Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services

Iqaluit (Mar 06/00) - Burgers. For some, they're simply a hearty meal, fuel for the furnace, calories and nutrition. For others, they're a way of life.

Take burger aficionado Louis Decouto for example.

The manager of the Kamotiq Inn in Iqaluit took years off his own life planning and perfecting the quintessential ground-beef sandwich.

An invention that deserves to be patented, Decouto put the masterpiece -- dubbed the Kamotiq Burger -- on the restaurant's menu way back in 1984 when he started out as a cook.

Sixteen years and a big promotion later, the piece de resistance has topped the eatery's charts.

"It's the biggest seller on the menu," said Decouto.

"People like it. It's got bacon, it's smothered in cheese, it's got mushrooms and a quarter pound of beef."

Sound tempting?

Just wait.

It's also topped with tangy dill pickles, crisp onions, lettuce and tomatoes and has just the right amount of garlic in the beef.

"The customers say it's a very good burger. When they look at the menu, they choose the one that's fully loaded," said Decouto.

And other than to say the all-beef patties contain salt, pepper and eggs, mum's the word on any and all other secrets.

"There is a secret to it," said Douglas Donaldson, Kamotiq Inn cook extraordinaire.

"But if we told you, we'd have to kill you," he joked.

Enough said.

On to Lorne Adamitz of Resolute Bay who's a little less afraid to cook and tell.

"Last year we had a barbecue out on the land," said Adamitz.

"We took caribou and ground it up with pork fat, added onion, garlic, pepper, Bull's Eye sauce, a little bit of Italian seasoning and some bread crumbs. Everybody loved them," he said.

Hauling the 45-gallon drum-turned-barbecue out with them, Adamitz said grilling the burgers outdoors over charcoal was the only way to go.

"That's the best way to cook a burger. That's my humble opinion," said Adamitz, who added that location also added to the savory flavours of the meal.

"Surrounding has a big impact. A place that has atmosphere helps," he said.

And if Adamitz isn't doing the grilling himself, he's off to the local Co-op, where they make a pretty good burger, but the sandwich that made him change his life came out of a now-defunct place in Ottawa.

"They had these huge burgers with all kinds of different things like guacamole on them, really different things you wouldn't think of putting on."

Heading west, the muskox burger on the bill of fare at the Arctic Islands Lodge in Cambridge Bay has been known to turn more than a few heads.

"All our meals are done from scratch," said owner Margaret Hawkins.

Topped with mayo, relish, raw onions, tomato, lettuce and pickles, Hawkins added that cleanliness was paramount to turning out a good product.

"We wash all our vegetables and lettuce three times. We're very clean with our food. It's very tasty and it makes for a good meal."

So, if you're feeling a little hungry, mosey on over to the closest restaurant or try your hand at mixing up and cooking the perfect patty.

Just remember one thing -- especially as barbecue season looms on the horizon --food always tastes better when shared.