Americans consume billions of hamburgers, collectively, every year.
So many that you might call it our most popular national culinary creation.
I discovered one burger joint that's got the highest ranking on Yelp and Google reviews which made it worthwhile to check out for myself.
National Burger Month might have just wrapped up but things at Thunder Bacon Burger downtown on 6th Avenue are just getting started.
“My menus are what I eat and what I like to do so really I’m putting myself out there.”
I told self-proclaimed 'kitchen pirate' Lindon Reiley that his colorful establishment, named for his online gaming persona, outranked just about every other burger joint in Tucson; lots of 4 star and A+ reviews.
"The funny thing is I pay more attention to the reviews that aren't good because I need to know where we need to work on some things."
So he works and tweaks and formulates ways to get his food out to the people with a smashing philosophy that's, well...
"Super simple. Super delicious," Lindon said.
"I have a love for you know just this burger that's got some girth. But also smash patties… I love them, too."
That love is apparent on every plate of burgers flattened on the flat top to the tots topped with almost anything you can imagine.
"It's a bunch of Cheeto dust and cheese and jalapenos and stuff like that," my son Bryce noted as he and his brother Porter and sister Aspen dug into the pile of tots.
The Spindle kids appreciate a good gut bomb that might look like trouble later on but was surprisingly easy to eat and filled with flavor.
"There's so many different ways to do it different versions… I've just had a lot of really good friends in the industry and learned a lot from all of them and then did all my own weird stuff," Lindy said.
I asked him if he'll hang up his spatula any time soon.
Even if he hands over everyday operations he's still thinking… always mulling over the next menu item to get Tucsonans talking.
"I'm always going to have my table in the kitchen to tinker," Lindy said.
The moment of truth for me was in the first bite: burger perfection!
Like a bolt of lightning or a clap of "Thunder Bacon" - I can't say enough about…
"Dad… you want the last bite?" Aspen asked.
I guess I'd better eat up. I don't want to be rude
Check out Thunder Bacon Burger for yourself.
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Dan Spindle co-anchors Good Morning Tucson on KGUN 9 and is an award-winning storyteller whose work has earned him honors from the Rocky Mountain Southwest Emmys, the Associated Press and the Utah Society of Professional Journalists for both anchoring and reporting. Dan is passionate about history and loves to explore the Grand Canyon State. Share your story ideas with Dan by emailing dan.spindle@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, or X.
