Mini Burgers, BIG Flavors

Tara Fitzpatrick

Paul H. Palmer
District Food Service Director
Greece Central School District
Greece, NY

“Students today are very aware of new items out in the marketplace. They see mini burgers at local restaurants such as TGI Fridays, Applebee's and Ruby Tuesday. These large restaurant chains put a lot into marketing products; they know something is going to be successful. We piggybacked on, adding them to the menu at the beginning of this school year. We've also done snack wraps, yogurt parfaits and panninis, to name a few.

SENIOR SIZED: At The Mather, a MatherLifeways community in Evanston, IL, upscale sliders are the perfect size: adjustable for seniors’ appetites.

“The students love them. We menu them on the A-Line (the entrée line) at all grade levels and offer two mini burgers. They can purchase additional ones a la carte if they choose. We frame the choice to pair the burgers with peas or baked fries, but students can choose fresh fruit, tossed salad, or a cup of soup.

“The size of the burgers is easier to handle at the elementary level. All the students see them as fun and a good value.

“The district has our local bakery make a special flour-topped mini roll to help differentiate the burgers. As a result of the mini burgers' popularity, we've also added mini chicken and BBQ pork sliders, which are also doing well.”

Chip Fegert
Executive Chef
The Mather
Mather LifeWays
Evanston, IL

“Having upscale sliders on the menu is really great for senior dining. In the senior population, there is a tendency to lose your appetite when presented with an overflowing plate of food. So if a resident doesn't want a whole order, rather than having a burger cut in half, they can have just one slider. A regular serving is two 3-oz. sliders.

<b>Kid Sized</b><br> School-age children are familiar with mini-burgers from commercial restaurant chains, making them a great fit for fun school meals.

“Wagyu Sliders with Black Truffle Cheese are very popular at our casual pub-style venue, Patent's Place. Wagyu is an extremely tender beef with really high marbeling, giving it a lot of flavor. The ground Wagyu just melts in your mouth.

“We put the Wagyu burgers on mini foccaccia bread, ‘foccaccini,’ with tomato, and basil baked into the bread. We toast that and spread it with a roasted garlic aioli. The cheese is aged pecorino with flecks of black truffle.

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Red Quinoa & Farro Vegetarian Sliders
Turkey Bites with Herb Aioli