Hinkle's American Hamburgers offers fresh food, atmosphere

I love Bloomington in the spring. The air buzzes with a rebirth of humanity, class ends at 5:15 and the sun will shine for another hour and a half, Frisbees fly rather than snowballs, and students shed their coats for shorts and sunglasses.\nSouthern Indiana in the spring is at the height of natural beauty, and all around there is a need to be alive and refreshed. Friends gather and enjoy the outdoors and break bread together with the ageless tradition of the grilling. And, as we all know, a good cookout is cornerstoned by its most notorious of dishes -- the hamburger.\nIt is a sandwich which gained popularity in the United States during the early 20th century, is said to have originated in Germany and was brought to the United States, where now it is one of the most iconic foods in popular culture.\nFor those like me who have yet to don my backyard with an altar made by the gods of Webber Inc., the necessity for a good hamburger is paramount. I searched Bloomington for the best hamburger -- perhaps hoping to find one of the best in the state or country. \nBecause many restaurants boast that most delectable of carnivorous dishes, I limited my search to those establishments whose reputations preceded them. The five restaurants were Mustard's, 300 S. College Mall Rd.; Yogi's Grill and Bar, 519 E. 10th St.; Opie Taylor's Burger Works, 212 N. Walnut St.; Johnny Angel's Express, 301 S. Walnut St.; and Hinkle's Hamburgers, 206 S. Adams St.\nEach restaurant also had french fries and beef chili (some carried vegetarian chili), which I sampled with the hamburgers. Although all of these restaurants are unique to Bloomington and all use the hamburger as a signature item, each burger is distinctly different, and they encompass the entire realm of burger-mania.\nFor those who enjoy a three-inch-thick, fully loaded, juicy hamburger, three of the aforementioned restaurants carry such burgers with varying levels of intensity (in taste and quality). But, for those who want a tasty, grilled, Steak 'n Shake-style burger that will drive your tongue wild, two of the restaurants have what you want.\nPersonally, I prefer the second of the two choices because they tend to be a lot more personal in preparation and taste -- what I mean is that not every burger looks exactly the same, each individual burger has its own flair while still remaining faithful to the style.\nFor those restaurants that serve the three-inch-thick burgers -- Yogi's, Mustard's and Opie Taylor's -- the best of the three has to go to Opie's. While Opie Taylor's is a bit more expensive than the other two, the restaurant's burgers are highly tasty. Yogi's was fairly bland and Mustard's was not as fresh as either of the other two -- it also looked as if like the meat had been thawed that morning.\nOpie's burger is a quarter pound patty grilled any way you like and served on a toasted kaiser bun with any of a variety of fixings. They also specialize in burgers and have many to choose from ranging from classic to cajun.\nWhat also made Opie's the best was the restaurant's chili was the perfect blend of spice and taste with a nice mix of ground beef chunks (not bits) and beans. While the extra-thick steak fries are not my favorite, their burger and chili make for a great combination.\nBut my personal taste buds flock to a burger of less gargantuan status, merely craving the more diamond in the rough of hamburgers, of which Bloomington has its subtle few. The newly reopened Johnny Angel's Express and Hinkle's American Hamburgers are the two restaurants who satisfy this craving, cranking out sandwiches that make fast-food look and taste like New Coke compared to Coca-Cola Classic.\nBoth restaurants cater to the "get a lot of food for not a lot of money" slogan, but they both deliver a distinctly different taste on a similarly made sandwich. Both sandwiches are fresh beef grilled on a flat grill within eyesight with most fixings available.\nMy personal favorite, and what I will call the absolute best hamburger in Bloomington and also the best hamburger I've ever had, is from that little-known hole-in-the-wall on South Adams -- Hinkle's Hamburgers.\nWith signs around the restaurant showing not only its Southern Indiana style, but also its sense of humor, Hinkle's has been serving Bloomington since the 1930's, starting as an ice-cream shop on 10th Street serving grilled hamburgers made with freshly ground beef (daily ground) seared with onions creating the most deliciously devilish burger I've ever tasted.\nNow, just to give warning, this hamburger is ugly. It's greasy, the buns are not thick kaiser rolls and they don't want to give the impression of a gourmet sandwich. But, looks as usual are deceiving and this hamburger has more than 70 years of history and taste, making it a burger worthy of Clintonian infamy.\nAlthough Hinkle's chili is nothing to write home about, the 'tater cakes blow the normality of french fries out of the fryer and the freshly scooped milk shakes that started everything are crisp, cool and very sweet. The service, though seemingly cynical from the cashier ("That'll be $505" instead of $5.05), each sandwich is made with love and pride, and it is certainly tasted in the sandwich.\nSo, for those who love their hamburgers, Bloomington has the stuff to satisfy that craving and it is not a difficult or expensive endeavor. Enjoy the breeze, the freshness and beauty that is spring in Bloomington and allow yourself the guilty pleasure of a Hinkle's hamburger some sunny afternoon.