If youve ever been to Minnesota, you may have had one of the states culinary marks of fame: the Juicy Lucy burger. Dont let its ordinary appearance — a burger patty on two buns — fool you. The Juicy Lucy comes with a warning from servers prior to eating — let the burger cool to avoid getting burnt. The sandwich hides a molten layer of gooey American cheese that bursts out with that first bite. The cheese is what gives the Juicy Lucy its signature identity.
Although you may find several copycats online, youll have to make a trip to the Gopher State if you want to eat the burger in its original recipe. Though there are several contenders for the Juicy Lucy throne, the Chicago Tribune traces its origin back to Matts Bar in Corcoran. In 1954, owner Matt Bristol reported whipped up the sandwich that would become the hallmark of the establishment. As general manager Amy Feriancek explained to the outlet, “a Jucy Lucy is a burger that was created here by Matt Bristol in 1954, the year he opened. He and a few locals were here on an afternoon when it was slower, and he created this wonderful burger.”
According to the restaurant, a customer asked Bristol to fix the sandwich. Not expecting the heat from the burger, they supposedly said, “Wow, thats one Juicy Lucy!” The restaurant says the name has stuck ever since, but theres another contender for Juicy Lucy.
Shortly after we opened, founder Matt Bristol explains how the “Jucy Lucy” was created when a local customer asked for two hamburger patties with a slice of cheese in the middle. Upon biting into this new, molten hot burger, he exclaimed “that’s one juicy Lucy”, and a legend was born.
The burger was a hit and landed on the bars menu — though misspelled as “jucy.”
Stanton flips more than 400 Jucy Lucys in a day for a devoted fan base, who believe Matts Bar to be the birthplace of this cheese-stuffed burger.
At 5-8, the larger and cheesier burgers have a little more room to themselves on the kitchens griddle. The cooks there get creative with toppings and fillings. A Thanksgiving Juicy Lucy is a turkey burger filled with stuffing. An experimental concoction is stuffed with peanut butter and jelly. The classics, filled with either American, Swiss, pepper jack or bleu cheese, can be piled high with bacon, onion rings and house-made barbecue sauce.
At Matts, the burgers are cooked on a tiny grill wedged in behind the bar, on the same top as a heaping mound of caramelizing onions that lend their smell and a little slick of grease to everything in the dark living-room-like bar. Even if you dont order the onions on your burger, “you get the essence,” Stanton said. The American-cheese-only Jucy Lucys are served simply, on a bun with pickles. And thats it.
Back in 1954, a regular customer ordered a cheeseburger, said general manager Amy Feriancek. The customer asked owner Matt Bristol to put the cheese on the inside instead of on top. Bristol obliged, and when the customer bit in and got a face full of molten cheese, he exclaimed, “Wow, thats one Juicy Lucy!”
A tale of two bars
Matts Bar may have coined the name Jucy Lucy, but the 5-8 Club in Minneapolis has a Juicy Lucy (with an “i” in the name). Some customers swear that the 5-8 Club is the originator of the burger, not Matts Bar. Its enough to create a bit of a rivalry, at least among fans, between the two establishments. The 5-8 Clubs owner Jill Skogheim doesnt know how the burger got its start, except it began in the 1950s. She told the Chicago Tribune, “According to our customers, somebody at the 5-8 Club invented the Juicy Lucy back in the 1950s.”
Although Matts Bar has a more concrete origin story for the sandwich, the 5-8 Club is an older establishment, stretching back to the Prohibition Era. It got its start as a speakeasy, selling illegal alcohol during this time period. But in the modern era, its the Juicy Lucy that is its claim to fame. Skogeheim said to the Chicago Tribune, “The one thing thats indisputable. We were around longer than any of them.”
For the most part, both establishments say the rivalry is made up by their customers and has done well for their businesses. Customers will often journey to each restaurant to compare and contrast the burgers. Still, the restaurants arent above taking shots at each other. For instance, Matts Bar wrote on its website, “Remember, if its spelled correctly, you just might be eating a shameless ripoff!”
Introducing the Jucy Lucy — the original cheese-filled hamburger
FAQ
What is a fun fact about Juicy Lucy?
Is Juicy Lucy a Minnesota thing?
Which US state is known for its Juicy Lucy burgers?
What is the world famous Juicy Lucy?
What does Jucy Lucy mean?
For other uses, see Juicy Lucy (disambiguation). A Jucy Lucy (or Juicy Lucy) is a stuffed cheeseburger with the cheese inside of the meat instead of on top, resulting in a melted core of cheese. It is a popular, regional cuisine in Minnesota, particularly in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul.
How did Juicy Lucy get its name?
The customer asked Matt Bristol, the owner of the place, that, instead of placing the cheese on top of the burger, they’d place it inside. When the customer bit into this burger for the first time and the cheese began to drip, he exclaimed in fascination “wow, that’s one Juicy Lucy!”, and that’s how the name appeared.
Where did Jucy Lucy come from?
What is the origin of the Jucy Lucy? In 1954, a regular customer at a neighborhood bar called Matt’s bar – now a Minneapolis landmark – asked for a cheeseburger. The customer asked Matt Bristol, the owner of the place, that, instead of placing the cheese on top of the burger, they’d place it inside.
What’s in a Juicy Lucy?
The Juicy Lucy is known for its simplicity. Besides meat and cheese, the only other addition is onions. Ketchup and mustard aren’t added in Minnesota, and it’s a bit frowned upon to ask for tomatoes or lettuce for garnishment.