Burger 21 promoted Mike Remes, formerly the chain’s food technician, to corporate chef and field trainer earlier this year.
At the 14-unit better-burger chain, owned by The Melting Pot Restaurants Inc., Remes develops monthly featured burgers and shakes, and oversees training and operations for new restaurants.
Remes has worked in restaurants since 2000, when he was in high school in Sebring, Fla. In 2005, he moved to Tampa, Fla., where The Melting Pot is headquartered, and joined the company in 2010.
He discussed his plans for Burger 21 with Nation’s Restaurant News, as well as the inspiration behind his latest monthly creation, the Turducken Burger.
I want to bring stuff that people can relate to, from their childhood or from their everyday life. For my first burger [in September] I tapped into my Southern roots with the Bayou Burger. It’s a play on New Orleans gumbo, with andouille sausage cooked with the “holy trinity” [of Cajun and Creole cooking: onions, celery and bell peppers], Frank’s Hot Sauce and house-ground turkey breast, topped with whole blackened shrimp, rémoulade and Ragin’ Cajun slaw. It’s really taken off like wildfire.
Ragin’ Cajun?
It’s one of our five house sauces, made with mayonnaise, ketchup and some spice.
What was your first signature milk shake?
Salted Caramel Pretzel, which is a very “it” flavor right now.
There are definitely pretzels in it, and Ghirardelli caramel, and we garnish it with caramel and pretzels on top of whipped cream.
What are you working on now?
The current milkshake is an homage to my grandmother. She always made pineapple upside-down cake for me, so I did a pineapple upside-down milkshake. We start with proprietary vanilla ice cream, pineapple purée, pineapple syrup, spiced brown sugar and pound cake.
There might be a play on a turducken for our Thanksgiving feature.
You mean a turkey stuffed with a duck stuffed with a chicken?
It’s going to be fresh-ground chicken and rosemary inside honey-sage duck inside chive and Dijon ground turkey on a bun with brie and cherry-cranberry chutney. The cherries in the chutney complement the duck. We’ll be offering it from Nov. 21 to Dec. 20.
Is the patty manufactured for you?
No, it’s all made in-house. The three proteins are mise en place separately. We press the turkey first, then put the duck on that and then the chicken. Turducken has really taken off here in the South and has kind of replaced roasted turkey for Thanksgiving. The burger’s juicy and flavorful, and all those beautiful fresh herbs really come out, and it creates a wow factor and something different for our guests.
How much do you charge for it?
The price structure varies depending on the location, but it’s between $6.99 and $8.99.
That seems inexpensive for all that food and labor.
We can utilize the purchasing power that’s already been developed by The Melting Pot. We plan to serve it cut in half. It seems kind of out-of-the-box, but it’s really comforting. I only want to make food that people want to eat.
Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected].
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