Step into Melt Gourmet Cheeseburgers and step into a restaurant that cares about the food it serves and the community it feeds. Debbie and Steve Hancotte have created an amazing mom and pop gourmet burger shop in Leesburg. Not do they put good food in the bellies of the two-legged Leesburg residents- they’ve also helped feed the four-legged through donations benefiting the Loudoun County Animal Shelter (over $5,000 since April 2012.)
The décor of Melt is a throwback to an old fashioned diner- red and white tile walls with an open kitchen no smoke and mirrors or microwaves here. I’ve never visited without seeing the owners: Steve runs the kitchen and Debbie greets you at the register to take your order. Lining the walls are giant posters of animals up for adoption at local shelters (let them MELT your heart.) I personally love restaurants that know what they do well and stick to it. Melt does burgers well- they do 100% Angus beef burgers ground daily really well. The Hancottes use local produce and beef- at my last visit they were offering a Dry Aged Prime Beef Burger from Cox Family Farms in Centreville but you can also get lamb, turkey, seafood and vegetable patties. Melt makes their buns fresh daily- because putting prime ingredients on store bought buns would be a crime against nature. When you get to the counter you can select one of the gourmet combinations on the menu- or try your hand at selecting your own ingredients, be careful- there’s no limit to how many you can select, but there is a limit to how wide your jaw will open. You can also select from a number of side dishes with their own toppings (the balsamic drizzle on the onion rings is BANGING,) retro cream sodas, RC Cola, malts, and milkshakes. I normally stick with a cream soda because I can’t imagine finishing a milkshake with the sheer size of the burgers.
If you want a burger done right and you’re on my side of the beltway- come check out Melt, you won’t be disappointed.
-Missy Isaacs (MKI)
Editor’s Note: Missy has also written this DCFüd article about Johnnie Walker.
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