On July 1, the Facebook post came very early in the morning — 4:52 a.m. to be exact.
It began simply with, “Hello dear lehne burger family.”
And it went downhill from there.
“Lehne Burger Cape Coral is closing its doors and thus the end for Lehne Burger USA,” the post continued. “For 11 years I was allowed to live an extraordinary dream as Germans to be able to show you how to make awesome burgers.”
Originally from Hanover, Germany, Mike Lehne partnered with Christina Possiel to bring Lehne Burger to Fort Myers Beach in 2014.
After selling it three years later, it reopened in a bigger space in South Cape in March 2018, where it gained legions of fans over the next seven-plus years.
The oh-so-delightful burger joint along Cape Coral Parkway is/was/and always will be one of our favorites.
We love/loved it so much that in 2023, we included it as our entry in USA Today’s list of top 15 burgers in Florida.
“I would have liked to live the dream but for me and my family it was time to go home,” the post continued. “For one, my strength isn’t that strong anymore, Hurricane Ian took everything from us and more importantly, I want to focus more on my family and spend time with my kids, for me, time with my kids is the most valuable thing I have.”
Thanks to its friendly atmosphere, cool vibe and outstanding burgers, Lehne Burger quickly earned a loyal following.
The Design Your Own Burger always had us feeling like a kid in a candy store. You could add up to 10 slices of cheese, 10 toppings (from fried eggs and peanut butter to grilled pineapple and hashbrowns) and 10 sauces if your heart desired. We admit our order would often border on embarrassing.
“Blessed to be a part of the community,” the post read. “It has been a wonderful journey … Thanks for everything thanks for all the years. Forever grateful.”
Thank you, Lehne Burger. We wish you the best.
Robyn George is a food and dining reporter for The News-Press. Connect at rhgeorge@fortmyer.gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Cape Coral burger joint closes doors after 11 years in Southwest Florida
Reporting by Robyn George, Fort Myers News-Press / Fort Myers News-Press
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