Hamburger America
There are some foods in life I’ll never tire of, and one of them is a good old burger. Thick, bland patties stacked high with the entire contents of one’s fridge is out and thoughtful, nuanced burgers, often with perfectly crusted smash patties are in. When we were recently visiting the home of the burger I made it my priority to seek out some good ones.
Hamburger America is a great burger joint located in SoHo and was started by George Motz, a man with an even stronger fervour for burgers than I. So much so he made a documentary on the origins of the burger. Opening a burger diner was the next logical step. The decor inside is an homage to the original burger diners of yore with wooddgrained panelling, formica topped counters and PVC-upholstered stools in a mood-lifting shade of French’s mustard yellow. Along the walls there are framed photographs documenting the origin story of Hamburger America and the burger itself.
The menu is small and thoughtful, and features not only a few signature burgers but some diner classics dredged up from history, including a hot ham sandwich and a platter of egg and tuna salads with Ritz crackers. George Motz also does a monthly special burger (for those of you who have the luxury of time and/or live in NYC) where he brings back and historic or regional specialty burger for a limited time. At the moment the monthly special is the Steamed Cheeseburg from Connecticut where the beef patty and white cheddar cheese is steamed rather than grilled. Mr Krab’s Krabby Patty of Sponge Bob Squarepants fame even featured on the menu earlier this year. I watched the Bon Appetit video on a day on the line at Hamburger America in my research on where to eat when in NYC and got super hyped about visiting. Both my husband and I knew exactly what we wanted to order after watching. George’s version of the Oklahoma onion burger, and the hot ham sandwich. We also ordered the classic smash burger with mustard, diced onion , dill pickle and cheese because it would have been rude not to.
Our aluminium tray arrived loaded with the most fabulous beige food money could buy. The onion burger was delicious, two fluffy steamed potato buns encompassing a layer of sweet, steamy shaved onions compressed into a smashed patty with gooey American cheese. One bite and I knew I had arrived at the mecca of burgers. We noticed that the burgers come unadorned with pickles on the side. There are big squeezy bottles of mustard and ketchup dotted all around the restaurant. The burgers were perfectly good as they were but I suspected they want you to use these to dress your burger as you see fit, a notion not felt in New Zealand when it comes to burgers. The hot ham sandwich was the MVB of the day, which came with warm, thinly sliced ham and melted Swiss cheese. The smoky ham was nicely browned with little crispy edges and the Swiss cheese added a sharp, nutty flavour to the buttery toasted bun. I have childhood trauma from seven years of eating ham sandwiches for school lunches but this sandwich went some way to redeeming the humble ham sandwich in my eyes. The fries were a solid effort, shoe string in cut, nicely salted and light and crispy.
A burger with a view
Sitting in the window eating burgers at Hamburger America watching the summer evening foot traffic of Soho strolling by is a pivotal experience in dining in America for me. I loved every moment of it, every bite, and I hope you’ll put them on your list of places to eat when you’re in NYC.
Hamburger America
51 MacDougal St,
New York
NY 10012
@hamburger_america