By: Ray Frager

The owners of The Melting Pot restaurants are coming north with a chain of fast casual hamburger places called Burger 21, with the first establishment in Maryland set for Rockville.

Burger 21 is already established in the Tampa, Fla., area, and its announcement this week includes planned franchises in Charlotte, N.C., and Northern Virginia.

The company promises to produce food “beyond the better burger.” (That’s a better slogan than the commercial tagline featured at Burger 21’s website: “What burgers would eat if burgers could eat burgers.”)

The menu includes a double-stacked hamburger called “The OMG!” and seafood, veggie, turkey and chicken versions, along with salads (as if!) and milkshakes.