Junk Food Nation, my talented writer friend David Roth recently published an article that can be found here about participating/being obsessed with fantasy sports.  The article is great, a definite read, and you can follow my friend Dave on Twitter @David_J_Roth. The article basically makes the point that fantasy sports exist, common folk to public figures are doin’ it, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

This daily blog always deals with junk food and other food indulgences/oddities, but I’ve always wanted to keep things fresh with a mix of sports, awkwardness, observations, and pop culture.  But I have to admit; I’ve always been a little timid when it comes to posting about fantasy sports.  Why? Because (1) it’ll highlight just how much of a nerd I am, and (2) I’m afraid readers will be zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

But having read Dave’s article, screw it.  Fantasy baseball and sports generally are part of my life, and part of many people’s lives.  So, as a warning/preview/way to entice you, tomorrow’s post will be extremely fantasy baseball geeky and will recap my recent Clout Wars draft.  Oh yeah, and it’ll say a little bit about junk food too.  And you know what? I’m not sorry about it one bit.

Onto today’s reader submission: I have a friend named Joe who has recently been working up in Connecticut and lamenting that the food options near his workplace were lacking.  I mentioned that recently on the Travel Channel they had one of those ridiculous countdowns of 101 Tastiest Places to Chowdown and that the #1 joint happened to be in New Haven, CT.  Incredulous, he wanted to know more.  I told him the place was called Louis Lunch, the birthplace of the hamburger in the US:

Naturally, we mocked it. Mocked it for its old school pretentiousness, for its insistence against ketchup, for its use of white bread, for sport.  This was the best place to eat in the COUNTRY?  In the ENTIRE US?  The Travel Channel’s 101 Tastiest Places to Chowdown Top 5 included Primanti Brothers in Pittsburgh, Katz’s Deli in New York, LA’s Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles…and this place?  Pssssh.

Still, my friend Joe went.

The stolen-from-the-web-Money Shot

From the outside, Louis’ Lunch is unassuming.  An old brick house, this is the best place to chowdown in the country???

GO SAWX!

The sign above the counter said all burgers cooked to a medium rare.  Joe was skeptical; so many restaurants and burger joints don’t know how to do medium rare.  Would this be an ACTUAL medium rare?  Stay tuned.

Quaint Interior

As Joe described it, the interior of Louis’ Lunch was small, but communal. Everyone make friends with your neighbors; this was no place to worry about personal space.

Joe mentioned that for a decent price, he was able to get a burger, a soda, and a ridiculous plain Styrofoam coffee cup of potato salad that looked like it had been Spackle-d in there with a fork sticking out of it.

The Prize

And there it was – the Louis’ Lunch burger.  A beef burger with cheese on toasted white bread with tomato and onion. Simple.  But what’s the TASTE verdict?

A wonderful medium rare

To quote Joe directly:

“Amazing. Juicy, cheesy, and the flavor of pure beef.

“Also, potato salad has egg and green onion in it. Effing MONEY.”

As Joe explained to me on the phone, the burger was a nice medium rare which helped things a lot, and the onion was a perfect thinness to accentuate the flavor of the burger.  While the tomato, he said, made the bread soggy, the overall flavor was really good.  The potato salad, despite its form, was flavorful and made a convert out of him.  He really enjoyed it, and now I am really jealous.  Might be time to pay Joe a visit and eat this burger for myself.

Thoughts? Hit me in the comments below or hit me on Twitter @junkfoodguy or on my Facebook Page. Sincerely, Junk Food Guy