Willie Burgers
Hartselle, Morgan County
This joint is on the original AL.com
list of 22 (plus 35 submitted by the readers) Greasy Spoon Burger Joints in Alabama you have to
visit before you die.
It is a matter of principle. There is no debate required, nor would it
help to solve any differences in opinion. You either hate them or love them,
there is no middle ground. For those who love them, the crisp outside and the
mushy inside, the fat dripping from the patty, the special flavor of the
beef/bread mix, and the (optional) red pepper seasoning that amplifies the
flavor even more are the stuff of legends. For those who hate them, a slug
burger is not even a burger, but some diabolical concoction sailing under a
false flag.
Here in the Tennessee
Valley, we are blessed with
several old fashioned joints that serve this special kind of burger. Willie
Burgers in Hartselle is one of them. The store is situated in the heart of
downtown Hartselle, on Main Street.
The outside is rather unassuming, and the inside looks as if the 1950s never
left town, complete with several pictures of Marilyn Monroe on the walls. There
is a long counter with about a dozen chrome and red leather bar stools opposite
the cooking area, and a rather dark room with some tables and booths on the
other side. They only have three items on the menu there – Cheeseburgers,
Hamburgers, and Hot Dogs. You can have potato chips as a side, and soft drinks
come in plastic bottles. It is, plain and simple, as authentic as it gets.
I had a cheeseburger, all the way – which means with ketchup,
mayonnaise, mustard, chopped onions, and pickles. That was, hands down, the
best burger of this kind I had so far. No need to gussy it up with the red
pepper seasoning, the flavor was spectacular as it was.
And for just twenty bucks for five burgers, four drinks, and two bags
of chips (I had brought my family with me), this is an unbeatable deal.
I read somewhere that Willie Burgers opened originally in 1926. To stay
in business that long, with those kind of prices, you need loyal customers and
a good product. One that enough people love to come back time and again. Count
me in.
