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Your Town Showdown Best Burger: |
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| Frank Lerchen's first day on the job may have been over 20 years ago, but he still can remember his first bite of the house specialty like it was yesterday. "I was even saying: Man these dang' burgers are great... these are the best." He's talking about the famous Friendly burgers that Joe's Friendly Tavern in Empire has been serving up for the last 70 years. Lerchen and his wife Mary, are only the fourth owners of this well-known spot on the corner of Front Street. He says the secret is not to mess with a good thing. "The burgers are the best, absolutely- no questions asked," he said. "I have people who come from all over the country, even out of this country for years and years (and years and years... he goes on) and they always come back and say that we have the best dang' burgers." It's not hard to see why customers crave this meaty delight. The menu boasts so many different varieties of burgers it's hard for Lerchen to even keep track. After counting them off in his head he laughed and said, "I think nine. No, maybe ten..." After glancing through the menu, I find Joe's actually boasts eleven! That's right, eleven different types of mouthwatering burgers (now that's hamburger heaven, if you ask me). With nearly a dozen choices the Original Friendly Burger and Joe's Famous Cheeseburger are still the favorites. But if your taste buds are looking for the ultimate treat- they've got just the thing. "Out of the specialty burgers I'd say the best is our Bleu Cheese Burger. Without a doubt, they are the bomb!" The bomb indeed. The fresh ground beef patty gets seared to perfection before being covered in a generous portion of bacon and grilled onions then smothered with a rich homemade bleu cheese dressing. I feel confident in saying you will never have a hamburger melt in your mouth quite like this one will. I only managed to polish off half and to my dismay my stomach has been grumbling in hunger ever since. I am beginning to worry the only thing that will satisfy the craving would be eating the other unfinished half! Lenny, a cook at Joe's Friendly Tavern agrees they can be addicting. He admits that he probably eats at least four every week. "They are so good because we grind them fresh every single morning," he said. Lenny and the other cooks at Joe's have a special system where they grind a ratio of 80 percent lean beef to 20 percent fat in their own butcher shop. |
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| Courtesy channel 7&4, Traverse City, Michigan | |
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Joe's Friendly Tavern Front St. Empire MI 49630 231-326-5506 |
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© Lerchen Enterprises 2007, all Rights Reserved. Reproduction by any means, physical or electronic, without permission is prohibited. Web site designed and maintained by Joanne Rettke |
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