The “Double Beef Patti” at Serpas True Food ($13) in the Old Fourth Ward is not so much a hamburger as it is a small building.
Though it was too dark on the patio for me to get a good picture of the actual burger eaten, this publicity shot is essentially what we had — minus the green frills and the upside-down top bun. The middle slice of bread on ours had compressed into something that looked like one of those novelty dry sponges that spring into form when you put them in water.
And I mean this in a good way: it was nicely absorptive.
The curious spelling must surely be a reference to the first line of Patti Smith’s “Gloria” — i.e., “Jesus died for somebody’s sins, but not mine” — because this burger is the very picture of gluttony. Maybe chef Scott Serpas can enlighten me.
Despite its verging-on-preposterous height, this burger is neither too drippy nor too plumped with slide-about ingredients. So if you are able to open wide and not risk lockjaw, it is possible to eat with …