Are You Man Enough?

Thurman’s Café has been a Columbus institution since 1942 and each year like clockwork is chosen as the best burger in the city. A very good friend and I frequent Thurman’s to the point that the waiter knows our order. We hold Thurman’s with such reverence and value that whenever we make a bet, be it for fantasy football or any other occasion, it is always for a trip to Thurman’s. All of Thurman’s burgers are constructed on a base of ¾ of a pound of beef, and I am certain it is not lean beef either. The “Thurman Burger” includes a huge stack of ham, sautéed onions and mushrooms. While this may be Thurman’s flag ship my favorite is this monster:


This is the blue cheese burger and is no doubt a gift from the Heavens. The burger is topped with lettuce, tomato, onion, mayo… and here’s where it gets good, blue cheese, blue cheese dressing, several pieces of mozzarella and you ALWAYS have to add bacon. I like to hose mine down with Texas Pete (feel the burn!)

For me the bacon is what sets this burger apart. It's always thick and they add plenty of it, not like what you would find at Wendy’s or some place like that. My friend usually orders the Texas Coney. It’s basiclly a 12” smoked sausage in a sub roll covered in what appears to be an entire quart of chili. But that monster deserves its own post.

This gut buster is by any measure a man’s burger. Certainly, it is a challenge to consume but just because you can eat the entire burger doesn’t make you a man. I’ve known plenty of people who have eaten a Thurman burger, returned to work bragging about how much they ate and then proceeded to be completely worthless for the duration of the afternoon. No, the true test of a man, or at least his intestinal fortitude, is how productive he can be after your battle with the Thurman burger.


I’m proud to say my friend and I can take on Thurman’s, return to work and still maintain a high level of efficiency.

Are you man enough?