And a Burger Shall Lead Them . . .
By Matt Diehl
Summer Guide Attacks!
Drink Up
The Un-Frugal Gourmet
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Summer Guide Calendar of Events
Despite its status as high-toned incubator of health-food trends, Los Angeles remains a burger town, and an exquisite one — even down to the fast food on offer. Long ago, our beloved In-N-Out threw down the gauntlet to international conglomerate Mickey D’s, offering a fresh alternative (real meat, never frozen, cooked to order) to the industrially produced Big Mac. In-N-Out isn’t the only game in town, however. Everyone can claim their favorite burger within greater L.A., and they typically do so loudly. Cassel’s, the Counter, Pie ‘N Burger,
Apple Pan, Mo’s, L.A. Best Burger and Cora’s all get deserved raves; inevitably, and probably correctly, someone will gripe I left their beloved bovine ball out. Those names make up the local burger canon, but which deserving ones have fallen through the grill cracks? What are L.A.’s most underrated burgers?
First off, a discussion of the most overrated. Father’s Office in Santa Monica gets the serious kudos in the blogosphere, and theirs is a deliciously prepared patty, no question. The whole experience loses, however, because of ambience: It’s hard to enjoy your food when, after an epic wait, the crush at the bar makes you feel like a zit being popped. Conversely, many Angelenos wax nostalgic about Tommy’s, remembering the times when their fathers took them there after a Dodger game for a chili burger. The nostalgia may be more powerful than the actual gustatory experience: While inhaling a Tommy burger satisfies a short-term junk-food craving, my insides always end up feeling terrible afterward – like I’ve downed chili-flavored wet cement.
I’ve found the underrated alternative to Tommy’s to be Yuca’s taco stand (2056 Hillhurst Ave., Los Feliz, 323-662-1214). One feels sacrilegious ordering a humble burger in lieu of Yuca’s amazing namesake Yucatan specialties – the sublime cochinita pobil torta, or Saturday-only tamales. But Yuca’s burger transcends to become equally as special. Forget ordering it rare: Like Tommy’s, it is not undercooked. Yet, while thoroughly well done, the meat never loses flavor and, defying expectation, somehow remains moist. Despite basic ingredients (fresh lettuce, tomato, raw onion, an acceptable, unseeded bun, ordinary American cheese), a transformative alchemy occurs on Yuca’s grill; a key element emphasizing this is the home-stewed jalapeño, which adds a distinguishing, smoky kick. Best of all, the most expensive burger option at Yuca’s will set you back only $3.75 – and somehow, unlike at Tommy’s, I don’t feel disgusting and lethargic after ingesting oh, say, four in one sitting … .
Yuca’s burger isn’t highbrow, and burger enthusiasts continually debate the merits of the standard burger and its fancier options. The incredible expressionistic greasefests
at Pie ‘N Burger and Apple Pan are proletarian to their dripping core; the Spanish burger at Masa (1800 W. Sunset Blvd., Echo Park, 213-989-1558) is unrepentantly a “fancy burger.”
Homey and warm, with impeccable, friendly service, Masa exudes classic Eastside local-joint aesthetics: mismatched furniture, Christmas lights, potted plants, funky local art, old-timey jazz skittering out of the speakers. The quality of Masa’s food, however, knows no boundaries. Chicago natives prize its Italian beef and deep-dish pizza (better than the real Windy City’s, actually); meanwhile, the bread pudding here might be L.A.’s greatest, as is the ideal table bread – warm, spongy and sweet due to a Cuban influence. But the Spanish burger is Masa’s star (it even has its own special bracket on the menu). Lodged between a pillowy, square bun baked fresh on premises, the Spanish burger isn’t purist; instead, it combines beef with chorizo, onion, tomato, and mustard, then tops it with delicious Manchego cheese. Cooked through due to the chorizo, it remains moist, but with delightfully crunchy edges that play off the rich, complicated flavor. With each bite, the flavors play off each other for an artisanal taste; there’s nothing industrial about it – well, except for the ribbed, clearly reheated frozen fries, speckled hopefully with parsley. A burger this ambitious and perfect frankly deserves better accoutrements.
No such problems with the king of L.A.’s underrated burgers, the “pug burger” at Hollywood’s Hungry Cat (1535 Vine St., 323-462-2155). Okay, calling the pug underrated is somewhat arguable; it does have a foodie cult following. Typically, however, the pug gets overshadowed by the undeniably fantastic, innovative fish options at this most acclaimed seafood restaurant. I ate here for over a year before I deigned to sample the lone meat option on the menu; I’m glad I finally caved. The pug artfully splits the line between fancy and standard issue: On paper, its combo of patty, bacon, avocado and blue cheese could hail from Carl’s Jr. But that’s Niman Ranch beef, on a custom-cut L.A. Bakery roll, cooked perfectly into a messy globe of awesomeness, the drippings quickly soaked up by ideally seasoned skinny fries. The pug’s salty burst of flavor fusion is almost like a sense memory of what beef should taste like; you can even order it topped with a fried egg, for a truly intense, angioplasty-inducing experience. Eating it, you realize the pug deserves more than just a cult – after one bite, it’s clear it should be awarded its own Hollywood star.
There are even more underrated local burgers that deserve mention. Eagle Rock’s “slow fast food” temple Oinkster has its own supremely meaty burger that could tempt you from its famed pulled-pork heaven; on the Westside, I have a soft spot for Arsenal’s gourmet sliders. For non-beef-eaters, you can’t front on Mustard Seed’s rosemary turkey burger, while pure vegetarians rave about the veggie burgers at Astro and Houston’s. All of these burgers have a distinct point of view;
“have it your way” they’re not. But as Tony Blair once said most intelligently about a stupid war, “Sometimes a leader must not just follow the will of the people, but also lead them.”
Published: 05/28/2008
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