New York University's night school is offering up "Hamburger Heaven," a one-night seminar that promises to foster a keener appreciation of America's favorite sandwich. "I'm not really teaching anything, though I'm being paid to teach" instructor George Motz admitted to the New York Post. "It's really more of a hamburger conversation."
| Along with a demonstration that there's one born every minute... |
Motz, 36, is a bit of an expert on the matter. The Brooklyn-based filmmaker recently completed a movie entitled "Hamburger America," a documentary in which he traveled 12,000 miles around the country looking for the perfect burger.
| It used to be at the Bill Jones Drive-in, in San Angelo, Texas, though McIntyre's, about a mile away, was a close second. They're both probably gone now, though... |
"People don't treat the hamburger with the amount of respect that they should," lamented Motz. "It's been overlooked for decades."
| I don't "respect" food. I may savor it, I may enjoy it, but "respect" is something else entirely. |
Continuing-education students who cough up $100 for the non-credit seminar, which takes place Oct. 5, will first watch the movie, then be instructed on hamburger detection.
| Gawd. I wish I'd thought of that. I could be rolling in dough. |
"Simply put, I'm going to teach them how to spot a great burger," explained Motz. "It's amazing how easy it is to screw up."
| I could teach them for less than a hundred bucks: Fresh, not mushy bread, lightly toasted on the grill. Meat broiled, rather than fried, with no filler except (maybe) finely chopped onion, neither mushy red in the middle nor hockey puck overdone, seasoned just enough to bring out flavor, not enough to overpower it. Everything else is condiments, which is presumably the rest of the hundred bucks. |
He doesn't want to give away all his secrets, but Motz said look for place that sells a lot of burgers, and makes them simply. "The more you treat the meat, the worse it gets," Motz says.
| "That'll be $85, please!" |
The course offering has proven so popular that the school has asked Motz to offer it again in the spring.
| "They're linin' up three-deep, Perfessor! An' they're all holdin' money!" |
Other culinary seminars offered by NYU's School of Continuing and Professional Studies include "Chinese Characters for Chinese Food Lovers," "Get to Know All-American Cheese" and "Born in Bubbles," an exploration of champagne.
This actually sounds kind of cool. I'm a fan of a good (i.e. not fast-food) hamburger. This site is a daily read. |