Picture it: Acy’s Place. 1997.

If you’ve never been to Acy’s, you’re missing out. And you’ll continue to miss out, too, because now it has been replaced with a sort of deli-and-coffee-shop hybrid.

The new place advertises that their coffee is eco-friendly. I’m not even sure what that means. But I am sure that Acy’s Place was not it.

See, back in the day, Acy’s was the short-order counter outside the cafeteria at my alma mater, Millsaps College.

We joked that Acy’s never cleaned the oil off the grill, that the reason the food was so good was that it was flavored with the grease of a thousand burgers.

I remember there being some sort of butter treadmill next to the grill. The cook could just lay a piece of bread on that thing, and the treadmill would butter it.

Is such a thing even real? Did I dream it?

These are likely possibilities. But if they do exist, I want a butter treadmill for my kitchen, please and thank you.

Anyway, at that time, Acy’s Place was the only option for food on campus other than the cafeteria.

The caf was all-you-can-eat for a flat rate, with the caveat that the student had to eat it all there in the dining room.

Acy’s Place was different. It was like grabbing takeout, but not. Each cafeteria meal translated to a certain dollar amount. Acy’s had amounts listed on a board, so a student could order, say, a club sandwich and grab a bottle of juice and still get to class on time.

And that’s how I was introduced to the patty melt.

Y’all. The Acy’s Place patty melt was everything. Crispy and crunchy on the outside, practically swimming in butter from its trip across the treadmill. Warm and salty on the inside.

To the best of my recollection, I’ve not seen a patty melt on a menu before or since.

Sure, Sonic has a few burgers served on Texas toast.

But those aren’t patty melts. That bread has not been grilled. It has not run the race of our forefathers across a treadmill made of butter.

Bless its heart.

So when I ran out of buns recently and finally recalled my love affair with the patty melt, I made one for Zayley. She thought I was a genius.

Try it. Maybe you’ll think I’m a genius, too.

PATTY MELT

Ingredients
For each sandwich, you will need:
1 very thin burger patty, cooked through (I used frozen smashburgers for this, which I cooked on the griddle.)
2 slices American cheese (You can use any type of sliced cheese you like, so don’t blow me up about this. I know American is “cheese food” and not cheese. However, American is still the best for this application. I said what I said.)
2 slices of bread
Plenty of softened butter
Optional: toppings as desired. I am a purist so don’t use any, but you may like caramelized onion, grilled mushroom pieces, or dill pickle slices

Directions
■ First, be sure your burger patties are well cooked. (For best results, you do want a patty that is very thin with a large diameter before you cook it. Remember that it will shrink as it cooks.) The amount of time the sandwich will spend on the griddle is only long enough to melt the cheese. This will not be sufficient to cook the burger. However, you can easily cook the burgers ahead of time and refrigerate them for a day or two until you want patty melts so that this becomes a 5-minute dinner.
■ Heat a heavy skillet over medium or medium-low heat – whatever level you would use for a grilled cheese sandwich. While the pan heats, butter one side of each of two slices of bread. When the pan is up to temperature, lay down one slice of bread, butter side down. Top it with a slice of cheese. Top the cheese with any desired toppings (none for me, thanks). Add the cooked burger patty. Top with another slice of cheese. Lay the second piece of bread on top, buttered side out. Cook as you would a grilled cheese sandwich.
■ Check the color of the bottom by lifting one corner of the sandwich gently with a pancake turner. Flip the sandwich carefully when the bottom of the bread is your favorite shade of golden. Cook on the second side until it matches. Cut in half (on the diagonal, of course) and enjoy warm.

Amelia Plair is a mom and high school teacher in Starkville. Email reaches her at [email protected].

Amelia Plair is a Starkville resident who writes occasional food columns.