SEQUIM, Wash. — “I love a greasy burger — it should be messy when you bite into it, it should be dripping down your arms, lots of cheese, lots go gooeyness, lots of goodness,” said John Zemla, who’s been in pursuit of the perfect patty ever since his dad started taking him to drive-in burger joints as a kid.
When he was laid off during the pandemic from his job with Google, hamburgers helped him get through it:
“I spent two months on the couch watching daytime TV and hated it, so I went to the store and just started cooking. And just started up a test kitchen.”
“I was well fed - there's that, he was researching all the regional classics, and practicing recipes, I got to be the guinea pig for that,” laughed his wife, Sarah.
John's pandemic project became Shadowline Burgers and Brews. He and Sarah opened in May 2021 in Sequim - serving burgers from all over the country.
There's the Oklahoma Fried Onion Burger - invented in the 1920s to make meat go further.
And the Lacy Edge Burger - born in Illinois in the '30s.
“With the Lacy Edge we kinda smear the edge of the burger to get it really thin and crispy it's a delicious burger," said John.
The Cali Burger is their most popular.
“A lot Californians that live in Sequim so a Californian burger is basically lettuce, tomato, avocado and bacon, it's a great burger,” said John.
And they have a take on an In-n-Out burger called a Cali-Double-Double. Instead of animal style, you can order it game farm style, in homage to the Olympic Game Farm, also in Sequim.
They also make ultra-tall elevated burgers like the Black Belt, a creation of chef Mark Diaz, with bacon jam and fried jalapenos.
The secret to achieving that greasy goodness burger fans crave? Smashing them.
“We take a ball, a hamburger ball and smash it down and hold it, and what that does is it instantly crisps the bottom of the patty and the juices go up inside the burger,” Johns said.
An all-American burger joint that's so small-town Sarah's family farm hangs on the wall.
“My family came here in the 1800s, they were dairy farmers, the original homestead is still in my family,” she said.
It’s a pandemic pivot that appears to be a smash hit.
“We've had a lot of people tell us that this is exactly what Sequim needed, they needed a good place to come and get a burger and a beer,” said John.
Shadowline Burgers and Brews is located at 179 W Washington St. in Sequim.
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