Burgers Never Say Die
2388 Glendale Blvd. Unit A
Los Angeles, CA 90039
Ugh, baby showers. The words just bring to mind dread for me. Luckily, the last couple of years have been devoid of coed baby showers. That streak ended last month when Katie's family threw her sister Emily a shower up in Burbank with her extended family.
I had sworn off baby showers long ago when my friend Richard invited me to a coed shower, which he promised would be filled with football, beer, food, and none of the lame games that typically go with the impending birth of a child. Not only was it only me, him, and one other guy there, but I was alerted to the fact that he needed to be there to help out and there would be no football. I promised myself I would never be duped like that again.
I made an exception for my sister in law because I love hanging out with the extended family, I knew there would be plenty of good food and cocktails present, and with Katie leaving a couple hours ahead of me to help set up, it gave me plenty of time to stop on the way up the 5 Freeway and try out one of the hottest burger spots in LA, Burgers Never Say Die.
Burgers Never Say Die has been on every burger lover's radar for two years now. They started in the backyard of owner Shawn Nee's house, and with the word of mouth about the smashed burgers he was serving up there, the lines grew out of control, and ultimately they were forced to shut down. They then did pop-ups in Glendale, and finally found a permanent home at the start of this year in Silverlake.
I had it timed perfectly to get here at half-past one on a recent Saturday, hoping that I'd miss the busy lunch rush. No such luck, as the parking lot was packed and I ended up parking a few streets away in the residential area behind the restaurant. The restaurant sits just in the back of Silverlake Coffee right off of busy Glendale Boulevard.
I was able to walk right in and place my order, but then the waiting began. It took nearly 40 minutes from when I placed my order until I was back eating my food in my car, a far cry from the two hour wait times that some people have reported at the height of BNSD's popularity. There is limited seating here, and people were scoping out tables very quickly. Speaking of limited, the menu here is pretty limited as well. They offer a double burger, fries, and soft-serve ice cream. Enough build-up, let's see what the hottest burger in LA looks and tastes like.
Okay, here it is in all of its glory. I got the Double ($7.35), which comes with two patties, of course, cheese, ketchup, mustard, pickles, and diced onions. The comparisons to these cheeseburgers and the ones at McDonald's are numerous online, but this burger is what I imagine McDonald's used to taste like when they started in the '50s. The beef patties were smashed onto the grill and it formed a nice crusty outer ring, while the cheese and condiments were there to compliment the meat, not overpower it. The bun was super soft and well made. The burger was a little greasy, but it still came across as a very clean tasting burger. I'd describe this as a superior fast-food burger, but one that takes 40 minutes to get from the time you order it.
I also got an order of Fries ($3.95). They were your typical fast-food fries. Maybe a little salty, but they were fried crisp, and if I had gotten some ketchup to go along with them it would have helped cut the saltiness a bit. Pretty good, but not earth-shattering.
Right where you order, they have it splashed across their counter that you better order two. I'd definitely agree with that sentiment. I knew I was going to be eating at the baby shower, so I showed a little restraint, but I could have easily put away two of their double burgers. Burgers Never Say Die is a spot I think everyone should visit at least once. The burgers are deserving of all the praise that they get, but if this was the only burger spot left on the planet, I think I'd become a little tired of it after having it ten or so times, due to their limited menu. In the end, this burger did help to ease the pain of enduring another coed baby shower. Hopefully the last one for a while.
Out of five pirate treasures, (because the name of this restaurant evokes the 1985 movie, Goonies, and of course, the goonies never say die while they are looking for treasure), five being best to zero being worst, Burgers Never Say Die gets 3 pirate treasures.
Burgers Never Say Die does not have a website, but you can find more information about them on their Yelp page here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/burgers-never-say-die-los-angeles-2
Hi. Thank you for the review. We enjoyed reading it, and we really appreciate it when someone takes the time to write about us. We noticed your write-up was posted on November 7, 2019, but there's some old information mentioned regarding our prices and menu items. So to help clarify, and just so your readers know, we stopped selling the SINGLE and GRILLED DEECE in March. We also changed our meat blend since then which has reduced/eliminated the greasiness of the burger. Admittedly, our fat ratio was too high in the early days of opening. Our prices have also increased over the past seven months. The REGULAR is now 7.35, and fries are $3.95. Hope this info helps. Again, thank you for the post. Best. Burgers Never Say Die
ReplyDeleteBurgers Never Say Die - Thanks for the updated info on your product and prices. I'm so very honored that you took the time to read and respond to my little restaurant blog. I have edited the post to reflect the changes so there's no confusion about the menu and prices.
DeleteThanks again and I wish you much success.
Thank you for the review. We enjoyed reading it, and we really appreciate it when someone takes the time to write about us.
ReplyDelete