The Vitals: the burger: The Big Mouth Burger: a 1/2 pound of USDA Prime All Natural Chuck, charbroiled and served with lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickle and mayo the bucks: $8.95 the coordinates: San Francisco, CA

Most of the country would balk at a cheese-less burger for $9, even if it was a 1/2 pound of USDA Prime all natural chuck and came with fries. But most of the country ain't got nothing on a warm sunny day in San Francisco, which could just about sway almost anyone that you might be in the greatest city in America. This well reputed metropolis surrounded by natural beauty, enriched in culture, and well recorded in the history books, just about owned the food movement in America, if not the world, for the latter part of the 20th century. Farm to Table took root in the Bay Area first thanks to Alice Waters and spurred a whole generation of chefs to come. The Asian pantry collided with European cooking sensibilities here. I won't even get into the whole wine thing, but I will say that when one looks beyond all the vitricultural brouhaha, the beer made in these parts is just as good. Yeah, San Francisco is a hell of a town, and an even better one if you are hungry. Finding a great burger is not a hard thing to do. Finding Bang for your Burger Buck - well that was kind of a conundrum. (more…)

The Vitals: the burger: The Jucy Lucy: a burger stuffed with american cheese, topped with grilled onions and thinly sliced pickle the bucks: $6.75 the coordinates: Minneapolis, Minnesota

The search for Bang for your Burger Buck can certainly take you places. You may find yourself so deep in the hood your Spidey Sense might be tingling to the tune of a scene from Training Day. Or you could find yourself smack dab in the middle of fly over country, at a modest looking neighborhood bar that somehow has drawn the likes of major Food TV personalities and the President of the United States. Like the slogan of the site says - it's about the journey as much as it is about the burger. Cheap Eats, and certainly great burgers, come in unexpected places. And speaking of, this is one solid griddled to perfection serving of ground chuck, stuffed with American Cheese for $6.75. Like the City of Minneapolis, the Jucy Lucy at Matt's Bar seems like a quick read. But after you sink your teeth into both burger and the city, you will find that what seems to be antiquated food traditions, are in actuality paying dividends in our current foodie renaissance. Before I get too carried away with all that let's talk about how the Jucy Lucy at Matt's Bar evokes White Castle and why that is actually a good thing. (more…)