William L.
Yelp
Yeah, we'll get to the review, but first a bit of context:
As a teenager in the 1970s, I could think of no cooler place for a dinner date than Ground Pat'i. Stuff a twenty in my wallet, pull up in the big Oldsmobile, and enter that dark woody space with peanuts on the table and a truly bitchin' audio system set up on the wall in a locked glass cabinet.
Unfortunately, the "date" part of my adolescence pretty much ended with the chopped variety blended into oatmeal, but I did get to spend quite some time there with friends and parents.
Ground Pat'i was my first experience with a "gourmet" burger. Before that, you had the fast food chains (McDonalds and Burger King, whose down-menu hamburgers and cheeseburgers have remained remarkably consistent with the same items served 50 years ago), long lost local places like Hoppers and Lee's--oh wait, Lee's is very much still around and I need to review it--and the diner-inspired chains like Crystal and Royal Castle with tiny burgers with grilled onions and mustard on slider buns.
Ground Pat'i was a radical departure at the time, a juicy home-style burger cooked to order, with fresh-grated cheese in place of the rubbery slice, and accompanied by a cold drink in a pewter mug. Classy set up for a couple to sit and make eyes or talk about school or whatever a couple did in those days, because at the time I didn't know. (Some might argue I still don't!).
Later, chains such as Fuddruckers took up the mantle on gourmet burgers. Chains like Backyard Burgers came around. (Quick aside: I once sat the in dining car headed to Chicago on the City of New Orleans next to a guy who turned out to be the founder of Backyard Burgers.) Ground Pat'i diminished over the years, various locations closed or even burned down, and the company fell into bankruptcy. Now the name and to some extent the memories are being revived. So how did it go?
The Review
Many of the key elements of what I remember are still there: a perfectly cooked burger, fresh and crispy toppings, shredded cheese. I remember the burger being more seasoned the this, though, and I miss that (it's possible I am thinking of some other gourmet burger place over the past five decades, but the point is the burger is not peppery or particularly seasoned). It's a minor beef (pun intended) as you can compensate with condiments.
There are some expanded options for toppings, the most important being blue cheese. What might have seemed to be a health code violation in 1977 is now fully seated in holy trinity of burger cheeses alongside cheddar and swiss. All three are available.
The burger comes with a plain white bun. I would have preferred something a little heartier (sesame seeds? maybe toasted?) but it did the job.
The loaded baked potato is a treat. Everything except the butter is already onboard. (with sour cream, I skip the butter and tell them to leave it off).
The Kenner Rivertown instantiation of Ground Pat'i is set next to the railroad track in a wooden shack that reminded my of Luther's BBQ. No dark lighting, no TEAC reel-to-reel tape deck under glass playing music (I first heard Steely Dan at a Ground Pat'i), but there is a full bar, lots of room, and television screens I normally ignore but not when the Saints are playing. One of my dining party said it looked like a BBQ place, and lo, there is brisket and bbq on the menu. Not old school Ground Pat'i, but it does provide some options for those not wanting a burger. I tried the Brisket Salad on my first visit, and that was my most disappointing experience here, just plain old iceberg with strips of meat. Not particularly flavorful.
There's a greatly expanded appetizer section, an improvement even though I do miss the peanuts.
Service is consistently friendly and helpful. Kudos to the front of house, your gang is on top of service even when the place is packed. Drinks were kept refilled, and in my case even replaced (the ice in my tea had melted).
Overall it's a gourmet burger worth a stop. It's not the Ground Pat'i from the days of Archie Manning in No. 8 and Fat City as the next Bourbon Street (for true: people thought that for a year or two), but close enough.
