# Max & Erma's Garbage Burger **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 18, 2012, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465 "2012-12-18T23:03:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![janis\_and\_c0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janis_and_c0/32/21_2.png) [@janis\_and\_c0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janis_and_c0)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2012, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/1 "2012-12-18T23:03:38Z")
If they were goning to excecute me tomorrow, my final meal would be a Max & Erma’s Garbage Burger. (Add Tortilla soup, watermelon tea, & Cookies) I Love love love the things. I am aware they sound nasty ( guacamole & marinara?! really???!) But they are really really good. really. I promise. Disclaimer: I get mine without bacon. Description: > [@](#): > > Everything but the kitchen sink. We pile on hickory-smoked bacon, cheddar, Swiss, American, mozzarella, caramelized onions, sautéed mushrooms, guacamole & marinara. Heard of them? Tried one? Would you try one? ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2012, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/2 "2012-12-18T23:05:52Z")
I’d probably omit the marinara (I dislike drippy sandwiches) and would definitely skip the guacamole (I don’t like avocado). Leave off those two items and I’d give this a shot. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2012, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/3 "2012-12-18T23:11:07Z")
I like Max & Erma’s quite well. I eat at the one in Robinson Twp. fairly often. I _lov_e hamburgers and theirs are pretty damn good. However, with hamburgers, pizzas, and all foods of a “toppings” nature, one fairly quickly reaches a point of overload where there are too many flavors and textures all glopped together to actually appreciate any of them individually or how they interplay with each other. Hamburgers are especially delicate in this respect, as the sandwich should be mainly about the meat patty, no matter how it is garnished. Something like the garbage burger could be dumped in front of you containing no meat patty at all and you might never miss it in that slop pail full of toppings. ---
**Author:** ![Rollo\_Tomasi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/58956e/32.png) [@Rollo\_Tomasi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rollo_Tomasi)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2012, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/4 "2012-12-18T23:53:03Z")
Huh, there’s a local restaurant in my parents’ town that serves a burger that matches that description to the letter. Except it’s called the Kitchen Sink Burger instead of the Garbage Burger. I always wondered how they came up with such an unusual concoction, since they’re pretty much regular diner food other than that one burger. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/5 "2012-12-19T00:14:04Z")
I’d be tempted to try one. I prefer my burgers without too many extras, but concoctions like that can be interesting. > [@Scumpup](#): > > Something like the garbage burger could be dumped in front of you containing no meat patty at all and you might never miss it in that slop pail full of toppings. If it’s not a top quality burger I’d rather have it that way, all the extras and no burger. ---
**Author:** ![janis\_and\_c0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janis_and_c0/32/21_2.png) [@janis\_and\_c0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janis_and_c0)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/6 "2012-12-19T06:22:19Z")
**Seanette** the marinare & guac are what make it! (& as a rule I’m not the biggest guacamole fan) Plus the hamburger patty itself is reaaly good, that’s why the burger taken as a whole is so flavorful! Dang, now I want one again… & I just had one! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/7 "2012-12-19T19:38:30Z")
Morbid curiosity makes me want to try it. I have no idea how all those flavors are supposed to go together, and I tend to be minimalist when it comes to burgers. I don’t like bacon on my burgers, I don’t like mushroom & swiss, and I sure as hell can’t figure out the flavor combo of marinara and guac, but, hell, I’d try it. There’s pretty much nothing I won’t eat. I might even secretly enjoy it while complaining along the way. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![PacifistPorcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PacifistPorcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PacifistPorcupine)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/8 "2012-12-19T19:47:53Z")
I checked out their menu, there’s plenty of burgers I’d try if there was one nearby. but I’m not crossing state lines for a burger. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/9 "2012-12-19T19:50:11Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Morbid curiosity makes me want to try it. I have no idea how all those flavors are supposed to go together, and I tend to be minimalist when it comes to burgers. I don’t like bacon on my burgers, I don’t like mushroom & swiss, and I sure as hell can’t figure out the flavor combo of marinara and guac, but, hell, I’d try it. There’s pretty much nothing I won’t eat. I might even secretly enjoy it while complaining along the way. 🙂 Just want to let you know, **pulykamell** , that you’re my favorite foodie around :). Posts like this are the perfect blend of knowledge and lack of snobbery. Makes me hap. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/10 "2012-12-19T19:59:39Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Just want to let you know, **pulykamell** , that you’re my favorite foodie around :). Posts like this are the perfect blend of knowledge and lack of snobbery. Makes me hap. Aw, shucks. I try to straddle that middle ground of having an opinion, and not being _too_ much of an ass about it. After all, I like McDonald’s and White Castle, so judge not lest ye be judged. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/11 "2012-12-19T21:17:45Z")
I used to love M&E’s when I lived up north, but sadly I don’t think they exist around here. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/12 "2012-12-19T21:26:58Z")
Oh, wow. I didn’t realize this was a chain, and that this is a chain that exists in my general area. I actually _can_ check this burger out. Hmm… ETA: Oh, jumped the gun there. Apparently they closed down 2 years or so ago. But there are a couple in Indiana. ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/13 "2012-12-19T21:38:38Z")
Hah! Kid’s stuff! You ought to check out the [“Ghetto Burger”](http://www.foodiebuddha.com/2010/05/10/the-making-of-the-ghetto-burger-at-anns-snack-bar-burger-porn-videos/) at Ann’s Snack Bar in Atlanta! ---
**Author:** ![D-bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@D-bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D-bear)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/14 "2012-12-19T23:02:19Z")
Max & Erma’s has nothing on Sam & Ella’s. They have killer grub! ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/15 "2012-12-19T23:20:11Z")
All of those toppings look like they would be good but not all at once. I agree with Seanette messy sandwiches are annoying. If they make it so it is not sloppy it will probably be good but caramelized onions, mushrooms and guacamole is going to be sloppy and messy to eat. You can really only get one of those on there and not have the bun and meat sliding around when you try to eat it. There is a bar near my house that does this sort of thing a bunch of toppings and a bunch stuff they mix into the patty. You get to choose 3 toppings and 3 mixins. That is too much and you just end up with a mess so I generally don’t get 3 of each. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2012, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/16 "2012-12-19T23:28:56Z")
> [@gazpacho](#): > > There is a bar near my house that does this sort of thing a bunch of toppings and a bunch stuff they mix into the patty. You get to choose 3 toppings and 3 mixins. That is too much and you just end up with a mess so I generally don’t get 3 of each. Once you start mixing stuff into the patty, you’re getting dangerously close to meatloaf territory, in my book. Not saying it can’t be good, but I’m always a little disappointed when I order a hamburger and get something that has stuff inside the patty (not that it happens very often. I will make an exception for a juicy Lucy, though, which has cheese nestled inside a patty.) ---
**Author:** ![janis\_and\_c0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janis_and_c0/32/21_2.png) [@janis\_and\_c0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janis_and_c0)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/max-ermas-garbage-burger/644465/17 "2012-12-20T06:35:08Z")
I wanna try a juicy Lucy really bad.