I have never eaten anything like the Texas Dead Man.
It’s no regular hamburger. It’s a gargantuan 16-ounce creation by Rylie’s Cattle Barn owner Rob Bolton.
Start with a handmade, eight-ounce patty and put it between two grilled cheese sandwiches. One is stuffed with jalapeńo peppers and red, cracked chili pepper cheese. The other is filled with bacon and double smoked Gouda cheese.
Served along with the hamburger patty, is fresh romaine lettuce, tomatoes and fried onions. The restaurant’s Blazin’ Budweiser sauce, which is a reduction of habańero peppers, tops off the dastardly Dead Man.
If you can eat three in under five minutes, they’re all free. If not, that’ll be $31.95 thank you very much.
Three in five minutes? I threw in the napkin trying to eat one after 10.
At first bite, I was hit by a myriad of flavours — so many I couldn’t taste the hamburger patty. So, I took a bite of pure beef and, it’s an awesome burger, almost fall-apart tender.
After a few minutes, the peppers kicked in, first with a low, steady burn on the lips.
I wasn’t even half way through when I needed to take a break. My eyes were watering with about one-third of the burger left.
I can see where the first problem would come in for anyone brave enough to attempt the Dead Man challenge.
If your appetite is big enough, eating three is possible. But you’re going to need a pretty high tolerance for spicy hot foods.
So far, no one has been successful, but one 16-year-old with an iron stomach has come close.
“He was 20 seconds over and he said he’ll be back,” said Bolton.
So, what made him put it on his menu in the first place? It was by special request fro his regular customers.
“Everyone was saying we needed a jumbo burger,” said Bolton.
The Texas Dead Man is now the restaurant’s number one selling hamburger and it’s one of Bolton’s favourites.
“I love the Dead Man, it’s my weakness,” he said.
For Bolton, a good hamburger is homemade, with just the right rub and spices. How it’s cooked is just as important.
“It needs to be flame broiled on a grill,” he said.
The Dead Man is a good burger, but it’s too much for me. I didn’t even finish the accompanying pickle.
I did finish the salad with fresh greens and strawberry dressing and a couple glasses of water.
I needed something cool to eat to try to counter all the peppers.
Rating
Originality 5
Taste 3.5
Size 5
