There are many perks to sitting next to Nancy. One such perk is being the second to know when there is food delivered to the office. This afternoon, I heard talk of a giant burger at the front desk, so I immediately grabbed fearless intern Hannah Boen and asked her to do an interview. I told her I didn’t know what was going on, or why there was a giant burger. She said, “Cool,” and got to work. Her report is after the jump. (I kind of wish I would’ve known the calorie count before I decided to eat some burger for lunch.)
Just five minutes away from heating up yesterday’s Pei Wei leftovers, heaven sent me El Jefe Grande: Kenny Bowers’ latest masterpiece.
Inspired by Travel Channel’s hit series Man Vs. Food, Bowers decided he’d attempt to create a Texas challenge for the show’s star, Adam Richman.
If you haven’t seen the show, Richman travels cross country to tackle massive food challenges. Between taking on 10-pound pizzas and larger-than-life stacks of pancakes, he highlights regional favorites from Honolulu to Pittsburgh.
He’s already made stops in Amarillo and Austin, but Kenny Bowers, owner of Kenny’s Burger Joint, has cooked up a reason for the foodie to visit Dallas.
Not only did he cook it up, he took it 21 floors above downtown Dallas for me to munch on. And by munch, I mean feast.
Although he’d love to get Richman’s attention, he’ll build a burger for anyone. That is, anyone willing to agree to nine rules and sign a waiver of liability.
The seven-pound spread starts with three pounds of ground hamburger. That’s topped with a pound of French fries, a quart of chili, a hefty helping of white queso, a cup of mayonnaise, a half pound of bacon, and of course, jalapeños, lettuce, pickles, tomatoes, and onions. Whew. Oh! And don’t forget, it’s all sandwiched between two enormous slices of Texas toast slathered with enough butter to make even Paula Deen raise an eyebrow.
The size of the bread alone is impressive. It was made special for the burger by La Spiga’s bakery in Addison. The tower of toppings is intimidating from every angle. Staring at 7,000 calories was frightening and thrilling all at once.
The intern lunch crowd agreed: every item on the sandwich was flawlessly made. The chili was hearty, the queso creamy, the pickles perfectly crisp, and the fries a sensation of seasonings. However, we could stand for the meat to be a little more cooked. Cooking a beef patty the size of a MacBook has got to be a little bit of a challenge. That being said, if you like your burgers medium-rare and weighing seven pounds, get yourself to Kenny’s Burger Joint in Frisco and take the challenge.
Winners walk away with a stomachache, a proud photo on the Wall of Fame, and a $100 Kenny’s giftcard. Not to mention, Bowers will pick up the check.
If you don’t finish the monstrosity in an hour (or if you vomit or in some other way cheat), you buy the $50 burger and your face will be forever plastered on the Wall of Shame (along with the four current losers). However, you get $15 toward your next visit and probably a pat on the back for a good effort.
