We can thank the Parlour burger for starting a trend. Two ultra thin, ridiculously rich patties topped with American cheese served inside a satisfyingly squishy bun kicked off the call for great diner-style burgers all over the metro area. If anything, this has been the year of the great burger. Deceptively simple, these beefy grinds are so satisfying that a French fry side is optional.
Read MoreThe Minneapolis St. Paul Diner Burger Heatmap
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Saint Dinette
That only looks like American cheese oozing off that butter redolent beef stack. The chef at Saint Dinette has gone to extraordinary lengths to re-create the processed cheese food with a surprisingly sophisticated cheese sauce that hits all the right fatty notes.
[Photo by Joy Summers]
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Revival
One could say the restaurant derived its holy name from the reaction people have to this burger. The first bite is always followed by the utterance, "Oh, my god." The grass-fed, in-house grind is unbelievably rich and distinctly beefy. A swipe of mayo and two pickle slices takes this gossamer cheese stacked double-fister to heavenly levels.
[Photo by Joy Summers]
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Il Foro
It was Il Foro's chef Joe Rolle who unleashed that Parlour burger on our collective conscious, so it's no wonder he's hit us with another beauty topped with a nearly neon Wisconsin-made American cheese that Rolle described as "nuclear." It's a gee-whiz power cheese atop a perfectly cooked patty. The only drawback to this bad boy is its limited availability. One must power lunch to feast on this dish, but that might not remain the case for long. Il Foro teases that their patty will be "popping up," at other times soon. Follow the restaurant on social media to find out more.
[Photo by Jen Lueck]
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Nighthawks
Chef and owner Landon Schoenefeld holds the burger in high esteem. The Flavor Country burger inside his other restaurant, Haute Dish, is a dream for those who appreciate the fat patty cooked to perfect pinkness. Since Nighthawks is a diner, the diner-style burger inside comes with the requisite thin patties and proudly American cheese. This offering is a juice-dripping-down-your-chin good time.
[Photo courtesy Nighthawks]
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Half Time Rec
The well-worn elbow grooves on this neighborhood bar only enhance the deep pleasure derived from eating this mammoth burger. Slender patties draped in cheese and kicked up with shreds of crispy lettuce and a couple of well-placed jalapenos.
[Photo by Joy Summers]
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