The latest submission in the ongoing quest to fill the Hamtramck “best burger” void: Kelly’s Bar. The void developed when the roof at Motor City Sports’s Bar collapsed on its grill a few years ago, and without a doubt, Kelly’s ends the conversation, and earns a spot in the best burger in Detroit conversation.
New-ish owners Garrett Ragsdale and Kiersten Schilinski developed a smashburger that is nearly flawless and avoids some of the pitfalls that others in the area have hit. The style’s name comes from the process of cooking the meat, which involves taking two thin patties and smashing them down against a hot, unoiled flat top grill, which serves to increase the amount of the discs’ exterior that comes into contact with the hot surface. That maximizes the charred, super tasty crust that encases a still moist patty.
California’s famous In-N-Out Burger, of course, is the most popular smashburger purveyor, and Kelly’s is not the only game in town — there’s actually a high smashburger per capita count in Hamtramck that seems to owe to Yemeni-American immigrants who are into the dish.
The double patties are set between two sesame seed buns with slices of American cheese, shredded iceberg lettuce, white onion, pickles, and a “special sauce,” which I’m guessing is some blend of ketchup, mayo, and spices. Last time I added extra pickles because it felt like it needed a bump in acid to cut through everything else in the package. I’ve found a lot of smashburgers are often overly salted or too busy, and this is neither.
Kelly’s burger starts where any good burg does — high-quality meat. The bar gets a blend specially made and ground fresh at Rex Packing in Dearborn, the same packer that supplies Nemo’s in Corktown. The smashburger is a totally different ballgame than Motor City’s, and the comparison is almost unfair. The latter trades in a thick, half-pound burger, char-grilled, and best eaten a bit bloody on the interior, so there’s definitely room for both in town should Motor City ever return.
Kelly’s kitchen is managed by Brad Taormina, who is most well known around town for tending bar at Bumbo’s for years, and can best be described as a character out of a Safdie brothers movie. Didn’t know he is a cook, but glad he is. The short menu is solid from top to bottom, and even better than the smashburger are the wings — moist and meaty with shatter crisp exteriors.
Choose from four house-made sauces, the best of which is the roasted jalapeño made with peppers that are grilled on the flat top, then mixed in with Sweet Baby Ray’s and some spices. Not sure I’ve ever used the term “full-bodied” to describe chicken wing sauce, but that’s what applies here, and it’s not nearly as spicy as one might suspect.
The cajun dry rub is also excellent, as is the slightly sweet and spicy southern Buffalo sauce, the latter of which is made off of a Texas Pete base. There’s also a solid lemon pepper. Friends seem to love broccoli cheddar bites, which are definitely good, but I don’t understand why they are the talk of the menu among some. Far better are Kelly’s corned beef egg rolls, which are made in-house. Unlike most corned beef egg rolls in the area that have thick, crunchy shells, these are dainty, with crispy, almost flaky exteriors, and the change of pace is refreshing.
Also on the menu are the always awesome Pietrzyk Pierogi, and a wolf wedge — iceberg lettuce, cherry tomatoes, red onion, everything topping, dill, and blue cheese. The kitchen is mostly open for lunch through 11 p.m., and we love to see this long underutilized spot steadily churning out excellent bar fare.
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