Pete’s Hamburgers
118 W. Blackhawk
Prairie du Chien, WI
(Open Summer Weekends only)
Left woefully without camera, over the weekend we had lunch at one of the type of hole-in-the-wall tasty gems that we at ETW love. Pete’s Hamburgers has been going strong for over 100 years, at roughly the same spot on the main thoroughfare in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. Pete’s keeps the menu simple – the only thing you can order is a hamburger (no cheese available) by each burger will only set you back 3 bucks even. The main option present is ordering the burgers ‘with’ or ‘without’ grilled onions.
Much like cheesesteak joints in Philly locals in the know simply order “with” or “without” (for Pete’s 100th they sold T-shirts saying “I’ll have mine with” or “I’ll have mine without”). A rapid turnover pace means, no matter the time of day, you are definitely getting a cooked-to-order burger, hot off the griddle. On a Saturday at 4PM we still had about a 10-minute wait. One burger was enough for L, but M went for two, which we enjoyed on a bench nearby. Pete’s minimalist burger-centric approach paid off – the burgers were great. We could understand what the line was for – and why Pete’s has been in business for so long.
Eating The World 