What makes a great burger?

I think a hamburger, better yet a cheeseburger, is one of the great tests of a chef, cook, owner or operator of a restaurant that cares about their reputation as well as their customers. When you stop and think, a good burger has almost everything in the classic food pyramid and offers a restaurant more opportunities to make it good or bad than just about any other food item on their menu. Starting with the vision of what they consider a burger to be, then what will go into it and how they'll present it and at what price and with what accompanyments, it's an excercise in choice from start to finish that is pretty complicated, or should be. All kinds of meat can go into a great burger, usually some kind of ground beef is used and it can vary in fat content and type of beef widely. Fat content determines taste for many, but I've had great grass fed beef in burgers as well as Kobe which has more marbling than Winston Churchill's heart. What does the chef or restaurant want to say determines the meat or basic ingredient, but with care, all meat can make a great burger. Then we look at what the burger will be encased and served in, usually some kind of a bun or roll, but focaccia and wraps have become popular and choices are limited only by the imagination. Does the chef want to toast the bun, buttered or brushed with olive oil, perhaps with garlic? Choices start becoming legion and they change the finished burger with each different choice. Will it be a light, airy wonder bread type bun with no character and little ability to absorb all that is inside or will it have the capacity to absorb and hold the burger together? Cheese, the kind and quality come into play now, and will it be melted or added after the meat is cooked? The variety of cheeses available at gourmet burger places these days is astounding and joyous. Then we come to the lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles; again a huge variety of choice; then condiments including catsup, mustard, mayonnaise and special sauces of infinite variety and composition. Finally presentation and pricing make this a work of art and time consuming effort. It is also usually one of the least expensive of all whole meals in a restaurant and not a great inducement to spend a lot of time creating, but the true chef, cook, owner or operator knows damned well that smart people have always judged a restaurant by their commitment to putting out a great burger.