The year was 1912. Americans elected Woodrow Wilson as President, Arizona became the 48th state, and the Titanic sank into the Atlantic Ocean. That same year, another piece of history was unfolding in Memphis, Tenn. Elmer “Doc” Dyer opened the door of his new cafe, aptly named Dyer’s Burgers. These were not your average burgers. Dyer’s burgers were made from specially seasoned ground beef that created extra grease when cooked. Then one night, there was a mistake in the kitchen. One of the cooks didn’t change the grease in the pan and ended up cooking burgers in it. The next day, somebody came in and ate a burger and said it was the best burger they’d ever had. Fast-forward to 2024 and Dyer’s Burgers not only still exists, but the burgers are still being cooked in that same grease, 108 years later. If the idea of century-old grease doesn’t sit well with you, be assured that it’s perfectly safe. Dyer’s current owner, Kendall Robertson, says they strain the grease to get any particles out of it and then they season it. Something else that hasn’t changed is the way the burgers are served. They only do mustard, pickle, onion and pepper. “We don’t even carry lettuce, tomato, or any of that, that’s the way they come,” said Robertson. What's the special seasoning they put into the grease? “I can’t tell you, that’s part of the secret.” The burgers start out as 3-ounce balls of meat. They’re pounded down with a wooden mallet into paper-thin patties before being dropped into the legendary grease. The burgers are cooked in custom-made cast iron skillets that are about 4 inches deep and 3 feet wide. Each skillet can hold up to 75 burgers at a time. Dyer’s goes through 750-1,000 pounds of ground beef each week. If you can't make it to Memphis, there's still hope that you could one day feast on one of Dyer's famous burgers. "I do plan on hopefully growing it, and I would eventually like to have it all around the south, but we haven’t gotten there yet," said Robertson.
