Growing up in Italy, my siblings and I looked to the very rare occasions when we'd be fed burgers and fries at home with almost ecstatic trepidation. It wasn't simply because, despite my parents' lenient, permissive food education, this didn't occur as often as I would have liked, particularly as a child. But also — or maybe, especially — because it just so happened that every time a bun would land on our plates, we knew there was something to celebrate. A low-key birthday party; the start of the summer break; a night when, having all got back home from a holiday far too late, we'd get to feast on hamburgers and watch TV before heading straight to bed, leaving the unpacking and the tidying up for the next day.
If, as a teen, I remember finding the idea of hanging out with friends at a burger place desirable still — whether it meant meeting up with them at a fast-food restaurant or getting excited at the thought of stepping inside an old-school diner while on an English school trip to the US — as I got older, I must admit the appeal of this kind of eateries began to fade on me. Later, blame the slightly greasy atmosphere and sticky tables of their cheapest type or the widening age gap that began to set me apart from most customers, they lost my interest altogether. But guess what? Thanks to a new wave of burger bars competing even with the best restaurants in London as for food, vibes, and creative flair, patties, fries, and sundaes for dinner might have just got cool again.
