Or else White Castle, is gonna pick YOU up for dinner...

[wednes]

When I was a kid, we jokingly called White Castle burgers "sliders" because well, they slide right out of you. Hahahaha, gross and all that. For those not in-the-know, White Castle makes tiny hamburgers fried with onions. They are yummy, if you're into that sort of thing. White Castle is also where Harold and Kumar go, and where the Beastie Boys went and "got thrown out." The Beastie Boys also remind us that White Castle fries only come in one size, which actually is no longer true.

Anyway...
Imagine my surprise when, a few years ago, White Castle themselves decided to start calling their own burgers "Slyders". WTF, right?

Well, for Christmas, H's mom sent us a bunch of stuff from Harry & David. This includes the chocolate tower I posted about earlier, and some cheeses and summer sausage and such. We then got a box that said it must immediately go in the freezer. It was a box of "sliders" from Harry & David. Nary a mention of White Castle in sight. I checked, it's a box of tiny hamburgers fried with onions. Curious.

So I guess now the actual term for a tiny burger cooked with onions is a "Slider."

Can anyone out of state confirm or deny this?
Is this just how it is now?


In non-burger related news, I am only working two days this week. It feels very odd to be off on a Monday, even though my birthday was on Monday, and I was off. I'm working a few hours tomorrow before going video game shopping with sudrin. I guess that I will go ahead and buy Scene It! and leave Lips for another time when I have more money. Too bad really, because I bet I could really build up some gamer points with Lips.
Games shouldn't cost so much, I think.

Watched Grindhouse: Planet Terror which was hilarious and very action packed. Plus there were zombies in it, which I always enjoy. This was after H's birthday dinner at Red Robin with uterdic and smarbaby. That was very fun as well, though it's way too cold outside.

Comments

There an "As-Seen-On-TV Product..

[squee1973.livejournal.com]

that is specifically for making those tiny hamburg patties and the term used in said infomercial is: Slider, so, it must be so....we don't have a White Castle here in my part of PA, but, you can buy boxes of their tiny burgers in the frozen food section of, basically, any store grocery store...and Wal-Mart.

Re: There an "As-Seen-On-TV Product..

[wednes.livejournal.com]

Interesting.

[sudrin.livejournal.com]

And here I was going to recommend Lips.. Mostly because I want to hear you sing. :)

I wish planet Terror had played AFTER Death Proof. Death Proof was good, but it was too week for a Finale. I'd wait to see Rose McGowan with a GUN for a leg. HOT.

[wednes.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty good at Sing Star on PS2, which is why I wanted Lips in the first place. I think Scene It will be more fun as a party game with my guest list.

Although Kim and I would have a blast playing Lips, I am sure. So that'll be the next game on my list for sure.

[leemoyer.livejournal.com]

Quoth the Wikipedia: Another variety of hamburger is the "slider", which is a very small square hamburger patty sprinkled with diced onions and served on an equally small bun. This is the kind of hamburger popularized by White Castle. The name comes from their size, whereby they are considered to "slide" right down your throat in one or two bites. Another purveyor of the slider is Krystal. Burger King's "Burger Buddies" (a pair of slyders in a pull-apart format) are now discontinued.

What the Wiki doesn't say is that sliders are grilled with an onion grease on the grill too. I believe
William Poundstone addresses this in his indispensable BIG SECRET series.

[wednes.livejournal.com]

Ha! I remember Burger Buddies! They had those when I was in college, like late 80's early 90's.

Very informative. Thanks!!

[leemoyer.livejournal.com]

Happy to spread the truth.
And any time I can recommend Poundstone's brilliant trilogy,it's all good. ;)

[nate101000.livejournal.com]

I don't know what 'onion grease' is. White Castle uses dehydrated onions soaked in water.

[leemoyer.livejournal.com]

You are wise in the ways of such things.

[spiralwitch.livejournal.com]

funny- i thought they called them sliders for that very reason (that and they slide down your throat). wonder if us white castle (or white-y casT-elles as we lovingly call them) people coined the phrase :)

anyway, i love white castles. when i was pregnant with jameson, i ate them like it was part of my religious worship.

