Pushing the boundaries with “inconceivable” flavors is built into the founding principles of Slater’s 50/50, a burger gastropub with locations in Southern California, Honolulu, Las Vegas and Dallas. With an expansive menu anchored by its original 50/50 burger patty (equal parts ground bacon and ground beef), part of the concept’s nature is to push the bar when it comes to flavor. One such build illustrates that philosophy well: the PB & Jealousy, decadently layered with thick-cut bacon, natural peanut butter and strawberry jelly, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream thrown in for good measure.
“The PB & Jealousy champions the classic combination of sweet and savory, in its purest and most elemental form: peanut butter and jelly, and then layers on multiple nuances, with the culmination of the piece de resistance, a scoop of vanilla ice cream,” says James Bailey, Culinary Director for Elite Restaurant Group, which operates Slater’s 50/50. “All of this doesn’t make sense at first, but when you break it down to the core principle of pairing ingredients and flavors, it all comes together in this most bizarre and perfect combination.”
The PB & Jealousy layers sweet and savory in equal parts, he explains. “You start on the bottom with a sweet honey wheat bun, then a Black Canyon Angus beef patty, then strawberry jelly, natural peanut butter, and thick-cut smoked bacon, topped with a honey wheat bun and the pure pleasure of vanilla ice cream, which you gently scoop on before you take each bite.”
The burger was created early on in Slater’s history, and thanks to the brilliant convergence of nostalgia and uniqueness, has developed a cult-like following.
“The sheer inconceivable nature of the creation—one that doesn’t seem to make sense, but all comes together when you take a bit—is what makes this burger both a show-stopper and a perennial favorite,” says Bailey. “It is something you can’t get anywhere else, and thus people come back for it, time and again, just for the pleasure of the experience that combines childhood and adulthood in one perfect burger.”
