If you’ve never had a burger at the Westport Flea Market—well, you’re not living your best life. The iconic, local burger joint has been doling out thousands of burgers each week since they opened 30+ years ago. In fact, The Food Network once named them “The Best Burger in Kansas City.”
To celebrate National Hamburger Day today, we hit ‘em up to find out the scoop on which locally curated ingredients are behind their famous burgers. (Fun fact: Westport Flea Market has used the same grill for 32 years, which is part of the reason these burgers have the same incredible taste time after time. If you don’t happen to have a grill over three decades old, your backyard barbecue will get the job done too!)
Ingredients:
-10 ounces McGonigle’s ground beef (per patty)
– 1 Roma Bakery hamburger bun with sesame seeds
– Chopped lettuce, sliced tomato, and dill chip pickles for garnish
– Cheese is optional
Instructions:
– Take 10 ounces of McGonigle’s ground beef and gently mold into a patty by hand.
– Liberally season both sides with your preferred burger seasoning.
– Place on hot grill and cook for nine minutes total, only turning once halfway through.
– If using cheese, during the minute so it melts thoroughly.
– During the last 1-2 minutes of cooking, add your Roma Bakery buns (after they’ve been brushed with butter) on the cooler portion of the grill and toast until golden brown.
– Remove burgers and buns and top with your favorite garnishes and condiments.
Pro Tip #1: Don’t press down on the burger! While grilling commercials have perpetuated this travesty, for a grilled burger you want the juices to remain inside.
Pro Tip #2: At Westport Flea Market, they let customers choose their own combo of toppings but, in their opinion, you can’t go wrong with lettuce, tomato and some crunchy pickles.
Pro Tip #3: They have a super-secret burger seasoning they add, but they say to find one you enjoy and liberally incorporate in your burger mix.