[wednes.livejournal.com]

I've heard several pregnant women say this.
I wonder what the connection is?

[spiralwitch.livejournal.com]

maybe it's for the same reason they taste better when you're drunk? who knows, it's a white castles mystery.

[hortonhearsawho.livejournal.com]

I've always been under the impression that Slider was the term for burgers like that. I believe that's what they're called at Hamburger Station as well, which is a very local-to-me chain similar to White House, and I remember always referring to White House burgers as Sliders with my family. I thought that's just what they were called, so it's interesting to me that White House only recently decided to call them that formally.

And now, oh man, to I want one. Or ten. yum.

[wednes.livejournal.com]

I see. I had no idea.

Yeah, I'm kind of getting a crave on myself. And I don't think White Castle ever closes. We ate there after work on Thanksgiving once.

[yshaloo]

I'm thinking that Ruby Tuesday or some equally bland chain type place (so many of them are interchangeable these days) have sliders on their menu. It's a trio or so of smallish burgers.

I lurves me some White Castle hamburgers! ETA - about once or twice a year. My stomach can't take them any more often than that.

[wednes.livejournal.com]

Indeed, it seems to be more widespread than I realized.

Yeah, they are tasty...on occasion. ;-]

[lirrin.livejournal.com]

I've never eaten at a White Castle, though you can get the sliders frozen here in some stores. I've *seen* a White Castle when I was in Cincinnati a few years ago.

And we do call little appetizer-sized square burgers with onions Sliders out here, too. Claim Jumper makes good ones. :)

[wednes.livejournal.com]

You should probably try to eat a White Castle at some point in your life, if only for the experience. ;-]

It seems that the slider is widespread. Neat.
Would that the chocodile would follow its example.

[kjtoo.livejournal.com]

I had a trio of sliders for dinner this very day, and not from White Castle but from a local bar and grille called The Wright Place. I've also heard those tiny burgers referred to as sliders in other places and by lots of folks here in northeast Ohio. It must have been six or seven years ago when we ordered a bucket o' sliders at a restaurant in Coventry; it may have even been The Winking Lizard.

As an aside, I've never eaten at a White Castle, but as coincidence would have it I watched Harold and Kumar go to White Castle just a couple of days ago.

[wednes.livejournal.com]

Indeed, it seems that the Slider was much more pervasive than I had realized.

I've never seen that Harold and Kumar movie, though I do enjoy Kal Penn.

[madush69.livejournal.com]

I love White Castle!
Funny story: I had seen Harold & Kumar at the theatre, and knew I'd want to buy the DVD. I went to the store, and purchased the DVD the day it came out. In honor of the film, I stopped at the WC to get ten cheeseburgers and a big-ass orange drink. I get home, take the plastic off the DVD cover, and see that included in the box is a coupon for some percentage off the burgers with a reciept for the movie. I'm like "bummer!" but realize I can use it next time. I get the movie started and dig into my sack of slyders only to discover a coupon for a couple of bucks off the DVD! D'Oh!!!
Oh well. It was still fun eating White Castles while watching "Harold & Kumar."

[wednes.livejournal.com]

LOL

[uterdic.livejournal.com]

the term slider has been around since the 1950's I believe. Not because they slide out of you, but because of the grease, the burger slide out of the bun. I don't remember where I read or heard this, but I remember it quite well. White Castle was one of the first fast food places in the country, so they may have coined it all those years ago, but I am not sure about that.

[wednes.livejournal.com]

Really?
I had no idea it was that old.

[lickingtoad.livejournal.com]

FUN FACT: I've lived within five miles of that White Castle for my entire life, and had never had a Slider until Paul brought them home one night.

(And yeah, my understanding was always 'Slider' = 'fucking greasy.')

[nate101000.livejournal.com]

So you haven't seen the infomercial for the 'Slider Station'? Look it up, it's pretty cool.

[wednes.livejournal.com]

I try not to watch infomercials if I can help it.
And I can always help it.