Jamie's puts healthy spin on diner food.

Byline: ON THE MENU By Randi Bjornstad The Register-Guard

Restaurant: Jamie's Great Hamburgers.

Owner: Sungmoon Bae.

Cuisine: Mostly burgers and fries, as the name implies. Jamie's has 18 different burgers on the menu, from the relatively plain Jamie's Original to concoctions with names such as Texas Tornado Burger and Hawaiian Kahuna Burger.

Those who don't want beef can get their burgers with ahi, salmon, turkey, veggie patties or chicken, for an additional fee.

The menu also includes a half-dozen salads, a bunch of specialty sandwiches and a trio of teriyaki plates - either chicken, beef or vegetable.

Philosophy: Serving up traditional diner food with a healthier twist, says Tony Delap, Jamie's general manager.

"This is a very eco-friendly town, and people are really concerned about their health," Delap says. "We did a little research, and we decided to cut out trans-fats altogether in our cooking. We also switched to Angus beef, and we're using bread and rolls made with no preservatives."

Jamie's now uses only rice bran oil from the California Rice Oil Company, he says. The restaurant gets all its hamburger buns and hoagies - nearly all vegan - from the local Bread Stop bakery.

"People have been oohing and aahing at the changes," Delap says.

Jamie's appeals especially to families, teenagers, grandparents out with the kids and groups celebrating birthdays or eating out after sports events, he says.

Specialties: That depends on your hamburger whims. The Mushroom Burger, with sauteed mushrooms, onions, garlic and Swiss cheese, might be the most-ordered burger on the menu, Delap says, but Rosie's Burger - with avocado, salsa and Monterey Jack cheese - is also a real crowd pleaser.

Price range: Burgers range from $6.25 for the Jamie's Original to $8.75 for the British Burger, which comes with fried egg, bacon, sliced ham and melted Cheddar cheese. Specialty sandwiches can be ordered in the same price range.

Salads run $3.50 for the house salad up to $8.95 for dinner salads. Teriyaki plates cost $6.95 with meat, a dollar less for the vegetarian version.

Jamie's also offers halibut and chips or chicken strips for $5 to $8, depending on the number of pieces, as well as a selection of hot dogs ranging from $3.50 to $5.99.

The restaurant also has appetizers, including fresh-fried mozzarella cheese, cheese-stuffed jalapeno peppers and fried zucchini; most come pre-packaged, not made in-house, Delap says.

Jamie's has a menu of kids' meals - served in a cardboard Corvette, Edsel, Ford Fairlane, '57 Chevy or Mustang - with a choice of button burger, corn dog, hot dog, halibut, chicken strip or grilled cheese plus fries and a beverage for $4 to $5.

Decor: Traditional diner style with red vinyl booth seating, a black-and-white checkered floor and a huge jawbreaker machine. But the retro atmosphere doesn't mean the place is behind the times.

"We also have wi-fi for customer use," Delap says.

Capacity: About 80, with additional seating outside.

Serving Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

Opened: In business since 1984; in current ownership since 2002.

Location: 1810 Chambers St.

Telephone: [phone].

Reservations: Not necessary.

Shared recipes: One of Jamie's most popular sandwiches - the Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich - can be made easily at home for a little change of pace, Delap says. It's $8.95 on the menu.

Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich

3/4 pound eye or round or other lean steak

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

1/4 teaspoon onion salt

1 tablespoon oil (preferably rice bran oil)

1 cup onions, sliced

1 cup bell peppers, red, green or yellow

1/2 cup mushrooms

2 hoagy rolls, toasted and sprinkled with more garlic salt

6 slices Swiss cheese

Put steak into freezer until firm but not hard-frozen.

Remove steak to cutting board and cut with a sharp knife into very thin slices. Season with salt, pepper, garlic salt and onion salt and mix well to coat. Set aside.

Put oil into large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onions, peppers and mushrooms for 5 minutes or until soft-tender.

Add meat and saute about 2 minutes longer, until the meat is barely pink.

Heat oven or toaster oven to broil.

Lay hoagy rolls on edge and cut in half lengthwise; place the bottom sections on a baking sheet.

Toast the rolls and sprinkle with additional garlic salt.

On each bottom section, arrange half the meat strips, onion and pepper. Lay three slices of Swiss cheese on top, and slide into the heated oven until cheese melts.

Remove from oven, put the top of the roll on the sandwich and serve.

Makes 2 large sandwiches.

CAPTION(S):

In addition to 18 different kinds of burgers, Jamie's Great Hamburgers offers specialty items including this Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich.