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On the way back from Boston, Rachel and I stopped at O'Rourkes Diner in Middletown, at the insistence of San Francisco Chronicle (and former Hartford Courant) food columnist Bill Daley, to try the legendary STEAMED CHEESEBURGER.
The Steamed Cheeseburger is a unique, strange and beautiful regional variant of the cheeseburger which is limited to only the 25-mile radius of Middletown, Connecticut. Its served at maybe a dozen different places in the local area, including Ted's in Meriden.
But Orourkes is the legitmate heir to the Steamed Cheeseburger because its owner, Brian Orourke, is the grandson of its inventor, Jack O'rourke, who served it at Jack's Lunch, a luncheonette that once existed a short way down Main Steet from where Orourke's Diner is today. The burger then made its way to Meriden, and then back to Middletown.
Textureally, a steamed cheeseburger is sort of like eating a meat loaf sandwich that is completely engulfed in gloppy, melted sharp cheddar cheese. The Orourke's burger patty itself isnt that large, but it seems to be the correct amount of beef considering it is paired with such a huge amount of melted cheddar cheese.
I was unable to photograph the actual cooking process, but basically what happens is that the burger meat is put into these square molds which is then put into this steamer contraption to cook. Blocks of sharp white cheddar cheese are also put into these molds and the steamer contraption, and then the whole mess is put on top of a kaiser roll. I can assure you, this thing tastes way better than it sounds.
The diner, a classic 1946 dining car
The legendary steamed cheeseburger, made out of ground black angus beef and topped with melted sharp white cheddar cheese.
the steamed bacon cheeseburger patty melt, an interesting variation on the original
You can get reubens with melted cheese too.
world class french fries and fried zucchini
sweet potato soup with greens. YUM.
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