The operation still runs the way an old-school beef stand should — buying a quarter of a cow at a time, grinding it fresh on site, toasting the buns, and frying the fries in pure beef fat rather than vegetable oil. The signature burger is simple on purpose: USDA choice ground beef off the bone, your choice of American, Swiss, Jack, or mozzarella, lettuce, tomato, mayo, pickle, and onions either raw or grilled. Beyond the burger, the menu runs turkey burgers, melts, and a genuinely long list of sandwiches — corned beef, BBQ beef, tuna, pork chop, even catfish — the kind of range that comes from eight decades of a neighborhood asking for whatever it wants.
It's been ranked #1 in at least one “best burgers in Chicago” roundup, and reviewers consistently call the burgers “mouth-watering” even while admitting they're basic — which is sort of the whole point of a burger built on a 1942 recipe rather than a current food trend. Hours run Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., closed Sundays. No discount special here, but a beef stand old enough to grind its own cow a quarter at a time has earned the right to skip the coupon.
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