Highly Opinionated: An Eater Writer’s Favorite Juicy Lucys in the Twin Cities

Philly has cheesesteaks, New York claims bagels, and Cincinnati deems chili its defining dish. Here in the Twin Cities, we have a superior (unofficial) state food in the savory, cheese-packed sensation that is the Juicy Lucy. (Or, if you’re eating at Matt’s, the Jucy Lucy.) For the uninitiated, a Juicy Lucy is a succulent burger stuffed with cheese — almost like a ravioli — then griddled. This burger is so Minnesotan, it’ll squirt hot molten cheese on you if you bite into it too fast — and if that isn’t passive-aggressive behavior, I don’t know what is. Many amateur grillers have tried to recreate Lucys at home, but this week I decided to leave the griddling to the professionals and eat my way through the metro’s Juicy Lucy trail. After wiping the grease off my fingers and cheese threads off my face, here are the finest Lucys I found.The overall favorite: Juicy Lucy at the Groveland Tap ($15.95)The Groveland Tap feels like the kind of bar my dad might have walked in 20 years ago — its...