The full-length feature version of The History of the Hamburger by George Motz appears in the current issue of Gourmet Live. Download the free Gourmet Live app for this story and more.
Burger House—Dallas, TX / Photo: George Motz—Copyright 2011 Hamburger America
First, let’s be clear on what we’re talking about: A hamburger should be defined as ground beef, formed into a patty, cooked and placed on a bun. A Hamburg steak was not a hamburger; the absence of the bun points to this. The claims to the birth of the American hamburger are vast, mostly unproven, and they all seem to have occurred around 1900. Some say Fletcher Davis in Texas was the first to marry a beef patty to bun, others point to the Menches brothers from Ohio, and another claim comes from Wisconsin and Charlie Nagreen. Unfortunately, all of these pioneers of the American hamburger lacked a brick–and–mortar existence and were transient cooks at their respective state fairs. Very little is documented.
Gourmet Live guest columnist and Hamburger America author George Motz takes us back in time to the origin and progression of the definitive American dish. Fire up the grill for a look at how the hamburger evolved from the 13th Century Mongols to modern-day McDonald’s and beyond.
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