Mom and Pops Burgers Chatham: Not Your Average Burger Joint

Thomas Deegan has taken his love of hosting to a whole new level by opening a restaurant in Chatham. “I always loved hosting. I would invite people over and I would cook the entire time. I loved it. I just wanted everyone to have a good time.” After working all over the world in the consulting industry, Thomas wanted to do two things: change careers to something he loved and return to New England. A Connecticut native, who summered on the Cape, he wanted to be closer to his parents. His love of food and the Connecticut steamed cheeseburger led him ultimately to the creation of Mom and Pops Burgers.Having been a consultant for decades, Thomas understood the importance of getting advice from those in the know. Two years ago, he began to gather information from some of the best in the business. “I have one friend in San Francisco who is a restaurateur and his burger was named #2 in the country by Thrillist,” explained Thomas, “He used that to launch a quick service chain called Popsons. So, I worked with him on the concept. I’d never actually worked in a restaurant. I worked out there for quite a bit.”

 

Pelinda, Thomas’ wife, puts the Mom in Mom and Pops Burgers. She runs the restaurant’s drool worthy Instagram page and celebrates her Filipino heritage by hand rolling all of the Lumpia served in the restaurant. In addition, she works full time at Cape Abilities and the restaurant employs a few of the Cape Abilities staff part time.

When you look around the restaurant, it’s clear to see that so much thought and work has gone into the concept and the décor. It’s not your average mom and pop joint. Yes, there is an old fashioned changeable letter menu board, that reminds me of the delicious side of the road joints I grew up with down south, but there’s also a gorgeous mural reminiscent of vintage travel postcards. Mom and Pops Burgers immediately feels trendy and nostalgic at the same time.

Thomas and Pelinda put just as much work into the food. Initially, his idea was to introduce the steamed cheeseburger, popular in Connecticut, to Cape Cod. However, he quickly learned that it might not be for everyone and expanded the menu to San Francisco style pressed burgers. This made Mom and Pops Burgers more of an East Coast/West Coast connection.  “We spent a lot of time getting the beef mix right,” said Thomas. “Our beef purveyor literally sent us thousands of samples. They gave us probably 100 pounds of beef and we just tinkered with different percentages.” By the way, the exact make up of their burgers is a closely guarded secret. Everything is ground fresh on site, cooked to order, and the beef is never frozen.  

Thomas and Pelinda were batting around names for the restaurant for a while, when Thomas said, “You know we’re just going to be a mom and pops type place.” And the name was born. However it’s clearly not your average Mom and Pops.

By Rebecca Romo, Lifestyle Reporter CapeCod.com

About Rebecca Romo

Rebecca Romo hosts Feel Good Mornings weekday mornings from 6-10 am on 99.9 The Q. Originally from New Orleans, she moved to Cape to be with her husband a second generation Cape Codder.



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