Month: October 2021

Burger Crew meeting called to order on Saturday, September 25, 2021 at 6:00PM

Members in attendance: Angela, DK, Innie, Trevor, and Wayne, with special guest Chris.

Mini History:

Electric Owl is a gastropub and a cocktail bar. More importantly, it was created by Ernesto Uchimura. Name sound familiar? This is the original chef that started Umami Burger and BurgerCrewLA favorite Plan Check. Needless to say, Electric Owl has a pedigree of amazing burgers and (spoiler alert) it does not disappoint.

I. Ordering

They keep it real simple here. The burgers available are either a single or a double

Smash style patties, double american cheese, grilled shallots, 1001 sauce on a frico bun. Applewood smoked bacon available.

Add tots for $3 (ranch tots or hot tots)

II The Burgers

When you order the burger be ready! It comes out quickly and it comes out hot! The burgers are on the medium to small size. If you have a big appetite you may want to consider ordering two of them.

Sumana exclaimed “It was SOO good!” and felt that it was perfect as a single patty. Meat monger Wayne followed up that his was also perfect with a double patty. Double perfection? I think yes!

The patties were very beefy and although cooked beyond medium rare it still retained juiciness. The patties were definitely smashed but not enough to get the lace edge a-la Burgers Never Say Die but enough to get a great sear. The seasoning was on point and melty cheese filled all the nooks and crannies. The onions were nicely caramelized and the 1001 sauce had a bit of sweetness to round out all the umami flavor. The combination of everything is so well thought out and balanced everyone (except DK) didn’t miss having pickles. If it’s not clear, this burger is a perfect symphony that I will be humming in my head for a very long time.

II. The Sides

Tots were executed perfectly. Super crunchy and super potato-y. It comes with a side of ketchup and ranchy ranch. I personally didn’t care for the sprig of dill. Good thing it was easy to move it off to the side. The hot tots tasted like spicy pork rinds and the heat tasted like cayenne.

III. Miscellaneous

Happy hour menu is daily 3:00-6:30 where you can get cheeseburgers for $6 (single) and $9 (double) and tots for $4.50

Order from the table using a QR code (covid friendly) and everyone can pay separately (group friendly especially for that one person that orders only the salad and a water)

With the online/QR ordering it does make getting an off menu cocktail a bit of a challenge. Reservations are HIGHLY recommended and parking can be difficult to find. We also found it a bit noisy.

IV. Value

The group would pay anywhere from $10 to $13 dollars for the burger here which makes the happy hour deal SMOKING HOT.

V. The Verdict

The scores out of 5 for this burger were 4.2, 4.6, 4.7, 4.7, 4.8. This burger was highly rated the first time we dined here and it delivered again even better!

The restaurant is located at an old train station. Don’t let any an opportunity to dine here pass you by!

Next stop, Plan Check Kitchen + Bar

Burger Crew meeting called to order on Saturday, September 25, 2021 at 12pm PT (4th stop in Burger Crew Does the Best of LA).

Members in attendance: Angela, Trevor, Wayne, DK, Innie, and me (Sumana)

I. Ordering
• Cash ($12): 1/2 lb. beef patty, bacon, shishito peppers, peppered onion ring, american, cheddar, korean aioli, hoisin bbq [ordered by Angela/Trevor, Wayne/DK, Sumana]
• Chance ($12): 1/2 lb. beef patty, jalapeño, sautéed chili onion, habanero cream coleslaw, american, cheddar (extra spicy available $1) [ordered by Innie]
• Truffle parmesan fries ($7) [ordered by Angela/Trevor]
• Brussels sprouts with habanero cream ($6) [ordered by Angela/Trevor]
• Regular fries ($5) [ordered by Innie]

II. The Burgers
• Patty: Cooked to medium unless specified by the customer; thick patty; not the beefiest, but Angela/Trevor and Wayne/DK had perfectly cooked patties. I had my burger split in two by the kitchen and forgot to specify the doneness of my patty… sadly it came out well-done.
• Cash burger: The creativity of the burger was appreciated; variety of textures from the bun and crispy, peppered onion ring were fantastic; bacon was not noticeable; shishito peppers were mild
• Chance burger: Liked the spread; the coleslaw made the burger a little runny; could have preferred the burger to be more spicy

TIPS: Request the patty to be cooked medium rare; do not ask for it to be split; if ordering the Chance burger, upgrade to make it extra spicy

III. The Sides
• Regular fries: Thicker fries than in the past; not seasoned well, but they were crispy
• Truffle fries: Same fries as the regular fries, but unfortunately were soggy; the crew was disappointed since the last time we were here, the fries were thin and AMAZING
• Brussels sprouts: Deep-fried and very delicious

TIPS: Get the Brussels sprouts!

