The classic patty melt makes a flavorful comeback

Once a humble diner offering, the patty melt, hands-down has made a comeback like no other diner-style sandwich of its day. It’s the delicious mashup between a grilled cheese sandwich and a dime-store burger — elevated with the addition of grilled onions and finished with an alluring sauce of some sort. I say “of some sort” because patty melt aficionados greatly differ on what exactly that special sauce should be.

But what I do know is this: It’s all about the sauce. It’s the key ingredient that makes the patty melt supreme over all other old-school sandwiches. Let the internet experts argue whether Thousand Island dressing or stone-ground mustard with dill pickles is the proper finishing touch. I will unequivocally and emphatically state that it is neither. My special spicy sandwich sauce is better. 

I’ll share the recipe, and you can let me know what you think. Here is my Classic Diner-Style Patty Melt, the way a short-order cook would knock it out on a flat top.

2 slices rye bread, lightly buttered on both sides
½ pound ground beef, formed into a smashed patty
2 slices Swiss cheese
1 slice American cheese
½ onion, finely sliced or diced 
salt and pepper

1. Grill the onions until soft and caramel-colored; set aside.
2. Cook the patty on a medium to medium-high griddle to your desired doneness.
Generously season with salt and pepper, then top with the slice of American cheese. Set aside.
3. Build the sandwich by laying both pieces of buttered rye on the griddle. Dust lightly with salt, then place one slice of Swiss cheese on each. Add the patty on top of one piece of bread, then pile on as many grilled onions as will stay put. (Meanwhile, your bread should be turning golden brown and developing a nice crust.)
4. When the bread is golden and the cheese melted, remove the half with the patty and onions to your plate.
5. Don’t drizzle — drown the sandwich with my Spicy Special Sandwich Sauce.
6. Top with the remaining bread, smash it down a bit, and secure with a toothpick — or a frill pick, as it’s called in the biz.
7. Serve with extra sauce on the side (and extra napkins).

This is my go-to sauce. I use it on meatloaf sandwiches, meatloaf dinners, my Reuben, and much more.
• ½ cup ketchup
• ½ cup mayonnaise (Kewpie makes it killer)
• 1 heaping Tbsp prepared horseradish