10 Best Cheeseburgers

The myth of the cheeseburger in paradise goes back to a long trip on myfirst boat, the Euphoria. We had runinto some very rough weather crossing the Mona Passage between Hispaniolaand Puerto Rico and broke our bow sprit. The ice in our box had melted,and we were doing the canned-food-and-peanut-butter diet. The vision ofa piping hot cheeseburger kept popping into my mind. We limped up the SirFrancis Drake Channel and into Roadtown on the island of Tortola, wherea brand-new marina and bar sat on the end of the dock, like a mirage. Wesecured the boat, kissed the ground, and headed for the restaurant. Toour amazement, we were offered a menu that featured an American cheeseburgerand pina coladas. Now these were the days when supplies in that part ofthe world were rather scarce-when horsemeat was more plentiful than groundbeef in the tiny stores of the Third World. Anyway, we gave particularinstructions to the waiter on how we wanted them cooked and what we wantedon them-to which little attention was paid. It didn't matter. The overdoneburgers on the burned, toast buns tasted like manna from heaven, for theywere the realization of my fantasy burgers on the trip. That's the truestory. I've heard other people and places claim that I stopped or cookedin their restaurants, but this is the way it happened.
I love to eat and have taken advantage of my success to travel and discoverthe foods of the world. There are elegant restaurants and out-of-the-wayseafood joints and tiny Thai hamlets that spring into my mind when peopleask where I like to eat, but that is another book. I don't eat as muchmeat as I once did, and I now treat a cheeseburger as a treat rather thana ration. So when the urge hits me to have a burger, I try to match mydesire to splurge with the right town and the right burger. I'm sure youknow a place in your hometown where you believe they make the best cheeseburgerin the world. These are the places I have visited personally when I wastrying to come up with the perfect cheeseburger for Margaritaville in KeyWest. These are my cheeseburger roots.

THE DEW DROP INN, Mobile,Alabama- This is where I grew up and my burger lust was formulated.The Dew Drop is still on the corner of Old Shell Road and Louiselle Street.The chili cheeseburger with the bun flattened on an industrial toasteris killer. This is also where the Heinz 57 came in. In my day, they cost35 cents. Today they run at $1.65 + tax. Still a bargain.

CAMELIA GRILL, NewOrleans, Louisiana- I worked my way through college by commutingbetween school in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and Bourbon Street in New Orleanswhere I must say I learned more of what would serve me later in life thanI did in my Algebra II classes. A girl I dated who went to Dominican Collegefirst took me to the Camelia Grill. We rode the street car down St. CharlesAvenue past the stately mansions of the Garden District to the CameliaGrill. The girl has long since left my life, but for me, a trip to theCamelia Grill is as much a pilgrimage as a trip to the St. Louis Cathedral.Besides, the chocolate pie is unbelievable.

ROTIER'S, Nashville,Tennessee- I moved to Nashville from Alabama, and on my strugglingsongwriter budget I found the burger I needed to survive. It was a littleplace on Elliston Place between Centennial Park and Vanderbilt called Rotier's.I am now back in Nashville part time, and the first place I went to wasRotier's for a cheeseburger. It is still as good as I remember from my"hard luck days."

HERBERT'S MARKET, Palm Beach, Florida- I used to spend a lotof time in Palm Beach visiting friends and was turned on to this burger,made in the meat section of the store. It's that warm, butter-toasted bunand fresh ground meat that I took note of when I started to build my burger.

ORIGINAL FATBURGER, 450 South La Cienega, LosAngeles- I ate my first Fat Burger after the third show at theTroubadour one morning and have been addicted since. There are lots ofnew Fat Burgers all over L.A., but the original is still the best. It musthave something to do with that old grill.

LE SELECT, St. Barthelemy,French West Indies- I sort of watched this burger evolve and actuallywas the cook the first night the stand opened, flipping burgers for myfriend Eddie Skatlborough. I overheard some people at the counter waitingfor their burgers, and the said, "How sad. You know he used to befamous, but now he's cooking cheeseburgers."

RUBY'S, Harbour Island, Bahamas- Ruby's is a little spot justbeyond the cemetary and library on Harbour Island. Her burgers remind meof the ones my grandmother used to make with onions and breadcrumbs inthe meat, and then there is that drop-dead Bahama bread they are servedon.

SKY WAY DRIVE, Akron,Ohio- It seemed fitting that in the hotbed of Parrot Heads in centralOhio, there had to be a great cheeseburger.

STEAK N SHAKE, Gainesville,Florida- I used to do free concerts in front of the Student Unionbuilding at the University of Florida,and I stayed at the Hilton Hotel. The Steak N Shake was halfway betweenthe two, and I made it a pitstop when I was driving back and forth fromone end of the state to the other.

MARGARITAVILLE,Key West, Florida- After eating atall of the above, I opened my own place and took the best of all of them.We don't get too many complaints on our attempt at the perfect cheeseburger.Maybe it's the location.

P.S.- Demon Dogs, under the "L" at Fullerton, Chicago-In case any of you prefer hot dogs, I thought I would mention one spot.It's owned by Peter Schivarelli. Peter played football for the Notre Dameteam that beat Alabama, but I forgive him for that because of his greathot dogs. It is also a perfect stop on the way to Cubs games.

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