Melt Burgers Are a Perfectly Prepared Patty
Finding a good burger is a lot like looking for Bigfoot. Lots of people claim to have seen it, but when it comes down to it, all we have are tall tales and grainy photos.
With burgers and me, it’s all about the meat. I’ve spiraled down into an inconsolable depression on more than one occasion when I was promised a burger and presented with a flattened meatball — or worse — my great aunt’s meatloaf on a bun. There is a fine art to creating a perfect burger. Sadly, many a great cook have deviated from that path. Perhaps it’s their insatiable desire for self-expression or their inability to curb their ego, but there is a clear difference between an overdressed burger and a perfectly prepared patty. Alas, I’ve found Bigfoot, and he’s in Leesburg, Va.
Melt gourmet cheeseburgers has brought back the fine art of the burger and kicked it up a thousand notches. Everything is made fresh and to order including their buns, and it shows. The menu boasts an impressive variation of the classic beef burger along with some exciting options as well. Not only do they offer lamb, turkey and bison masterpieces, they have Ahi tuna for the seafarers as well. One of my favorites is the Hatch Green Chile burger. It’s fresh baked bun is chewy, the edges just crisped.
The 100 percent Angus burger is juicy; we are talking “chin-dribbling-manners-be-gone” juicy. The Hatch green chiles are complex and spicy, the cheese tangy and piled high. In addition to their fantastic traditional fries, they offer sweet potato fries with marshmallow Fluff for dipping. It’s the kind of meal that could only be made better if served to you by an angel on Christmas morning.
That being said, the décor is interesting. Clearly supporters of an animal rescue in the area, the entire cafeteria-style restaurant is dotted with over-sized pictures of animals needing adoption. There is something slightly unsettling about staring into the wistful and longing eyes of a Labrador as you masticate.
Since all of the orders are made fresh, plan ahead and allow for extra time. Mentally prepare yourself to battle the desperation that emerges as you watch the other diners eating. In preparation for your trip, do not eat for several days as their portions allow for plenty of room to do the backstroke and dive headfirst into French fries with no head injury. Most importantly, take a photo because like Bigfoot, no one will believe you.
Melt is located in the at 525 E. Market St., Leesburg in Bellwood Commons Shopping Center behind Starbucks and United Bank with Dos Tequilas Grill and Pollo Loco. It is open from 11 a.m.-8:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Diana Veseth-Nelson is a self-described food fanatic. Unrelenting in her pursuit of fabulous food, her current favorites include roasted guinea pig from a local Salvadorean crockpot and truffled popcorn — although she cautions against pairing them together.