The Juicy Lucy: Molten Cheese in Minneapolis

Tara Fitzpatrick

Trying a local favorite can be a wonderful part of a business trip. In between the educational sessions, the show floor and your networking opportunities at the NACUFS conference in Minneapolis, it just might be a great idea to meet “Lucy.”

The Juicy Lucy (sometimes spelled Jucy Lucy), essentially a cheeseburger with the cheese inside the burger, is a Minneapolis mainstay. How did it come about? An article about Juicy Lucys on the Serious Eats website offers this explanation:

“Decades ago, a Minnesotan, presumably suffering from cabin fever in the fifth month of winter, came up with the idea of putting cheese inside the burger rather than on top.”

So this is a burger with some molten cheese inside. Obviously you must use caution when taking that first bite. But hey, what’s a food field trip without a slight element of danger? One place that serves it, Matt’s Bar and Grill, has the slogan: “What’s more excruciating? Waiting for it to cool, or biting right in?”

It’s also delightfully sloppy. Another truism from Matt’s: “No ice. No plates. We blew the budget on napkins.”

And, if your'e a little more adventurous, there are spinoffs of the famous burger: The Saucy Sally at 5-8 Club (Lucy’s younger sister), with a secret sauce much like a Big Mac; or the Blucy (stuffed with blue cheese and garlic) at the Blue Door Pub, which also offers something called the “Bangkok Blucy,” with coconut-milk soaked mozzarella stuffed into a burger that’s topped with pickled carrots, cucumbers, red onions and ginger, served with a side of curry for “delectable dunking.” Hmmm…

Think you're ready to bite into it? Here are some local establishments that serve up the Juicy Lucy: