It was 1944 in Lakewood, Ohio. My mother had always been obsessed with opening a restaurant. My Dad was somewhat reluctant and not as adventurous. Could they survive raising a family (at the time I was 1 year old) and it was during the war (WWII) and food was rationed.
Well, to make a long story short, it was a successful venture. The picture shown here is the expanded view of the kitchen and grill with dad on the right. When the kitchen equipment was first purchased, an oldtimer from the restaurant business taught my dad how to cook the meat patty. It was fairly simple. As the meat is cooking, you take the paddle and make a slit in the meat halfway through to the center. He followed that advice for the next 20 years.
So what was so special about the hamburger at Prange's Steakburger House. Yes, we called it a steakburger. Our excellent quality meat had steak trimmings ground in it. Each patty was fried on a seasoned grill. The more seasoned it got with juices from the meat through the day, the better it got.
Now, don't forget the bun. This is a very important part of a great hamburger. Toasted is the only way, never fried on the grill. We used only the best from the Strabley Baking Co. in Cleveland, Ohio. Mr. Strabley said he added a little extra sugar to the recipe, just for us!
Before we added the meat, each bun was brushed with real butter.
Condiments were always of the highest quality. Freshly sliced onions, dill pickles made fresh by a local company . . . and get this, ketchup made in Vermillion, Ohio with vine ripened tomatoes!
And I shouldn't forget Land 'O Lakes cheese products. Everything was top quality. And to this day, I do not know how to explain this, but the hamburger had a certain flavor I have never been able to duplicate at home or taste anywhere else. We were definitely the hamburger king of Lakewood, Ohio.
