Noshing in the Midwest: The Blue Door

Finally, after several futile attempts to get into the Blue Door without an hour wait in very cramped quarters, we got lucky enough to snag an outside table. On a Sunday, no less. And believe me, it was worth the wait.

While we've eaten at The Blue Door before, we previously stuck to the classic and less risky choices, such as their version of the Juicy Lucy, the Blucy: tangy blue cheese and garlic stuffed into a half-pound of beef. While every thing we have tried there has been perfectly delightful, and wonderfully greasy, my taste in food, my...palate, if you will, has matured recently and I was ready to expand my burger boundaries. What better place for expansion (get it? Expansion? As in "your waist line will also expand?" ok.) than the home of Spam Bites, the Jiffy Burger, and something called The Defibrillator.

We started with the Spam Bites, giant balls of crispy breading filled with cream cheese, pickles and Spam. While I was not entirely sold on the Spam thing, having never eaten it before (that I knew of), all doubts faded the minute the server placed the heaping basket down. There wasn't a single glistening drop of grease on these golden nuggets. The breading was so crunchy and light we actually pondered out loud how they did it. Did they make the balls in advance, flash fry them, then quickly dipped them in magic oil before serving them along side a sweet dipping sauce? We never did find out, because just as we were polishing off every tiny morsel of the Spam Bites, our burgers were served. And what a thing of beauty they were.

The Jiffy Burger, as the name implies, is slathered with peanut butter. But wait, that's not all. It is also topped with crispy bacon, pepper jack cheese, pickles and a smudge of mayo. It sounds like it was created for, and possibly by, a very pregnant woman. But not being pregnant, I can assure you that anyone would enjoy this concoction. It is really not as strange as it sounds. The flavors work together beautifully. The creamy peanut butter and salty bacon make a lovely couple, and the tang of the pickles gives it the punch it needs, since the pepper jack cheese didn't bring much to the party. It was addiction worthy.

The Merriam Park Burger was recommended by the server, and turned out to be surprisingly more interesting than the Jiffy. Bacon, blue cheese, and garlic ooze from inside the burger, while a generous blob of sweet currant jelly is smeared on top. The jelly was a fun little addition to what would have simply been a gorgeous stuffed burger. We instantly decided to order a side of the jelly with the Jiffy Burger next time we visit. Seriously, it's been about two hours since we were there and I am already craving me some Jiffy.

Don't let the name fool you. The Spam Bites are huge.