Ballpark Burgers: Reading Phillies (The Churger)

Behold, the CHURGER!

What?

Yes, the CHURGER!

The most pleasant intersection of summertime BBQ staples, the Churger is half hamburger, half grilled chicken and all right by me.

I’ve been going to Reading Phillies games for close to 30 years now (wow, that feels weird to write – am I that old?) and one thing you can always count on is great food. For years it was hot dogs and french fries and most recently it has been the burgers.

The Churger hybrid no doubt comes from the R-Phils cooks flair for experimentation which a few years ago birthed “The Grand Slammer” which is a deadly combination of two 1/2 half pound burgers, cheese, sauce, pickles and oh, yeah…a half-ton of french fries, all wrapped up in a bun. At $10/per it might give you sticker shock, but have no fear it can easily feed a family of 4.

A sign above the Grand Slam Grill located down the right field line, defines the Churger:

It’s a sandwich that combines a burger and chicken breast separated by a slice of American cheese on a fresh roll and made with a whole lot of love.”

Signed by “Scoly,” noted as the Inventor of the Churger

Scoly is Jamie “Scoly” Scolastico who runs the outpost and is deserved of his name in lights (or at least on paint) for this invention.

The $7 sandwich itself is a 1/4 lb. hamburger and a similar sized chicken breast, char-grilled and kept from co-mingling by a slice of cheese applied during burger construction. No need for condiments of any kind because both the burger and the chicken were perfectly cooked and juicy. Besides maybe BBQ sauce, I’m not even sure what condiments you would put on it if you so decided they were necessary.

I can’t wait to catch another game (and burger) in Reading. This place is a perennial winner for a great family night out and the food just puts it over the top.

Filed under: Ballpark Burgers, Big Burgers, Burgers In The Burbs, Marc Sanders, Meat On Meat, Opportunity Of A Lifetime, Weird Burgers

Ballpark Burgers: Lehigh Valley IronPigs

Baseball season is in full swing and that means lots of roadtrips to major and minor league ballparks.  Here is a picture of the very fine 1/2 lb. hamburger offered by the brand new Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Allentown, PA).  Bad name, decent burger.  

A true 1/2 lb. grilled at their “Blast Furnace” food stand (everything is themed to the local iron industry which is more history than modern day at this point).  This burger no doubt started out as a frozen patty, but it holds its own.  The bun leaves a lot to be desired (oddly not fresh even though we went the first week of the season).  $5.75 for the burger, $6.00 with cheese.  

Look for more ballpark burgers as the summer goes on.

Filed under: Ballpark Burgers, Big Burgers