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What are the BEST Hamburgers? (List restaurants that serves the best)
Self | March 26, 2004 | PJ-Comix

Posted on 03/26/2004 4:45:33 PM PST by PJ-Comix

I read something yesterday about the 50th anniversary of Burger King. Anyway, I got to thinking about the BEST burgers I've ever eaten (not Whoppers) and several came to mind including the great IN'N'Out cheeseburgers. However, in my opinion NO hamburger can compete in greatness with the UNBELIEVABLE Tommy's chili cheeseburgers served in the L.A. area. They come cover with chili and chili peppers. Add to that large tomatos and of course great meat and that burger has NO competition. Any of you who have ever eaten Tommy's Burgers know that are absolutely the best. My mouth is watering for them right now. Unfortunately South Florida has really lousy burgers (Miami Subs have good burgers but still don't hold a candle to Tommy's Burgers).

Okay, if you think you know of any burger better than Tommy's Burgers, list it here and give reasons why. However, nobody who has ever eaten a Tommy Burger can would even consider another burger as being superior.


TOPICS: Food
KEYWORDS: faq; hamburgers
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To: Lawgvr1955
Yeah, but the best fish sandwiches used to be down in the Florida Keys where even the little diners served fresh fish filets. I dont think there are any of those places left now.
41 posted on 03/26/2004 7:25:37 PM PST by mean lunch lady (Native Floridian)
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To: P.O.E.
You've sold me on trying chicken and waffles. I wouldn't have thought of it in a million years. OBTW, I like you Purity of Essence handle. Strangelove is one of the all time classics.
42 posted on 03/26/2004 7:30:37 PM PST by Lawgvr1955 (I am not completely worthless; I can always serve as a "bad example".)
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To: mean lunch lady
I still believe the little diners and the mom and pop sandwich shops are the best (and worst)places to find food. When I was a kid a local family bar had fish sandwiches to die for. No bun, just a couple slices of white bread, pickle and onion.
43 posted on 03/26/2004 7:34:03 PM PST by Lawgvr1955 (I am not completely worthless; I can always serve as a "bad example".)
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To: Lawgvr1955
"Women sense my power.......but I deny them my essense"

Jack Ripper
44 posted on 03/26/2004 7:50:03 PM PST by international american (Support our troops!! Send Kerry back to Boston!!!!)
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To: international american
I loved Jack Ripper, but Slim Pickens is my favorite, particularly when he was going through the survival kit or when he said they were so low they might harpoon us, but they sure dang ain't gonna see us on any radar.
45 posted on 03/26/2004 7:55:22 PM PST by Lawgvr1955 (I am not completely worthless; I can always serve as a "bad example".)
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To: PJ-Comix
Chris Madrid's burgers in San Antonio. 'Nuff said. Them bad boys are HUGE!
46 posted on 03/26/2004 8:04:25 PM PST by JRios1968 (Service to this Nation...with a smile thrown in for free!)
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To: Lawgvr1955
"Aguy could have a pretty good time in Vegas with all this stuff"

Slim Pickens was great in that film, but so were many others...how about Keenan Wynn..."Know what I think, I think you are a prevert, and you are organizing a whole conspiracy of preverts"
47 posted on 03/26/2004 8:06:32 PM PST by international american (Support our troops!! Send Kerry back to Boston!!!!)
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To: international american
Hey, I'm in Ventura - have never been to Tommy's anywhere, but after reading this thread must find out where it is, in town! However, it'll have to be great to beat In n Out burger and the low carb six dollar burger at Carl's Jr.
48 posted on 03/26/2004 8:40:56 PM PST by Moonmad27 (Imagine our country under the "leadership" of a President Kerry. Scary, isn't it?! Vote W in 04!)
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To: PJ-Comix
I don't think anyone's mentioned Phillips Grocery yet.

