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Feb 18, 2010

Local Review: The Hat - Chili Cheeseburger

Take a sesame bun, a grilled quarter-pound patty, a glop of all-meat chili, a spread of your standard yellow mustard, a flat, melted square of American cheese, a thick slice of tomato, some pickle chips, and you have a delicious Chili Cheeseburger from local Southern California chain The Hat.

While the Hat is "famous" for their pastrami, I go there mostly for their chili cheese fries and the occasional burger.  You also get a pretty good deal if you get an order of onion rings where they give you a small brown paper bag filled to the brim with crunchy but generic onion rings for $3.79.

While it's not much to look at, The Hat's Chili Cheeseburger has much of the flavor I thought was lacking when I tried Tommy's.  The chili while not spicy, is meaty and flavorful, the cheese was nice and gooey, and the bun held up quite nicely.  The patty is just okay for me but the tomato is very fresh.  For $3.59, it's a tasty meal.

It is, of course, quite messy to eat, but is there such a thing as a neat chili burger?  Just remember to grab some extra napkins or a plastic knife and fork if you can't deal with the mess.

The Hat
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