Later, as life turned towards cooking, he baked buns in a bakery until he discovered that his true calling was the grill. Laurynas’s burgers became food associated not only with a place but also with a season – for ten summers in the seaside capital Palanga, he has made hundreds of vacationers full and happy, who return every year not only for the famous burger but also to socialize, according to a press release.
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Helping his mother cook in childhood
Diving into memories, the speaker vividly remembers himself spinning around the kitchen with his mother as a child.
“Mom cooked a lot and deliciously, and I always helped her. To this day, Lithuanian homemade food is food for my soul. Mom made various cutlets with salads, I really liked my mom’s stuffed cabbage rolls, soups, especially classic beetroot, cucumber, and cabbage soups. But mom cooked very healthily, and I always wanted it thicker, richer,” says Laurynas.
At Kaunas University of Technology, Laurynas earned a Bachelor’s degree in Multimedia Technologies, but his desire to explore cooking led him to Klaipėda, where he studied to become a cook at the Tourism School.
“In Klaipėda, I would spend the family’s monthly living allowance in a week. Then, to somehow survive, I had to be creative. Roommates brought a lot of harvest from home: meat, potatoes, many other vegetables. I came up with an idea that my dorm friends really liked: I would cook from their products, and we all ate together,” he recalls.
Thus, while still a student, Laurynas not only developed creativity by thinking up recipes from seasonal products, learned to feed a large group of people, but also initiated various food festivals, for example – cepelinai days – known to many classmates.
“I was an unconventional student. I remember during lectures when making sauerkraut soup, I kept the water amount correct but doubled the ingredients. The soup turned out very tasty, but because of the double yield, it didn’t meet the standard, and I got a 2,” Laurynas laughs.
Mom’s food remains sentimental to this day. When visiting, Laurynas always hopes for sauerkraut soup with lamb bones. And in summers, his mother comes to visit him in Palanga and tastes his food, which Laurynas hopes does not embarrass her.
Cooking has remained the best gift for friends – on birthdays or even weddings, Laurynas brings quality meat and grills it for the guests.
Became famous after an article
While studying, Laurynas worked in a bakery, where he realized that pastry was not for him. Then, while baking Armenian Liulia kebabs and shashliks in one of Klaipėda’s restaurants, he felt that meat was his theme. After that job, he gained experience at the grill and in the kitchen at another very popular place and decided it was time for his own start.
“I bought a very old camper. The documents didn’t have the year of manufacture, but it was from the late 80s. The camper barely moved, but I felt I had made the best decision of my life. I converted it into a food truck and started grilling burgers at the Nemirseta campsite. That truck changed my life. I still remember it with nostalgia,” he says.
The first summer, Laurynas sold only a few burgers a day but felt like a true entrepreneur and was happy – the campsite was filled with freedom and a hippie atmosphere infused with music.
The turning point was very unexpected. A journalist came to the campsite, and not finding the manager, wrote an article about Laurynas. The next day, lines formed at his truck.
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“So instead of a few burgers a day, I started grilling sometimes hundreds. My girlfriend and close people rushed to help. I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time,” the man modestly recalls the start of the business.
Laurynas was noticed by the legendary Palanga venues “Rąžė” and “Naglis” team and invited to join. This season is already Laurynas’s eighth here.
“Seasonal work is not easy; after summer ends, I feel burned out. But during winter, I miss people, their reactions when tasting my food, the communication, and every time I return with great desire. Over these 10 summers, I already feel local in Palanga. I feel that people miss me too – pleasant, communicative, stylish, and interesting people choose ‘Rąžė’ and ‘Naglis,’ I like this space for its positive energy,” Laurynas confides.
On the 10th anniversary, the legendary poppy seed bun returns
Over 10 years, Palanga has undergone positive changes and transformed significantly, but nothing has changed in his burgers.
“Every ingredient in the burger must have its own flavor. High-quality, aged beef is very important. I prepare and marinate the meat myself according to my recipe. No one else does this – they only season the meat for burgers. I am convinced that this is what gives the special taste. Also important is a high-quality, intense sauce, which I also make myself,” says Laurynas.
Another of his secrets is the burger bun flavored with poppy seeds. “When I started grilling burgers, I asked the bakery to put poppy seeds on the bun. At that time, no one in Lithuania did that. The buns turned out so fluffy, soft, and tasty that I treated my guests’ children with them. It’s the most brioche-like brioche I’ve ever tasted – it melts in your mouth.
This year, on the 10th anniversary, I decided to bring back the flavor that Palanga guests who tasted my burgers remembered and to return the famous poppy seed buns to the burgers,” Laurynas invites those who haven’t tried them yet.
Asked why people return for the same burger for ten years, the speaker answers that the secret is not only in it.
“People come back for the emotion. My burgers are associated with the nicest time of the year. Both summer and the moment when they can taste my food again, people wait for all year round,” the burger guru rejoices.
Laurynas makes burgers, goes to private grilling events, and three years ago, unexpectedly, pizza joined his activities, an idea suggested by the “Rąžė” and “Naglis” team themselves. Palanga vacationers like the classic “Pepperoni” the most – as Laurynas jokes, the southern sausage gives the pizza good vibes – and “Capricciosa” pizzas.
Laurynas’s food kiosks “Sinners Burgers” and “Picon” can be found in Palanga, Vytauto St. 84, in the “Naglis” bar food area. From Vytauto Street, go down the stairs and follow the path along the stream to the very end of the “Rąžė” courtyard – there is the “Naglis” food area.
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Both kiosks operate daily all summer, from 16:00 to 00:00.
