GREENSBORO, NC -- What are the chances 2WTK viewers would tie in their restaurant votes for "Best Kept Secrets" ? Turns out both serve classic American fare.
One of the two: The Porterhouse Bar & Grill 4608 W. Market Street, Greensboro.
It takes the entire staff of the Porterhouse Grill to work $5 Burger Mondays.
"Currently our record is 576, which we would like to break at some point!" says owner Eric Porter.
Yes, 576 burgers served in one night! The Porterhouse had to put together a four person team just to build your burger.
"We try to do things the right way, the way things used to be done." That includes a hand-pattied burger by Alice.
"She puts them on a scale. I want people to get what they paid for. We advertised a half pound burger. That burger should be 8 ounces." To make hundreds of perfect patties, Alice spends 7 hours every Sunday weighing, patting and shaping each burger by hand.
"She's the only one to do it right. We've had other people. Alice makes the perfect burger patty every time." Alice is certainly part of Porterhouse's recipe for success. Everywhere we turned, someone was eating a burger. And while owner Eric Porter has no beef with how crowded Monday nights are getting there's more to why viewers voted The Porterhouse a "Best Kept Secret."
"We try not to buy things that come in a box. Sure we have a deep fryer, sure we cook french fries but they're hand cut that we cut from potatoes." Lots of potatoes. We're talking 750 pounds of potatoes a week. And once again, by hand.
"We attribute the success that we have right now to doing things right. It's not always the most profitable way, it's not always the fastest way, but we decided we were going to do it that way from the beginning".
We had several customers tell 2WTK they had hoped to keep The Porterhouse a secret. It is tucked back on Market street. But I'm afraid its too late. The secret is out and its just too good!
WEB EXTRA: THE SECRET TO MAKING THE PERFECT BURGER
Anyone who serves 500 to 600 burgers in one night knows how to make a burger. The Porterhouse shares their secrets of how to make a burger and what they put in their burger.
"The trick is to get every burger to look and feel the same as best we can, " explains owner Eric Porter. "We're not fans of putting things in the meat. No Worcestershire sauce or onions or anything like that, we're not making meatloaf, we're making a hamburger. For us the most important thing is you don't want to overwork it, when you do it becomes a little more tough. We season it right before we put it on the grill."
Because we are 2WTK and we do Restaurant Report Card, we must look at the inspection grade. The last time The Porterhouse was inspected the grade was a 98 an A. The restaurant lost points for utensils not drying long enough, needing to replace cracked lids and repair old shelves. Inspectors say they need to pay more attention to detail when cleaning.
