Name: The Office Burger (home recipe)
Prep time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 700g coarsely ground dry-aged beef chuck; 2 large onions, thinly sliced; 80g smoked bacon, finely chopped; 1 tsp sherry vinegar; 80g Gruyere, grated; 60g blue cheese, crumbled; 2 handfuls arugula; 4 soft oval rolls; Salt, black pepper, neutral oil

History

Father's Office opened on Montana Avenue in 1953, and after Sang Yoon took over in 2000 he rebuilt it around one burger: dry-aged beef, a bacon-onion compote, Gruyere and Maytag blue on a soft roll, arugula instead of lettuce and no ketchup in the building. The no-substitutions rule became as famous as the burger itself.

Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy

Make it at home

Yield Serves 4Hands-on 40 minTotal 1 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

700g coarsely ground dry-aged beef chuck
2 large onions, thinly sliced
80g smoked bacon, finely chopped
1 tsp sherry vinegar
80g Gruyere, grated
60g blue cheese, crumbled
2 handfuls arugula
4 soft oval rolls
Salt, black pepper, neutral oil

Method

Cook the bacon slowly until the fat renders, add the onions and cook 30 minutes to a deep brown compote. Finish with sherry vinegar and set aside.
Form the beef into 4 loose oval patties and season heavily with salt.
Sear in a ripping-hot pan 3 minutes per side for medium rare, topping with both cheeses for the last minute under a lid.
Toast the rolls, spread with the bacon-onion compote, add the patties and finish with arugula. Serve without ketchup.

Tip from the editors. Resist the urge to add tomato or ketchup; the bacon-onion compote is the condiment and sweetens the blue cheese on its own.