What to do in Connecticut

[kingoffleece]

Does any burger joint in Hamburg, NY toast their buns on a vertical, gas fired, swinging door toasters?

No, they don't HAVE to! 

[stmike]

All this talk of Connecticut is making me homesick! I grew up in New Haven/West Haven, and had some good times there. But when I happen to (infrequently) visit, the first thing I’ll do is get some of their fabled pizza - I like Zupardi’s - and then some seafood, usually a fried clam platter at Stowe’s Pilot House on Beach Street in W. Haven. Walking along the beaches in West Haven and Milford is nice too, for a relaxing way to spend an afternoon.

[stmike]

PS. I agree that Louis Lunch is indeed the home of the hamburger!

[gerryp]

Does any burger joint in Hamburg, NY toast their buns on a vertical, gas fired, swinging door toasters?

No, they don't HAVE to! 

Don't you guys out there just eat snow between two frozen buns!! 

[chuck peterson]

I bet they use catsup...

[gerryp]

I bet they use catsup...

Yes Chuck, I bet they do. 

But on the other hand they do have great wings.

[JJ]

How could I leave out Mystic Seaport!?

Really...lots of interesting historical information at their museum about when that area of CT was a big port for whaling... :1:  See more here:

https://chs.org/2013/07/whaling-in-connecticut/

[brider]

Me thinx Ko'F is looking for battle.
I'll only attempt a side bar.
   Does any burger joint in Hamburg, NY toast their buns on a vertical, gas fired, swinging door toasters?
BTW: A highly specific local jargon is/was an absolute necessity when ordering. Otherwise you will see the smirks.   R3~

What I've NEVER understood, though, is why the prohibition on ketchup. I respect them as being the FIRST, but I will not eat my hamburger without ketchup.

[Steve Cas]

What I've NEVER understood, though, is why the prohibition on ketchup. I respect them as being the FIRST, but I will not eat my hamburger without ketchup.

This statement sums it up!

https://www.foodnetwork.com/restaurants/ct/new-haven/louis-lunch-restaurant
Open since the turn of the 20th century, Louis' Lunch is rumored to have made the first hamburger. Geoffrey Zakarian is hooked on the original burger with cheese, tomato and onion. No condiments are offered in order to preserve the pure beefy flavors of a fresh burger grilled to perfection.

[sign216]

I had a hamburger today from Louis Lunch, New Haven, Ct, the place that you guys talked about.  Let me repeat what you said, in case some people are late to this thread;

It's a tiny place from the late 1800's.  Hamburgers are their only meal, and the only options are cheese, onion, and tomatoe.  No catsup, no mustard.  They have an attitude of "we cook it the way we like it, not the way you like it," and apparently the "no catsup" is real theory amongst hamburger epicures.

A woman wanted catsup, and complained for it.  They finally gave her a squirt bottle of some, but it was a joke, and only squirted a retractable red string.  Everyone laughed. 

The place is tiny.  So tiny that they have only one salt and one pepper shaker, passed around the whole place.  They have only the orig. tiny tiny wooden seats and benches from 50? 75? 100? yrs ago.  I felt like a giant sitting in them. 
The hamburger was on toasted white bread.  Like slices from wonder bread.  No buns.  That's they way they do it, and it's grilled in these small vertical cookers behind the counter.  Apparently this was a big deal decades ago, before the war (WW1, WW2 ?). 

Joe

[JJ]

What I've NEVER understood, though, is why the prohibition on ketchup. I respect them as being the FIRST, but I will not eat my hamburger without ketchup.

That's interesting, but I am with brider, I like a little ketchup on my cheeseburger!! (lol) :1:

[sign216]

Brider, why didn't you tell me that the bru room is right across the street from the hamburger place. The Bru room servers are beautiful just like you said. Not California beautiful, but sort of a New England beautiful. Still hot stuff.