For many burger purists, there’s only one suitable cheese for the classic American burger — creamy and salty American cheese. But for others, American cheese is overprocessed and lacks the depth of flavor compared to cheddar or Swiss. The good news is that there’s something called “New School” American cheese, which combines the great melt of processed American cheese with higher-quality ingredients.
An excellent way to try out New School American cheese is the Double-Smash Cheeseburger at Hoexter’s. An American brasserie in Manhattan’s Upper East Side, Hoexter’s is making a classic double patty smash burger that showcases this product. We interviewed them and tried the burger to learn more.
What is New School American Cheese?
First, what exactly is New School American cheese? Regular American cheese, while tasty, is also filled with an assortment of processed ingredients, such as coloring and modified food starch. For certain people, this can be off-putting.
New School American cheese, created by Chef Eric Greenspan and entrepreneur Alan Leavitt, aims to capture the melty texture of classic American cheese with better ingredients. According to the ingredient list on the New School American cheese website, the product includes aged cheddar cheese (pasteurized cultured milk, salt, enzymes), water, cream, sodium citrate, butter (cream), salt, paprika, and turmeric.
“I am absolutely in love with this product,” said Alexandra Shapiro, owner of Hoexter’s. “I love the flavor, I love the way it melts, I love the tang. I love the better ingredients. It reminds me of the American cheese my grandmother would buy when I was little.”
What does it taste like?
We were able to try the Double-Smash Cheeseburger at Hoexter’s and found it to be an excellent rendition of an upgraded classic. The burger is straightforward — meat, cheese, special sauce, and pickles. The 80/20 patties are thin and made with a combination of sirloin, brisket, and short rib, all sourced from Allen Brothers, a premier meat purveyor. The result is a tasty burger that satisfies any burger craving.
Particularly, the choice of two thin patties is not only for aesthetic reasons. “There is something special about two thin patties,” Shapiro explained. “It gives you more surface area for char on each patty and more room for cheese.” The burger also features a special sauce. Tasting it, we found the special sauce to be quite mustard-forward, which in our opinion is a good balance to the richness of the beef and cheese.
Perhaps most importantly, each patty is also topped with a slice of New School American cheese. One bite, and we can conclude that this is an excellent cheese for burgers. It has the melty texture of classic American cheese but with the funk of a good quality cheddar.