http://www.jambands.com/aug99/roadtrip.html

The next day we hit Holly Springs, Mississippi to learn that we had missed the end of the "Kudzu Festival" by two days. We were listening to the Howard Stern talk about his inability to find his way around Long Island as we searched Holly Springs for a special hamburger joint called, "Phillips Grocery." I was wishing my friend Darren Reynolds was with us as he could've shared his architectural knowledge with us as we drove through this interesting town. There was all kinds of interesting architecture dating back as far as the late 1800s in this quaint little town. One of the many friendly locals told us the restaurant we were searching for was hard to find, so he let us follow him there. Phillips Grocery is a throwback if there ever was one. It's in a little shot gun shack right next to an active railroad. Inside is a plethora of cultural landmarks dating back as far as the (previous) turn of the century. There were a bunch of old school Coke, Olympia Beer, Beech Nut, and Pear's Soap advertisements. There were also some ancient coolers that soda companies like Royal Crown Cola used to sell back in the forties, and even a Royal Crown thermometer. A John Deere bicycle and a huge hornet's nest were hanging from the ceiling. An old milk pasteurizer sat inches from a recent USA Today article that mentioned this lil' nug of a restaurant. Those who choose to eat in sit on little wooden chairs that are paired up with wire-legged little tables. If you dine alone, you can sit at one of the desk chairs that look like they came out of an old schoolhouse. It seemed like most take their burgers to go as there were more fans than tables in this establishment. The building was built in 1882 as a saloon by a former Confederate soldier who had been a prisoner of war of the Union Army. At the time it was built it was adjacent to the main railroad line between Chicago and New Orleans. There is only one other building of this kind left standing in the country today.

The building we were in was almost torn down when prohibition hit the country in 1919, but it was saved by being turned into a grocery store. The Phillips family purchased the building in 1948, and they began to grill burgers and sell them. Their secret recipe became a quick local favorite, and although they kept "grocery" in the name, the burgers gradually overshadowed the groceries, and today it is a restaurant with a few other items (among them penny candy) available. The grill they cook the burgers on has been in use for 50 years, and the burger I ate from the grill was incredible even though it was a bit over cooked. If you go, I would recommend asking them to cook it "rare" or "medium/rare." The prices are incredibly low, especially for anyone used to Northeast prices. You can get two fat cheeseburgers for the price of a slice of cheese pizza in New York. Jennifer doesn't eat burgers, but she enjoyed her fried green tomatoes and fried okra nonetheless. They say, "we talk southern and we're not as fast as the big chains ­ and everyone here calls our town Holly Spraaangs." When a train came by, the two kids from a family that regularly travels here from Lamar, Mississippi ran outside to wave at the conductors. I suddenly felt as though I was in a time warp. A nice older couple near us were visiting from Washington DC, and had diverted their trip to Holly Springs just to hit this famous burger shack.

I will definitely be going back to that shack just across the railroad track.


49 posted on 03/27/2004 3:28:34 AM PST by Keltik
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To: Lawgvr1955
steak n shake.

BLECH
50 posted on 03/27/2004 4:32:34 AM PST by SendShaqtoIraq
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To: PJ-Comix
Sutter's Mill and Mining Co.

Albany, NY

The Food Big, juicy burgers are the favorite. Build a steerburger with cheese, onions, Canadian bacon--you name it. The wings are outstanding, but vegetarians can find something tasty, too. At lunch, nibble on side dishes while waiting for your burger; rotating choices include chili and hot potato salad, but coleslaw and pickles are always available. Check the dinner-special menu for surprise entrees like sauerbraten.

51 posted on 03/27/2004 8:26:49 AM PST by lysie
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To: P.O.E.
But nothing says "America" to the world like a cheeseburger. And it's a beautiful thing.

And NOTHING says "Los Angeles" like a Tommy's Chiliburger. I just don't see a Tommy's Chiliburger starting in NY or Chicago or Atlanta. It HAD to be L.A..

