The Beef Rue Morgue is a wild bunless burger that starts with a bed of crispy golden fries. Then it is layered with Edgar’s drunken chili, queso, a thick burger, and topped with a perfect sunny-side-up egg.

This is my version of the Beef Rue Morgue, one of the fabulous burgers served at Poe’s Tavern in Atlantic Beach, FL. Any trip back home isn’t complete for me without a trip to this Edgar Allen Poe-themed tavern because of its killer burger lineup.

Crispy fries, drunken chili, creamy queso, and a perfectly cooked burger with a sunny-side-up egg on top...yes, please!

You don’t need a recipe for a burger, but here’s what I was thinking and what I did to make mine tasty and delicious like theirs.

Of course, I cooked mine on a Big Green Egg grill but a flat top would be good too.

Fries

Poe’s hand cuts their fries. They are crunchy on the outside, delicate on the inside, and well-seasoned. So Alexis deep-fried shoestring potatoes and as soon as they came out, she seasoned them with popcorn salt and some finely ground NMT Umami SteakSeasoning recipe.

In case you can't tell, the Rue Morgue burger is a thing of decadence. So no air frying here, we deep-fried those shoestring potatoes.

Edgar’s Drunken Chili

Poe’s chili is richly flavored with a pleasant heat. It seems to have the usual suspects of ground beef, onion, seasonings, and some black beans. Fortunately, I had a batch of chorizo and black bean chili in the freezer so I used that.

Queso

Poe’s queso seemed like standard fare. I made mine in a double broiler with equal parts Velveeta queso and pepper jack cheese. I added enough milk to get the texture that I wanted and kosher salt to taste.

The Burger

What I like about Poe’s burgers is that they grind their burgers in-house. Even though they are loaded with all kinds of tasty toppings, you still taste the beefy burger. Their burgers are huge, so I made 8-ounce burgers with freshly ground chuck. To maximize flavor, I cooked them on a griddle plate on a Big Green Egg and then seasoned them after the flip with finely ground Umami Steak Seasoning.

My favorite tool for griddle burgers on the grill is an old griddle plate that went with a gas grill that I had eons ago. It fits perfectly in the Big Green Egg and it has a grease catch in one corner.

A major trick for proper griddle cooking is knowing the surface temp, not just guessing. That's why I love, love, love the Thermapen IR that my sister got me for Christmas. It combines the renowned Thermapen super-fast digital food thermometer with a non-contact infrared surface thermometer. [Thermapen IR - Affiliate Link]

For the patties, I used 8 ounces of freshly ground chuck and used a burger press to form them. Then I rested them in the fridge for about an hour.

Grilled burgers are tasty, for sure, but a griddle-cooked burger gives you the maximum crust and utmost flavor.

Egg

I wanted the perfect sunny-side-up egg for this killer burger. One thing I did is remove the thinner part of the egg whites by straining the egg over a mesh screen. Then for the perfect flavor, I used Kita’s Over Easy seasoning.

Flavor you can see on that egg! Kita's Over Easy is THE seasoning for eggs, it also works killer on potato salad, chicken, and so much more. No commissions or anything, just a solid recommendation.

Golden lava!! Notice how clean the edges of the egg are. That's why a strain off the thinnest part of the egg white, you get the clean edges.

Final Burger

This was amazing, even better than Poe's if I do say so, myself. When you pop that egg, the yolk mixes with the queso and chili, creating a river of deliciousness that coats the fries and burger. Oo la la, so good! 

Perfection! So good it would even tame an escaped orangutan armed with a straight razor. [Spoiler alert, I guess? I mean, the short-story has been out since 1841.]

More About Poe's Tavern

I highly recommend checking out Poe's Tavern if you ever get the chance. They have locations in Atlantic Beach (FL), Wrightsville Beach (NC), Sullivan's Island (SC), and Savannah (GA). 

My go-to order is the Tell-Tale Heart - A big honkin' burger with cheddar, apple wood-smoked bacon, and a fried egg.

Their primary line is their gourmet burgers and sandwiches. You can get any of them as a burger, veggie burger, or chicken sandwich.  They also have fish tacos, chili cheese fries, nachos, salads, and more.