IV. Miscellaneous
• Order online or inside the liquor store
• Buy drinks from the liquor store side
• Pick up your order outside the whale’s mouth
• Outdoor seating includes 3 picnic tables and 2 mini tables; 2 of the picnic tables have umbrellas for shade
• Parking lot includes 5 regular spots and 2 handicap spots
• No restroom

TIPS: Bring a sweater if you’re planning to eat outside since it’s near the beach; be in earshot of the whale’s mouth to know when your food is ready

V. Value
$11, $12, $12, $13, $16, and I abstained
Average value = $12.80

VI. The Verdict
2.9, 3.3, 3.4, 3.8, 4.0, 4.5
Average verdict= 3.7

Maybe they had an off day and our experience did not live up to our past experience. Our initial visit to Standing Room blew us away, so this place is definitely worth another shot!

Next stop, Electric Owl!

Burger Crew meeting called to order on Saturday, September 25, 2021 at 9:30am (3rd stop in Burger Crew Does the Best of LA).

Members in attendance: Angela, Sumana, Trev, Wayne, me (Innie), and the first appearance of DK’s alter ego, Decay.

I. Ordering

Ah, The Window (The Win-Dow? The Win~Dow?), our first breakfast burgers of the Best of LA weekend!  The morning offerings at The Window consist of their regular burger menu (cheeseburger, double cheeseburger, and their impossible “burger” – the Beauty burger), as well as additional breakfast burger options (their single or double cheeseburger topped with an egg).

DK, Trev/Angela, and I went with the breakfast burger options, with DK and Trangela going for doubles ($7.25), and me getting a single ($4.95).  Wayne and Sumana opted to keep their double cheeseburgers undiluted with anything non-bovine, and ordered theirs sans huevos ($6.25).  Sumana decided to round out her balanced breakfast with a side of steak and egg breakfast burrito ($9.50).

II. The Burgers

As seems to be a developing theme on this Best of LA tour, opinions were split amongst the group, this time on the topic of the egg in the breakfast burgers.  Angela and DK were not fans, while Trev and I really enjoyed the addition of the egg to our cheeseburgers.  DK initially had high hopes, because he normally loves a fried egg on a burger, but thought this one took away from the star of the show, the beef patty.  While both Angela and DK appreciated the crispy laciness of the edges of the egg, they felt it was a cardinal burger sin to not serve the egg with a runny yolk.  Although a nicely runny yolk is always appreciated, Trev and I didn’t mind the doneness of the egg, and thought the flavor was a complement to the beef patty rather than a detriment.  One thing we did agree on, however, was that using the additional ketchup packet that came provided on the side really upped the enjoyment factor of our breakfast burgers.

The cheese on everyone’s burgers was nice and gooey and melty.  As Wayne so succinctly put it, American cheese is the safe choice and the best choice.  The beef patties were just as good as we remembered them, flavorful and meaty, seasoned well with a great char.  Wayne’s patties were a perfect medium rare, while the rest of us ended up with more of a medium, but none of us seemed to mind too much.  The umaminess of the burger was the biggest impression of our first visit, and they’ve definitely still got it!  The buns were soft and slightly sweet.  The bottom bun had a bit of a structure problem with the double pattied breakfast burger, but everyone else fared fine.

Some of the crew’s onions were in an odd no-man’s land of doneness, neither caramelized nor crunchy, with some onion pieces pulling out with each bite. Sumana’s chief critique was in regard to the construction of the burger; the pickles were on top of the patty, and the onions were below.  The agreed-upon burger crew consensus is that for optimal mouthfeel, those ingredients should be in opposite positions.

II. The Sides

Since stomach real estate is at a premium during the annual burger crew weekend, the crew did not opt for sides of fries. However, Sumana powered through and ordered a steak and egg breakfast burrito to split with Wayne, and they both thoroughly enjoyed it.  The description provided by the menu was nice and succinct: House brisket, fries inside.

The steak pieces were large and had a braised quality, pulling apart like a slow cooked brisket.  Wayne compared it to barbacoa, since he thought the steak tasted as if it were marinated.  The tortilla was satisfyingly chewy, and the whole burrito was grilled on top of the flattop, resulting in nicely charred bits.

III. Miscellaneous

The area in front of the ordering window (win-dow? win~dow?) had changed quite a bit since our last visit in 2019!  Gone is the parking lot with scattered plastic stools.  The lot is now beautifully landscaped, complete with plenty of tables, umbrellas, and heatlamps.  If you’re looking for an instagrammable spot, you’ll be very happy here! There was plenty of seating and parking available when we came in at 9:30a on a Saturday.

There were quite a number of flies on the morning we decided to dine there, but hopefully that isn’t a regular occurrence.

The breakfast menu is available from 8a to 11a, and they do not offer the “classics” part of their menu (fried chicken sandwich, grain bowl, shaved kale salad) until afterwards.  Hot coffee is also available, only during breakfast hours ($2).

DK’s order came with the best interpretation of his name ever.  Starbucks baristas, eat your heart out.

IV. Value

The members were asked how much they’d pay for the burger they ate.  The prices ranged from $7.50 to $14 for the doubles, and $6 for the single.  The majority of us were willing to pay quite a bit more than the advertised price for our respective burgers!  Even after a couple of years since our last burger crew visit, we still think it’s an amazing deal for a solid burger in LA!

V. The Verdict

The scores for our burgers were 4.0, 4.3, 4.6, 4.5, 4.4, and 4.3.  Winning scores all around.

Next stop, Standing Room in Redondo Beach!