52 posted on 03/27/2004 10:18:45 AM PST by PJ-Comix (Saddam Hussein was only 537 Florida votes away from still being in power)
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To: deport
After looking at that pic, I'm DYING for a Tommy's Chiliburger. I swear these folks here that never had one just don't know what they are missing. Anybody out there visiting L.A. in the near future MUST try a Tommy's Chiliburger. It is absolutely THE BEST!!!
53 posted on 03/27/2004 10:22:25 AM PST by PJ-Comix (Saddam Hussein was only 537 Florida votes away from still being in power)
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To: Moonmad27
Hey, I'm in Ventura - have never been to Tommy's anywhere, but after reading this thread must find out where it is, in town!

Please report back to this thread what your FIRST impressions of the Tommy's Chiliburgers are.

54 posted on 03/27/2004 10:23:56 AM PST by PJ-Comix (Saddam Hussein was only 537 Florida votes away from still being in power)
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To: PJ-Comix
In Texas, its a close 3-way race.

Whataburgers, Sonic & the local Dairy Queen.

All use Texas beef and have very high standards.

Hamburger w/tomato, lettuce and nothing else....MMmmmmmmm.

In so cali...many local places to choose from. Tommys is good, but too much other stuff on their chili-cheese burger. Obscures the taste of the meat.

55 posted on 03/27/2004 1:16:34 PM PST by Khurkris (Ranger On...)
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To: Khurkris
In so cali...many local places to choose from. Tommys is good, but too much other stuff on their chili-cheese burger. Obscures the taste of the meat.

APOSTATE!!! The "other stuff" doesn't obscure the taste of the meat. Instead it BLENDS with the meat. Tommy's Chili isn't made to be eaten separately. It is SUPPOSED to be on the burger. Also I LOVE those giant cuts of beefsteak tomatoes. Not just the taste but it also gives the Chiliburger just the right "feel."

56 posted on 03/27/2004 1:27:32 PM PST by PJ-Comix (Saddam Hussein was only 537 Florida votes away from still being in power)
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To: PJ-Comix; Miss Marple
Krystal Hamburgers...(only in the South)..

..and Johnny Rocket...elsewhere.

57 posted on 03/27/2004 2:11:47 PM PST by Guenevere (..., .Press on toward the goal!)
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To: international american
I went to the UseNet archives for commentaries about Tommy's Chiliburgers. Here are some sample posts:

As for a Bay Area equivalent to Tommy's, I haven't found anything even close. There are good burgers to be had here, but not the Tommy's-style chiliburger.

still looking for a chiliburger in the nashville area that competes with Tommy's in L.A.. any suggestions??

Love it or not, you have to agree that the chiliburger is to L.A. what the Cheesesteak is to Philadelphia, The Pizza is to Chicago, etc. and that Tommy's is a local institution akin to Geno's Steaks in Philly.

The Tommy's burger is wonderful creation (it's irreducibly complex and could not have come about without intelligent design)

When they would not let Nikita into Disneyland he and Nixon went to Tommy's for a chili burger.....

There is a large and very popular burger chain in the L.A. area known as Tommy's. They serve the absolute best damn chili burgers you will ever eat in your life.

For those who don't know, Tommy's Burgers makes the best chili burgers. They are the messy and greasy and sloppy but boy are they good. They first thing I learned about eating a Tommy's burger is that you have to pick up a LOT of napkins! Absolutely fabulous! Makes my mouth water already!

58 posted on 03/27/2004 2:20:01 PM PST by PJ-Comix (Saddam Hussein was only 537 Florida votes away from still being in power)
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To: Guenevere
Krystal Hamburgers...(only in the South)..

I've eaten them. Good but, sorry, they just don't compare to Tommy's Chiliburgers.

59 posted on 03/27/2004 2:21:22 PM PST by PJ-Comix (Saddam Hussein was only 537 Florida votes away from still being in power)
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To: PJ-Comix
I have had a Tommy's burger. The meat had a piece of bone or tooth in it. I will pass on your favorite burger and go with the Wimpy or Brownie burger.
60 posted on 03/27/2004 4:14:57 PM PST by Hillary's Lovely Legs (I am trying to stop an outbreak here and you are driving the monkey to the airport!)
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