Burger Crew meeting called to order on Sunday, January 22, 2023.
Members in attendance: Angela, DK, Innie, Trevor, and Wayne, with special guest Marty.
I. Ordering
Ellie’s only has one burger, so that’s what everyone got.
Innie got the standard Ellie’s Burger, which comes with aged cheddar, special sauce, lettuce, pickles, and caramelized onion ($15). DK and Wayne added bacon ($2) to their burgers, while Trevor added both bacon and egg ($2 each).
Due to her current dietary restrictions, Angela had to special order her burger, and this is what came out.
Angela ordered her burger with bacon, which got left off of her burger, and she brought her own bun and cheese.
II. Burgers
Everybody ordered their patties medium rare but everybody’s came out at least medium well. DK and Trev both said the doneness didn’t really matter to them because it was still tender and juicy, and that the juiciness of the patties helped to balance out the ratio of bun to meat because the buns were on the larger side. Angela’s patty was beyond well done and she said that it was very dry. Angela and Innie both thought it was really salty, and DK and i both thought it was pretty salty, but in a good way, while Trev didn’t think it was salty at all.
Everyone who had pickles in their burger (Angela: “you had pickles?!”) really enjoyed them for the tanginess that they brought to the burger to help balance out the heaviness of the rest of the burger. It was especially nice because the pickles were positioned at the bottom of the burger so that they would hit your tongue first, which is where they needed to be. Trev was very happy with the egg in his burger, saying it was perfectly cooked so that the yolk was still gooey without being runny and that it was what every egg in a burger should be. The bacon was also a hit with everyone who got it on their burger.
As far as the aged cheddar in the burgers went, Innie thought it was too overpowering, while Trev didn’t notice it in a good way, meaning it didn’t overwhelm the burger. I didn’t think that it was too sharp for my own tastes. Texturally, it was melted over the burger but it was congealed and essentially plastic-like when it was served to us. The secret sauce added a nice sweetness.
Angela said that the fact that she brought her own bun and cheese was the only thing that made her burger edible. If she had to have it the way that it was served to her, she would have taken two bites of it and wouldn’t have been able to continue.
Marty really enjoyed her burger, only saying that it needed more ketchup. It was the most burger she had ever eaten at a meeting.
III. Sides
We ordered the burrata and everyone thought it was amazing, especially with how well the honey complimented it. The burgers all came standard with a side salad, and while I thought that the dressing was pretty standard for a vinaigrette, Trev and Innie both thought it was too strong and sour. Angela had fries with her lettuce and patty, and she said they were too salty just like the patty was; Trev described them texturally as being “ultra fried,” with a fried crispy outer shell while the potato inside had disintegrated. Angela did say that she could taste the truffle in the fries and rated them as being just ok.
IV. Misc
The restaurant wouldn’t let anyone order anything (not even an appetizer like the burrata) until the entire table was ready to put in their entire order, which was kind of odd. Service was kind of slow even though they didn’t seem to be very busy. They do take reservations for brunch, and the burger is only offered during brunch. There’s only one bathroom available and there’s no obvious signage that it’s a bathroom; there’s also a table only about four feet away from it, and both Trev and Innie said that they would not want to be seated at that table.
V. Rating/Value/Verdict
Wayne: 3.7/$9
Innie: 3.5/$14
DK: 4.0/$17
Angela: 1.8/$10
Trev: 3.9/$17
Other than Angela’s abomination, everyone else’s burger was pretty solid and enjoyable.
Next Burger Crew meeting will be on February 26 at YoYo Burgers and Chicken in Anaheim.