Undercooked Meat: Why's it So Hard to Have it "Your Way?"

I remember when I was younger, one of the TV jingles that was so memorable to me was "Have it Your Way....At Burger King." I can still sing the tune in my head, and I can still remember the days when I really could have a burger cooked just my way. This song does not refer to the way the burger itself was cooked, yet it makes me remember days when we didn't panic about eating medium-rare burgers and when red in our meat meant it was juicier and more flavorful, not a death sentence.

I love hamburgers, but I can't stand to have them too well done. Well or well done, to me, make the burger taste like a piece of charcoal. I much prefer to have my burgers prepared medium rare, however, over the last ten years, this is virtually impossible to have done in a restaurant.

In January of 1993, the West Coast fast food chain, Jack in the Box had an E-Coli situation that infected more than 400 people in Washington State, Nevada, and Idaho. The E-Coli was supposedly linked to bacteria found in the beef that could have potentially been cooked out had the beef been cooked to a higher temperature. Fueled partially by this incident, it has become against the law to cook ground beef under a certain temperature in restaurants.

At the time of the Jack in the Box scandal, I was living in Florida, and because the chain of fast food restaurants did not operate in Florida or anywhere on the east coast that I am aware of, I had not known of the story. In 1993, I was 25 years old and had focuses that did not include watching the news regularly. Therefore, I had not heard of the incident.

I remember one night going in to Denny's and trying to order a cheeseburger medium rare. I was told by the waiter that they were not allowed to cook it that way and in fact, they could not cook burgers under medium well. I was stunned. I asked why, and he told me it was against the law. I had no understanding of how this could be, but I remember asking him if anyone would get arrested if I ate a medium rare burger. I was mad! And, when I asked questions and found out the reason, it only made me angrier that this stupid fast food place's carelessness ruined my burger eating pleasure.

It's been almost 15 years since the Jack in the Box incident, and the laws have only gotten more strict. I was in Fuddruckers the other night for dinner and asked for a medium rare burger (I still always ask) and was told no, it's against the law. I rarely eat burgers in restaurants anymore, because I don't want to eat something that cannot be cooked to my satisfaction.

I can see, on the one hand, why it is important to regulate cooking temperatures, but on the other hand, I blame restaurants for excessive cost cutting measures and serving poor quality food in order to save money. If the restaurants would not purchase beef that is contaminated and would train employees to properly handle food, they would not have to worry about cooking to a temperature that will kill all bacteria. We need to find a way to make sure there is no bacteria to cook out. Is this too much to expect? It probably is, but it shouldn't be. The consumer should not have to pay for the poor quality of the product or lack of training and follow up of restaurant staff.

Every so often I will go to a restaurant that will cook my burger exactly how I like it. Are they really breaking laws, and what are the consequences? Shouldn't it be enough to have a warning on the menu that tells the customers to consume raw meat at their own risk? If warnings can be put on cigarette packs and alcohol bottles, why not on menus regarding meat consumption?

I believe that I should have the right to eat what I want, just as I should have the right to smoke or drink if I so choose to. I realize that this will not change the laws. The chances of me being able to order a burger in a restaurant the way I want it cooked is slim and getting slimmer with each passing year. Red meat is not healthy anyway, and it's best to just stay away. However, I want the "staying away" to be because I choose to for my own health, not because someone else has taken it upon themselves to make my health their business.