Heart Attack on a Plate
When I saw the Food Network post on the top burgers in each of the 50 states, I saw that Mother’s Federal Hill Grille in Baltimore was Maryland’s choice. Baltimore is so close, I knew that the burger had to be mine. It’s called the Heart Attack on a Plate and is an 8 oz. burger that has been stuffed with cheese, battered, and deep fried.
My dad and I rolled down to Baltimore and met up with my aunt and uncle. We were both excited (I think this infatuation is genetic) to try the burger and convinced the relatives to come along.
According to the more elder members of our party, Mother’s is quite loud. In all fairness, Mother’s is a bar in a fairly hoppin’ section of Baltimore and it was Friday night around 8pm. I didn’t think it was anything too out of the ordinary, but definitely a lot louder than a normal restaurant. The beer menu was a little lacking and a little more along the sport’s bar tip (Guinness, Stella, Blue Moon, American macros), but they did have Brewer’s Art Resurrection Ale, a pretty decent Abbey-style Baltimore brewed ale.
In the Middle of a Heart Attack
My dad and I both got the Heart Attack on a Plate. The thing was massive when it came to the table, difficult to get a full bite that contained burger, bun, and condiments all in one bite. The burger was very lightly breaded and expertly done, just the right amount of crispness for the breading and my burger was right at medium, a little pink, and still pretty juicy. Small creeks of cheddar would occasionally ooze out of the very juicy beef. If anything, this burger could use more cheese because the sharp cheddar taste was a little lost among the strong beefy taste and spicy chipotle mayo. The beer batter breading was a little salty and quite crispy. It held on to the burger and didn’t come off in a whole section like sub par breaded foods often do.
Hand-Cut Fries
Sweet Potato Fries
Guinness Battered Onion Rings
The sides were a secret hit of this place. The hand-cut fries were exploding with potato flavor, a little limp, a little crisp, a nice texture. My dad ordered these and I found myself nibbling off his plate. I had ordered mine with onion rings, but it arrived with sweet potato fries. The waitress very kindly apologized and brought the onion rings, but let us keep the sweet potato fries, so we could try all three of the fried side offerings. I’m a fan of sweet potato fries and these were pretty standard, no special seasoning. Normally I like a little spice with my sweet potato fries, but these weren’t bad. The onion rings were breaded in a sweet Guinness based beer batter. They were sweet and a little salty and came with a side of spicy chipotle mayonnaise. The breading was expertly applied, very evenly, and stuck to the rings in just the right way. These were just the right amount of crisp, seriously some of the best I’d ever had. Mother’s really knows how to fry, that’s very clear.
Pop Pop's Butter Almond Ice Cream
Bananas Foster Ice Cream
My aunt behaved herself and stuck to crab cakes for her supper. She had room left over and was interested in their homemade “Pop Pop’s” ice cream based on their grandfather’s recipe. My uncle had some room left (he always does for ice cream) and they got a dish of Butter Almond and a dish of Bananas Foster. I’m pretty sure that Grandpa didn’t come up with Bananas Foster as a flavor, but this isn’t the place to argue. The ice cream was really amazing–perfectly creamy and very rich. The Butter Almond had a thick butter taste, almost butterscotch, and there were a lot of almonds that tasted like they were caramelized. The mix of sweet, creamy, and buttery was excellent. The Bananas Foster had sweet, caramelized bananas in rum sauce mixed in and had a great flavor.
I don’t know that I’ve had enough burgers in the state of Maryland to echo the Food Network’s designation that the Heart Attack on a Plate is the state’s best burger. It’s definitely a novelty burger, but very well executed. The fried sides and excellent ice cream dessert are a supporting cast that demonstrates food excellence at Mother’s Federal Hill Grille. I’m not sure I’ll be back, but it was a great meal.
Tags: baltimore, beer, french fries, hamburgers, ice cream, onion rings, sweet potato fries
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