Fat Mo's, The Perfect Burger

Hello, again, blogging world! I have been taking a bit of a break because I had family staying with me from out of town. We enjoyed a lovely visit (even despite the tornadoes that ripped through town on Wednesday), much laughter, some good card games, and some excellent food. 

I don't have a recipe for you tonight: I have a restaurant recommendation and some pictures for you to drool over.

I love hamburgers. A lot of people do, I know, but my love for hamburgers is on a deeper, more meaningful level than most. I crave, desire, and esteem a good hamburger the way some people think of prime rib or an expensive wine. I am a hamburger connoisseur.

Here is what I need in a hamburger. Size matters. It needs to be big. If I can comfortably hold it in one hand, it is too small. It also needs to drip. A good drip is everything. It means that the juice from the thick tomato slices, the perfectly round pickles, the creamy mayo, the spicy mustard, and the juicy meat are too much for one burger to contain. When I pick up my burger and take that first bite, the juice must drip down over my fingers and onto my plate.

See this burger...it is perfect.

That is a Fat Mo's burger. In my opinion, Fat Mo's is the home of the best hamburger in the United States. It meets my burger loving expectations every time. (If you are - for some strange reason- not in the mood for a burger, their chicken is just ridiculously good.)

Fat Mo's is a franchise in Middle Tennessee, and lucky for me there is one not far from my home in Murfreesboro. Mo and his wife actually run one of the Smyrna locations, and they are super nice to talk with. They are very proud to provide quality food and want every customer to be 100% satisfied.

In addition to the perfect burger, Fat Mo's offers my favorite fried side - the fried mushroom. If the burger is all about the drip, the fried mushroom is all about the pop. The beauty of the fried mushroom is all of the moisture held inside the subtly spiced, crunchy coating. When you break through the golden brown breading on the mushroom, all of that moisture should burst out and feel like a pop in your mouth. A pop full of the earthy taste of mushroom, the spice of the breading, and the satisfying crunch that says "deep fried" .

I know that the mushroom on the side of this plate appears diminutive. It is a very large mushroom. It just happens to be sitting next to a Fat Mo's Super Deluxe burger - a monster burger which has 27oz of beef on it.

Now, before you chastise me for posting a burger ode on a website that provides you with Weight Watchers points for my recipes, let me give you my three points on the wisdom of this post.

1. Food is always there. Burgers are not going to go away just because you are on a diet. Accept that the world is full of temptation and that you have to learn how to deal with it in a way that keeps you healthy.

2. It  is okay to be indulgent every once in awhile. Fat Mo's every day is bad for me. Fat Mo's never, ever is like punishing myself. I don't want to live telling myself I can't ever, ever have what I want because it isn't "on my diet".

3. Make your calories worth it. A stale donut from the teachers lounge is not a temptation to me anymore because those calories just aren't worth it. If I start to eat something and I don't like it; I don't make myself finish. It isn't worth it. I know which indulgent foods I truly love and those are the every-once-in-awhile splurges that are worth it.