ANDERSON — The way a person cooks a hamburger is as individual as fingerprints, since the process contains so many variables: type of meat, ratio of fat to lean, thickness, grilling time, type of grill, type of wood used in open fire, toppings, cheese, buns, condiments, etc.

For instance, one of the best burgers this writer ever had was in a dump of a place on the beach in Playa del Rey, Calif. It was called The Shack (you can read about it on the Internet). And the big attraction was the Double Shack, with a half-pound of beef charbroiled, topped with Monterey jack cheese and a split, charbroiled Louisiana hot link.

Of course, you could eat a bowl of soap shavings on the beach in Playa del Rey and probably enjoy yourself just as much. In other words, it’s not the burger, but the care one puts into it that matters, as well as the atmosphere in which it is served.

That said, we contacted a few people in the county who cook hamburgers for a living, asking them for their own tips or rules for making the best.

“Try not to flip it so many times, so the juice stays inside the burger. Don’t press down too much, so the flavor stays in.”

Matt Cauley

The Bank Restaurant

110 W State St.

Pendleton

778-1446

“Buy the best ingredients you can get. That’s always a good way to start. I like a leaner mix, like an 85/15 mix, along in there.”

Bill Pitts

Lemon Drop