How far have you gone to get a good burger?
I have jaywalked the Las Vegas Strip for a Fatburger, actually it was more of a full-speed sprint.
It’s not like skipping across Elizabeth Street. First there are four lanes of traffic to cross, followed by cactuses and a thigh-high concrete barricade in the median. Finally, four more lanes separate you and the safety of the sidewalk and a good burger.
I’ve been a Fatburger fan since the first bite on Dec. 27, 1997. Yes, I remember the day. I was on my way to camp outside Phoenix for a week over the Christmas holidays and my friends and I decided to stop for supper in Vegas. When the buffet at the Mandalay Bay was closed (since when is a buffet ever closed in Vegas), someone suggested heading over to Fatburger on the Strip.
I was hooked.
I’m not young and foolish anymore so I’ll drive to Fatburger in Okotoks now and use the crosswalks, instead of facing down traffic.
With a patty weighing in at half a pound, the King Burger is a monster.
It’s a flavourful, beefy, juicy and well-seasoned patty. It’s also fall apart tender.
You get to pick of one of three types of cheese and you can choose the toppings you want. It’s all wrapped up in a huge, fluffy sesame seed bun.
They have a triple King challenge. If you can eat a triple patty King burger – with a grand total of 24 ounces of beef and three slices of cheese – they will give you a Fatburger T-shirt. I’ll pass, I was stuffed with one.
The patties are made with triple A grade, Angus beef.
District manager Sukhi Gill said it’s all beef and they don’t use any fillers.
“The King Burger is more home-style, the patty is pressed on the grill and it’s topped with our secret seasoning,” she said.
Everything is made to order, including the fries and hand-scooped ice cream shakes. When you order fries with your burger they don’t start to cook the fries or make the shake until the burger gets flipped on the grill.
I like when a restaurant lets you pick the toppings you want on your burger, so I had mine just how I like a burger, with mustard, ketchup, lettuce and pickles.
For Gill and Okotoks manager Arlea Hansen it’s the toppings that put the finishing touch on a good burger. Hansen raved about Fatburger’s California burger with guacamole, while Gill likes their mushroom swiss burger.
The Western Wheel’s sports editor Bruce Campbell called the mushroom swiss burger “deadly.” That’s a compliment.
He also felt compelled to help me out with my fries. Campbell was worried about my cholesterol after all the burgers I’ve had to eat this summer and he couldn’t in good conscience let me eat all the fries myself.