Defining Burgers

Fatboy – At a bare minimum, has lettuce and tomato, though often topped with chili sauce and copious quantities of mayonnaise.

Cheese – If it has cheese on it, it’s a cheeseburger. Cheese trumps a Fatboy.

Greek – A variant of the cheese burger but topped with Feta cheese.

Mushroom – If it has mushrooms on it, it’s a mushroom burger. Often paired with Swiss cheese.

Bacon – If it has bacon on it, it’s a bacon burger. Bacon trumps cheese and mushrooms. Bacon always wins.

Chili – As opposed to chili sauce topping the patty, a chili burger is buried in chili – bun and all. Some variants are served in a bowl. The chili burger is in a class of its own.


Patty Styles

Steakhouse - Ground from premium beef cuts - a thick, juicy patty - salted and charred. The pinnacle of burgers - generally served unadorned. It’s all about the patty.

Diner or "Classic" – A thin ground beef patty cooked quickly and seared on a hot griddle. The thin patty offers the maximum grill to beef ratio and that’s where flavour comes from. It's the heart and soul of a Fatboy, and when you ask a Winnipegger who makes the best burger, they will most often name a diner.

Store or "Factory Frozen" – Often associated with national fast food chains.  The patties are factory made from cheaper cuts of beef, pressed in a mold, frozen and shipped to the franchise stores. Burger Club is looking for the “best” burger so we don’t spend too much time eating these.

Homestyle - Big and fat and loaded with onions and garlic as well as steak sauce or Worcestershire and blended with breadcrumbs and an egg as binders. Like meatloaf on a bun. It’s comfort food.

Gourmet – Full menu restaurants often look to differentiate themselves with their own unique gourmet burger creations. Usually made from good beef cuts with exotic mix-ins and toppings. These can be taken to the extreme Cronut, but usually include toppings like onion rings, peppers, sausage, specialty bacon, pulled pork, pineapple or a fried egg. Some restaurants put the flavour in the toppings and sauces, but a winning burger starts with a well seasoned patty.

Jucy Lucy – A variant of the gourmet burger, the Jucy Lucy is stuffed with molten cheese.

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