About a year ago - possibly a little less - I went to Venice, CA to sample an upscale burger establishment called "26 Beach." The restaurant was on the expensive side - the most basic burger runs $12. Their options are gourmet, meaning you can try a few burgers on the odd side, like peanut butter and jelly burgers, burgers with anaheim chiles, and burgers topped with egg.
I wasn't in Venice to eat the eccentric. I was there to eat the monstrosity.
This is their "Party of Five" cheeseburger. It offers five half-pound beef patties smothered in cheddar cheese and topped with onions, lettuce, tomatoes, and house sauce. For those keeping score, that's 40 oz of beef - a whole 2 1/2 pounds. It looks scrumptious, and from what I remember it tasted great if a bit greasy. How can you resist the presentation? Look at those fries in the little dish!
This was once an ordinary menu item at 26 Beach, but by the time I got there it was pulled. You could only order it if you knew about it, and I got on the inside track by scouring blogs about big burgers in the Los Angeles area. Supposedly finishers of the burger would get a coupon for a free meal on the next visit, but all I got was public admiration, gawkers, and bragging rights. I'll settle for that sometimes.
Technically, 26 Beach (along with many other restaurants) will serve you a burger of any patty denomination. You simply pay a small fee for each piece of beef you pile on. People who frequent In N Out or EZ Take-Out Burger know this pretty well. This was cooler because it used to be offered as an official, set menu item.
I only needed 20 minutes to finish the combo. The waiter remarked that it was apparently no challenge at all!
Maybe they need to consider a Party of Ten.....
