Stuff We Like: HellBurgers survives and thrives after makeover

The wails from people lamenting the shift of the Duluth branch of Hell’s Kitchen to burgers and hot dogs sprung up around the Internet these past few months.

No more huevos rancheros? No more lemon ricotta hot cakes? What the what?

The finger-food menu makeover comes with a name change to HellBurgers. They’ve added booths and a few more primary colors to the shop that was once a demonic scheme of red, black and flame-y. Not to mention there’s now a movie screen that featured Olympic curling during a recent lunch soiree at the Canal Park restaurant.

We started with Asian barbecue wings, which, frankly, are the size and shape of a fully functioning chicken wing. They are mammoth and meaty and messy — three things wing-heads look for in an appetizer, with the added bonus of being delicious. They come six to a serving, lacquered in a barbecue sauce complete with good-sized nips of ginger — with extra sauce on the side perfect for inappropriate finger-dipping. The aftermath of bones looked like a fox had stolen into a chicken coop.

I had a Juicy Lucy, which I tend to get when the opportunity strikes. For the uninitiated, this is two third-pound hamburger patties with a cheddar filling, not unlike a carnivore’s Twinkie. I had a bad case of burger envy when I saw the one served up to one of my dining partners. That sucker erupted with lava-like cheddar the second she cut into it. She couldn’t stop the ooze and goo. While still good, mine was more subtle — a drip here and there, a puddle of cheese left on the paper. But it didn’t, for instance, drip down my arm and get stuck in my hair. But even if it was more juicy than Lucy, it was still a tasty grilled burger.

The menu still has a lot of those signature Hell’s Kitchen quirks: Next time I go, I’ll have the Devil Dog, a foot-long Chicago-style dog with hot peppers, pickle relish, tomatoes and diced onions. And tater tots. And a deep-fried Snickers bar.

Once it gets past its status as a breakfast killer, this incarnation will be able to hold its own in future burger debates.

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