Juicy Lucy | Byron Burger Club Night #2

Hey Lucy, Nothing compares 2 U

It looks like Fred Smith‘s been busy again! The May special Miami Slice was launched and after the success of Mock Donald’s, he’s been working his little burger patterned socks off on the Juicy Lucy Byron Burger Club Night.

We absolutely loved Byron’s Mock Donald’s, it bought a smile to our faces and the whole experience was so cleverly planned out, right down to the packaging and visuals. So when we found out that the Byron Burger Club night #2 was going ahead I booked our tickets without really paying attention to what the £20 ticket would get us.

Then we hit upon a slight problem, the Juicy Lucy is a bulging burger jam-packed with cheese inside the patty. Plus there would be a side of Bacon cheese fries… ‘So where’s the snag?’ I hear you scream, well Saff can’t eat cheese and a Juicy Lucy without cheese is just wrong. Bacon cheese fries without cheese are just bacon fries (still good but simply not the same). No way was I going to miss out on all this cheesy indulgence. So there was only one thing for it, bring in the big guns, John (J.B.) Bowden – friend and fellow burger lover!

As this event was dedicated to the classic burger from Minneapolis, it’s probably only right that I give you some background info – although if you’ve read our post on the Stiff Arm burger at The Diner you’ll know this already. The Juicy Lucy (or Jucy Lucy) burger, is Minneapolis’ contribution to world cuisine. It’s a cheeseburger with the cheese inside the meat, so that the cheese melts to a molten core when cooked, and served with a warning against scalding yourself with liquid cheese. It was invented in a south Minneapolis bar sometime in the 1950s, and depending on who you talk to, it was either the 5-8 Club, who serve up the Juicy Lucy, or Matt’s Bar, who make the Jucy Lucy, and let customers know that “if it’s spelled correctly, you’re at the wrong place”.

Fred’s melt in the middle burger… U Got The Look

Styling for this second Burger Club Night was a lot simpler than the Mock Donald’s event. There wasn’t a theme as such except that all the tables in the Spitalfields branch basement had massive bibs set on them. And when I took my first bite I found out why they supplied bibs. They’re called Juicy Lucys for a reason!

‘Sign O the times’

Here’s what our £20 ticket got us…
1) A can of Byron lager or pale ale.
2) A big bowl of crinkle cut Bacon cheese fries: These were similar to the cheese fries at Shake Shack but with crispy bacon. Tim Lovejoy often says ‘to make something taste better add cheese, to make it taste even better – add bacon too’. Looks like Fred’s been watching Sunday Brunch.
3) The Juicy Lucy: Fred’s take on the best thing to come out of Minneapolis except for Prince. [whatever – Saff]
The 100% beef party was monster thick, not surprising considering its molten core. Glazed bun, chopped onion rings, pickles, lettuce and Byron’s special burger sauce.
4) Banana cream pie: This thick wedge of sweet, billowy dessert was served with a big dollop of cream. This is one of Saff’s favourites, but it didn’t quite match the one from Philippe’s in LA.

‘Cream’ of the crop!

A really thoughtful burger meal, plus a beer for £20. Bargain. Sign up here to be invited to new openings, tastings, street food parties and other events. Plus you’ll be amongst the first to hear about any future one-off club nights.

Roll on the next one (not just to get another stamp on our loyalty card) although we’ll have to be quick off the mark. This event sold out so quickly, they had to add an extra date, kerching! Could Byron’s have done anything better this time around? Not really, but they missed a trick by not having a Prince soundtrack for the evening (then again I would say that, I’m a massive fan).

MASSIVE HINT ALERT! Not that Fred needs any inspiration but just in case he’s curious, here’s a round-up of some burgers that my old boss, Will, sampled on his road trip around America. We love the idea of The Bacon Slam or Macaroni Cheese Burger. Over to you Fred!

www.byronhamburgers.com
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