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Hamburgers To Swear By

© Lynette

Traipsing about most of Europe I could spot fellow Americans by four minor things: we guffaw, we stay away from argyle socks, and we love to wear shorts. Californians, however, like to take a reminder that their favorite fast food joint costs a mere plane ticket’s return home. The In-N-Out t-shirts with red tee-birds, palm trees, and drive-thru’s give it all away. After all, I had my t-shirt in tow.

Hamburgers are the most popular food in most of the United States, but California has raised the hamburger to an art form. We have a variety of condiments: red and green chili, sprouts, pineapple, bleu cheese, etc., and exotic combinations are often served at the more trendy restaurants. California may not have the “perfect” hamburger but we have definitely developed the hamburger into a national drive-thru success, due to our automobile-based society.

Hamburgers have been around a long time. German immigrants came to the United States in the early 19th century with a recipe for "Hamburg Style Steak," a chopped and broiled filet that was served raw in Hamburg. In 1834, the word "Hamburger" first appeared on a menu at a New York restaurant called Delmonico's. In the 1902 version of Mrs. Rorer's New Cook Book, Hamburg Steak is described as beef put twice through a meat grinder and mixed with onion and pepper.

That being said, the widest-reported "first" appearance of the Hamburger most commonly cited is at the World's Fair in St. Louis in 1904. By 1912, ground meat patties were being served in buns. According to the Dictionary of American Slang, the suffix "burger" came to mean, "any hot sandwich served on a bun, often toasted, with many condiments."

The Hamburger is truly an American favorite. Hot dog purists may contest, but the numbers show the proof – Americans eat 38 billion hamburgers compared with 19 billion hot dogs, annually! The average American consumes nearly 30 pounds of hamburger a year – that's three burgers per person per week. Whether grilled, fried, or purchased at a drive-thru window, Hamburgers are one of the most popular foods.

For one thing McDonald's was started in San Bernardino, but I would just as well swear by an In-N-Out Burger on any given day. The establishment was born out of Baldwin Park in Southern California and spread throughout California, and most recently, into Nevada and Arizona. Its founders, Harry and Esther Snyder, prided themselves on clean facilities and fresh products. So there are no heat lamps, microwaves, or frozen potato slices.

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