Life is short, eat good burgers. ~a slogan on one of my many t-shirts
In case you forgot, I love bacon cheeseburgers.
I love them so much, that I dedicated the entire month of December 2018 to the quest of finding the best one in San Antonio.
You remember, Decemburger, right?
If not, here is a little Elda Eats history…
I’ve Always Loved a Good Burger
For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved burgers. I didn’t get them a whole lot when I was a kid, but when I did, it was a real treat!
I always looked forward to putting my hands around a nice, big juicy burger, and preferably one with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and mustard. Extra points if that cheese was real cheddar, and as I got older, double points if the burger had bacon. Triple points if that bacon was super crispy. If the burger came with mayonnaise and the bun had sesame seeds, so be it, although as a kid I judged accordingly and took away points if the bun did have sesame seeds on it. Same for ketchup on the burger. Only McDonald’s can get away with that.
My First Burger Love
For a few years in the early 80’s, my dad was the manager of a few Denny’s restaurants. You remember Denny’s, right? They were—and maybe still are—open twenty-four hours, had nice comfy booths, and were famous for their Grand Slam breakfasts. My siblings and I loved that my dad worked there because it meant that we got to eat there.
At Denny’s, we got to sit in a booth, we got to eat (almost) anything on the menu, and Denny’s was the first place I ever got to order my own iced tea. Believe me, this was a major rite of passage in my family. No longer did I have to drink the glass of milk my mom would order for me, but I could have a tea, with my own lemon wedge. Major life memory for me! (Maybe a subject for another blog post…)
My brothers were all about the pancakes, but not me. I wanted that Denny Burger. I don’t think they still call it that, but that’s what the burger used to be called. It was a full-sized burger (you know, for an adult), perfectly cooked, and I would get it with cheese and add as much mustard as the soft bun could handle. That burger on those beige plates Denny’s served it on, and I was a happy girl. Let my brothers have their pancakes, I was all about the burger.
Fast forward forty years or so, and not much has changed. I’m still all about the burger. Bacon is a must now, but other than that, my standards haven’t changed much. Burger perfection should include a really well-toasted bun, a great tasting beef patty, good cheese that gets really melted, iceberg lettuce, ripe tomatoes, crispy pickles, and a good amount of mustard. Mayonnaise is fine, although I usually don’t add it if it doesn’t already come with it. Oh, and as I mentioned, I need that bacon. The crispier the bacon, the better. “Extra points” are still given for really crispy bacon.
Want to revisit my Decemburger post? You can right here: https://eldaeats.com/decemburger/
Friday!
I haven’t explored this in a blog post yet but I do not have a good metabolism. Weight is a constant issue, and diabetes runs rampant in my family’s blood. So, of course I’d become a food blogger, right??? Of course.
Seriously, though, I try to balance. Since August of 2011, I am a calorie counter. Usually, I count my calories every day. I stay within my daily maximum which keeps my bloodwork excellent and my pants still comfortable enough to wear. Most of the time. The other times? I give myself a cheat meal, or a cheat day. Not every Friday anymore, but more often than not, Friday is one of those days.
TGIF? You bet! Because it means pizza, or thick flour tortillas, or full-sized bacon cheeseburgers with fries and onion rings, and maybe a nice cold beer.
I Still Love a Good Burger
So again, last December aside, I don’t eat them as much as I want to (because I really want to eat them all the time…), so when I do, I want a really good one.
I had a great one on Friday last week.
Longhorn Cafe
As with Decemburger, Longhorn Cafe didn’t disappoint. It was going to be a cheat day, I wanted a bacon cheeseburger, and so Longhorn Cafe it was!
It was simple and perfect and everything a bacon cheeseburger should be. And when that happens, it will almost certainly be the best thing I eat that week.
TGIF, indeed!
Elda XO
Have you been to Longhorn Cafe? Check them out here: https://www.thelonghorncafe.com and get yourself there for their Original Big Juicy or my favorite, the bacon cheeseburger. You won’t be sorry. XO
