Hamburger America: One Man's Cross-Country Odyssey to Find the Best Burgers in the Nation

by George Motz

Whether you're an armchair traveler, a serious hamburger connoisseur, or a curious adventurer up for a road trip, Hamburger America will be your guide to reclaiming this precious slice of Americana. No other food says “America” like the hamburger, and documentary filmmaker George Motz has made it his personal mission to save our nation's unique burger identity. He has traveled across the country in search of the best burger joints - those that have survived outside the fast-food mainstream - and has documented their rich histories and one-of-a-kind taste experiences. This edition of the book includes George Motz's 1 hour documentary “Hamburger America” that profiles 8 burger joints across the USA.

Genres: Food, Cookbooks, Travel, Cooking, Nonfiction, Food and Drink

312 pages, Paperback

First published April 7, 2008

About the author

Hamburger Expert / Author / Food Photographer / TV Host / Director of The Food Film Festival

Reviews

[Dave Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really fun look at the history of the quintessential American dish. I first found Motz through YouTube, and his personality shines through in his writing too.

[Don Gillette · Rating 2 out of 5]

Think Guy Fieri's "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives" without recipes or humor and you've got this book. No, it's not horrible, it's just not very entertaining.

[Josh Biringer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this book. Still going through all the sections. It’s a great snapshot of American communities and traditions through cooking. Wish it had a picture of each burger.

[Jessi · Rating 2 out of 5]

On the surface, this book was just fine. The glossy pages were enticing, the writing made me hungry, the pictures looked delicious.
This book advertises itself as a "cross-country odyssey to find the best burgers in the nation". I can't be the only one that assumed this book would feature burgers from each of the fifty states. There are more than fifty burgers featured, but only from 38 states, plus Washington, DC. Some states had five of six burgers featured (like California- who knew?) while others only had one. My own state, Kentucky, where the cheeseburger was INVENTED, was not mentioned in this book at all. This was extremely disappointing. I was also a little let down by the very few recipes listed in this book- I'm not surprised that well-known restaurants wouldn't want to give away their trade secrets, but I can think of at least one popular "chef" who published a book similar to this one that included more recipes, even if they were his own version of the dish.

All in all, this was a somewhat enjoyable read, but I think the title is inaccurate. You know those books that feature the best museums all over the country, or best places to visit with your dog, things like that? That's what I thought this book would be like. I thought that while it would definitely be entertainment writing, it would at least provide the reader with one option per state (I could even understand sticking to the 48 contiguous states). I was very disappointed that 12 states- more than 20% of our country- were left out.

Goodreads shows me that there is a revised and updated edition of this book published in 2011. Hopefully the new version will be a more complete guide to the best burgers in the nation.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

A light-hearted look at the burger culture in our country, and a very reliable guide to the best burger joints state-by-state. My opinion is somewhat colored by the inclusion of TWO of my faves; Redamak's in New Buffalo MI and the famed Billy Goat Tavern in Chicago.

If you travel at all, take this book along with your AAA maps or Mobil Guide.

[Rose Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the premise of this book -- finding the best burgers in every state of the Union. I was interested to find out that Nebraska's sole entry is a place called Stella's, in Bellevue, and it's only about a 5 minute drive from where I live! I'm listing this under cookbooks even though there are only a few recipes in the book.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I discovered some new local places, and day trip places! Will be adding these to my adventure list!

[Shawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I now have a place to stop for a burger in almost every state