Heart Attack Grill

History

The Heart Attack Grill was founded in 2005 in Chandler, Arizona, by Jon Basso, with the declared intent of serving "nutritional pornography", food "so bad for you it's shocking". The idea came when writing a marketing thesis about fitness training studios, as he became inspired by stories about his clients cheating on their diets. A second Heart Attack Grill opened in Dallas, Texas in May 2011, but closed in October 2011.

One of the restaurant's promotions is a reward for customers who finish a Triple or Quadruple Bypass Burger, after which they are placed on a wheelchair and wheeled out to their vehicle by their "personal nurse".

Deaths

The restaurant's spokesman, 575-pound (261 kg) Blair River, died on March 1, 2011, aged 29, from complications of pneumonia. The Arizona location closed shortly thereafter, on May 31, 2011.

The Dallas location suffered a similar fate within a few months after that. According to a blog entry in the Dallas Morning News, as of October 12, 2011, the locks at the West End location were changed due to nonpayment of rent. Additionally, food critic Scott Reitz of the Dallas Observer reported being unable to reach the manager by phone and that the restaurant's official website had been "scrubbed of any Dallas location information".

On February 11, 2012, a customer suffered what was reported to be an apparent heart attack while eating a "Triple Bypass Burger" at the grill. Restaurant owner Jon Basso called 9-1-1 and the customer was taken to the hospital. Reportedly patrons thought it was a stunt and started taking photos. Basso later said, "I actually felt horrible for the gentleman because the tourists were taking photos of him as if it were some type of stunt. Even with our own morbid sense of humor, we would never pull a stunt like that."

In February 2013, an unofficial spokesman and daily patron, 52-year-old John Alleman, died of an apparent heart attack while waiting at a bus stop in front of the Las Vegas restaurant. Other similar incidents include on April 21, 2012, when a woman fell unconscious while eating a Double Bypass Burger, drinking alcohol and smoking.

Menu

The Heart Attack Grill menu consists of eight burger varieties based on number of half-pound patties: the "Single Bypass Burger", "Double Bypass Burger", "Triple Bypass Burger", "Quadruple Bypass Burger", "Quintuple Bypass Burger", "Sextuple Bypass Burger", "Septuple Bypass Burger", and finally, the "Octuple Bypass Burger". Each of the burgers can be augmented with "unadulterated" (not drained of the grease from cooking) bacon slices in quantities of five slices per patty, thus five slices of bacon on the Single Bypass, ten slices on the Double Bypass, 15 slices on the Triple Bypass, and 20 slices of bacon on the Quadruple Bypass Burger and so-on. All burgers are served, per patty, with a slice of American cheese, red onion, sliced tomato, and Heart Attack Grill's own unique special sauce. Heart Attack Grill also offers the Half Pound Coronary Dog, consisting of a half pound hot dog on a bun, which can come with American cheese, chili, and onions. Bacon can also be added for an extra 92 cents.

The only available side item is "Flatliner Fries", fresh French-cut potatoes deep fried in pure lard. The "Flatliner Fries can also be ordered with cheese or chili. Heart Attack Grill also offers "Butter-fat Shakes" in vanilla, chocolate and strawberry flavors. This high calorie shake is so named because it is made from butter fat cream. Various packaged candies are also available as dessert items, most notably the controversial candy cigarette.

For refreshment, high sugar content sodas are available as well as bottled water and several brands of malt liquor and beers served in the can. There is also a full bar which, in keeping with the theme, serves an array of alcoholic beverages, FAT bastard wines, and liquor shots served in four ounce novelty syringes, prescription bottles, and the wine can even be brought to ones' table in a bag hung up on a pole.

Reception

Heart Attack Grill has deliberately courted controversy as a marketing strategy. The restaurant has been criticized and drawn complaints for its breastaurant style portrayal of nurses.

The Quadruple Bypass Burger with 9,982 calories (41,760 kJ) has been identified as one of the "world's worst junk foods". It consists of four half-pound beef patties, twenty strips of bacon, eight slices of American cheese, a whole tomato and half an onion served in a bun coated with lard.

The restaurant was featured on an episode of Extreme Pig-outs on the Travel Channel, All You Can Eat on The History Channel, World's Weirdest Restaurants on Food Network Canada, ABC News, on a CBS report with Bill Geist, on Khawatir 10 on MBC, on "7 Deadly Sins." on Showtime, on the Pilot episode on Fluffy Breaks Even and The Kyle Files.