Troy Sproul has spent months studying the history of the hamburger, sampling burgers in New York and testing potatoes, all in pursuit of the perfect smash burger and french fries.
The result is Lacy Burger, a new restaurant Sproul plans to open at 42 Main St. in Hopkinton, located behind his original Blue Square Pizza location and in the former space of The Chef's Kitchen on Main.
Sproul told the Daily News in a recent interview that the idea grew out of his dislike of traditional pub-style burgers, which he found too thick and often overshadowed by overly processed ingredients.
He said his opinion changed when he first tried Shake Shack's smash burger style and realized it was something he enjoyed. About a year ago, he began exploring the concept further, diving into the history of the hamburger and examining its origins.
"Lacy Burger is really an homage to that initial emergence of the hamburger," Sproul said. "It's super fast, smashed on a hot griddle and is kept really simple. It's not overthought."
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Sproul said his research helped him better understand how the hamburger evolved and how, in his view, it lost some of its original essence along the way.
"I find that there's a lot of good information in the origins of things. After multiple generations the essence of something can be lost. I think revisiting that essence later on, at a different point of time in history it can become more inspiring," Sproul said.
One of Sproul's goals in his restaurants is to take a simple concept and elevate it. He said Blue Square Pizza, which has locations in Hopkinton, Northborough and Natick, grew out of his difficulty finding a quality plain cheese pizza or one with only a few toppings.
With Lacy Burger, he is taking a similar approach, focusing on the flavors and textures of a simple smash burger.
What's on the Lacy Burger menu?
The menu has been streamlined to three burger options and one size of french fries. Each burger can be ordered with a single or double patty and comes with what Sproul called "new school" American cheese, which he said is less processed than the cheese typically found on burgers.
The first option, The Classic, is an homage to a 1926-style burger and comes with ketchup, mustard, diced onions, cheese and Grillo's pickles.
The second, which Sproul expects to be the restaurant's signature burger, is the Lacy. Paper-thin onions are smashed into the patty and caramelized as it cooks. The burger is topped with their homemade Lacy sauce and pickles.
"What I wanted to do is just have this really good symphony of flavors that all complement each other in this particular burger," Sproul said.
The final option, the Lacy-O, is Sproul's take on an Oklahoma-style smash burger. A generous amount of paper-thin onions is smashed into the burger before it is flipped, allowing the onions to caramelize and create what Sproul described as a "gooey kind of sweetness." Jalapenos are also smashed into the burger, which is topped with mustard.
The menu also includes french fries, which Sproul said are intended to emulate the original McDonald's fries with a crispy, shoestring style. He said he went through an extensive process to select the right potatoes, and the fries will be cooked in beef tallow rather than processed oils.
He has spent several months fine-tuning the menu, testing different cheese ratios, finding the right type of beef and researching how other restaurants make their burgers.
A streamlined restaurant concept
Sproul said he has learned from operating Blue Square Pizza that it is important to eliminate any potential friction in kitchen operations, an approach he plans to continue with Lacy Burger.
Lacy Burger will operate as a counter-service restaurant, with Sproul planning to rely heavily on modern technology and AI. He said he has begun incorporating more technology into his Blue Square Pizza locations and expects that approach to continue with Lacy Burger. AI will be used to monitor inventory and even put in new orders to vendors automatically. He said this technology is currently being tested, but expects it to be successful.
Customers will order from self-ordering kiosks, and much of the online ordering process will also be automated.
The restaurant will have about 20 seats and Sproul said he hopes it will become a fun environment for families to enjoy a meal. He expects a burger and fries together to cost about $12.
The buildout is already complete because the former restaurant space came with a modern kitchen and required minimal construction, Sproul said.
Hours are expected to be 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week.
Sproul hopes to open Lacy Burger by the third week of November, but the restaurant is still awaiting a common victualler license hearing with the town. He said the timing of that approval will ultimately help determine when the restaurant can open.
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