Shady Glen

I visited Shady Glen, post dentist visit and pre financial advisor visit. Now I know why he is so popular; his office is just down the road from this hallowed shrine. I ordered Bernice's Special Cheeseburger Platter: a big cheeseburger, coleslaw, lettuce and tomatoes [no fries on this diet!] and oh yes, that wonderful condiment tray.




Michael Stern [one of my favorite food critics] had this to say:

“What’s good to eat?” we ask the uniformed waitress when she steps to our booth.

“You are at Shady Glen,” she responds like a schoolteacher addressing especially slow students. “At Shady Glen, you must have cheeseburgers!”

Amen to that good advice. Although this fine old dairy bar has a menu of sandwiches and hot meals and is justly famous for its homemade ice cream, its way with cheeseburgers is nothing short of spectacular. The meat is not extraordinary and the cheese is merely tasty, but assemble the two of them together on the Shady Glen grill and magic happens. Three or four slices of cheese are carefully placed in a mosaic that extends far beyond the edges of the burger as it cooks, so the cheese melts directly onto the surface of the grill, turning chewy and crisp as it cooks. The hamburger with its soft cheese on top and its halo of textured cheese all around is hefted onto a bun to become one memorable sandwich!

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