burger is highly worth checking out. G’head and make it a double for four bucks extra. 4310 W. Jefferson Blvd., West Adams.
Hippo
The Patty Melt at Tartine Bianco
https://www.instagram.com/p/B2SWkZal3V0/The Manufactory’s casual spot recently suspended dinner service, but if you happen to be there during the day, the patty melt is a must-try. Topped with Russian dressing, sauerkraut, and sautéed onion, the “melt” part of the sandwich is Oglefield cheese, a fruity, sweet raw cows milk cheese from England. 757 S. Alameda St., downtown.
Classic Burger + Fries at the Restaurant at Arts District Firehouse Hotel
https://www.instagram.com/p/B1UwxUcHK7c/Sometimes a classic is just what the doctor ordered (if doctors ordered cheeseburgers, we guess). Available at lunchtime, the Classic Burger has a nice fat patty that’s practically overtaken by melty cheddar on all sides.
RELATED: 4 Plant-Based Cheeseburgers That Rival Their Beef Counterparts
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