Whoever coined the phrase ‘you are what you eat’ might have also offered this golf-themed addendum: You are what you serve at your Masters Champions Dinner.
That culinary truism was reaffirmed last week when Augusta National unveiled Jon Rahm’s menu for this year’s celebratory feast. Tortilla de Patatas. Lentejas Estofadas. Croquetas de pollo.
Like Rahm himself, the lineup brims with Basque flair. It also marks a striking contrast with what was in the offing at Augusta last year, when Scottie Scheffler hosted golf’s most famous meal.
As most fans know, Scheffler is a native Texan with an unfussy meat-and-potatoes approach about him. Sure enough, his 2023 Champions Dinner menu was a homey cap-tip to the Lone Star state. Firecracker shrimp. Tortilla soup. An entree choice of rib-eye or blackened redfish. And a five-some of hearty sides: mac-and-cheese; jalapeño creamed corn; fried Brussels sprouts; and seasoned fries.
Fortifying stuff. Familiar-sounding, too. With one quirky exception, a single item that begged for explanation.
What, exactly, were cheeseburger sliders served ‘Scottie-style’?
Investigative scribes were quickly on the case, sniffing around for details.
The answer turned out to be a bit like Scheffler, too: uncomplicated. Cheeseburger sliders served ‘Scottie style’ are cheeseburger sliders served with fries on top, a modest preparation that the Masters demonstrated on its Twitter account.
Scheffler has a golf swing all his own, with hands held high and funky footwork at the finish. His mechanics are hard to mimic.
But his spin on sliders? Not difficult at all.
In fact, many others have served the same before. Let the record show, for instance, that in 2015, Burger King trotted out an item called the French Fry Burger, which, true to its name, featured a flame-broiled burger, strewn with fries, a fast-food predecessor to Scheffler’s slider. Commercially, the French Fry Burger was a bust (it soon vanished from Burger King menus), but it’s far from the only example of a type.
“I am not sure where it started, but every now and again, you will see a chef or restaurant top a burger with fries,” says Bill Osloond, culinary director at Horseshoe Bay Resort, in Texas. “It’s typically done as a special or as a novelty to prove that fries still taste great even on a burger, and not just on the side.”
As Osloond sees it, Scheffler’s riff is a “fun take on a slider.” But to really give the dish a distinctive Texas spin, Osloond says, “I would likely try a brisket burnt ends slider with fries.”
Given the way Scheffler has been playing, he might get a chance to serve that at Augusta in 2025.