Burger Week
July 12th -18th 2020
If there was ever a time for a burger week, this seems like the most appropriate time that we would need it. Not only are restaurants closing their doors at an alarming rate, but if I had to eat one more salad, fast food meal, or even worse, something that I concocted in my kitchen, I was going to lose it. Enter Burger Week to my, and everyone's rescue.
Burger Week was held from July 12th to the 18th this year. There were 52 OC and Long Beach restaurants taking part and as an added bonus, 34 LA restaurants were participating as well. This seven-day event was organized by the wonderful people at the OC Restaurant Association, who put on numerous events throughout the year; OC Restaurant Week, the Golden Foodie Awards, Pacific Wine and Food Classic, Brunch Week, and more to come.
Even though restaurants were closed for dine-in service, many were serving on their outdoor patios, and takeout and delivery were both options at many spots. There were no coupons to redeem, all you had to do was mention the Burger Week menu while ordering. Menus were priced at $10, $15, $20, and $25 depending on the restaurant, and included a variety of options and sides to choose from.
If you follow my Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/eatingmywaythroughoc/ you know that I had the goal of eating seven burgers in seven days. Not a Herculean feat by any stretch of the imagination, but with my TV obsession as of late, coming home from work pretty tired, and not really wanting to be out too much, I was not too sure I was going to make it through seven days. I did persevere though because restaurants need as much exposure as they can get in these trying times. So, without further ado, here are my seven takeout burger experiences during Burger Week, from worst to best.
#7 Bru Grill - Lake Forest
I admit I have never really been a big fan of the food at this popular eatery that's situated alongside busy El Toro Road. I actually picked Bru during Burger Week because I was too lazy to venture too far from home on my day off. Their $15 menu included this Killer BBQ Burger, Fries, and a Craft Beer. This half-pound burger came with Tillamook cheddar cheese, bbq sauce, crispy onion strings, and was topped with house-made bread and butter pickles. The bbq sauce really overpowered here. It was all I could taste in each bite. The beef and cheese were not very prominent. I do give them credit for their pickles though. I'm not even a fan of pickles on burgers, but they were so good I give them a pass for putting them on there. The fries were solid too. Not an awful burger, but I wish it had tasted as good as it looked in the pictures.
#6 Rock and Brews - Tustin
This rock and roll inspired restaurant is owned by KISS members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley. They recently opened a branch of their successful restaurant concept in the old Lonestar Steakhouse spot off of Irvine Boulevard. Their $20 offering included their Gastro Burger, Garlic Fries, and a Brownie. Another great deal, especially when you consider the burger will set you back $16 now that Burger Week is over. The Gastro Burger comes with an array of items; double Swiss cheese, bacon, caramelized onions, tomato, greens, garlic aioli, and a sunny side up egg. With so much on this burger, I thought it was going to be awesome, but it fell flat. Maybe there was too much going on here. I could not really taste too much, with the exception of the sunny side up egg. It also definitely needed some extra garlic aioli to liven things up. The garlic fries were the best part of this meal. The fries were done well, with plenty of garlic and parsley in each bite. The brownie was fine, but I forgot to take a picture, which sums up the brownie perfectly.
#5 Villa Roma - Laguna Hills
I was intrigued by what restaurants that aren't burger-centric were going to come up with during Burger Week. Villa Roma is an Argentine-Italian joint that collaborated with Neil Saavedra of KFI's Fork Report. They came up with the Argentine Burger which utilized a ground skirt steak patty mixed with green onions, pepperoncini's, mustard, sea salt, and pepper. The burger is then finished off with bacon, avocado, mayo, chimichurri, lettuce, tomato, red onion, and served with fries. I'm not sure if they ran out of their special burger blend during my visit, but the patty I got did not include everything their menu said it did. It was good quality, but not as flavorful as it would have been with all of those ingredients. They also forgot to add the chimichurri, which would have added a new dimension to this burger experience. I liked this burger, it just wasn't what was promised in the description. Still, even with these missteps, it was better than the two burgers above and the fries were good as well.
#4 Falasophy - Irvine
A restaurant I had never been to before, Falasophy is a Lebanese street food spot at the Irvine Spectrum Center. They joined up with the guys from FoodBeast to create a burger that I'm told is quite popular in Lebanon. Sandwiched between a sesame bun is a burger patty, french fries, sliced tomato, coleslaw, a fried mozzarella patty, and what they call cocktail sauce, but was really more of a secret sauce that you'd see on other burgers. Even though this burger patty was the thinnest of all the burgers I had this week, this worked out really well. I loved the textures and flavors coming in waves in each bite. The mozzarella patty had its own ecosystem here with its crispy outer edge and creamy inside, really good and it made me want to buy a plane ticket and head to Lebanon to give other burgers like this a try. Maybe after the pandemic is over.
#3 Paul Martin's American Grill
The second of two Irvine Spectrum spots was this more traditional burger from Paul Martin's. I'd describe this as a classic burger made with quality items. Their $15 menu came with their burger, fries, and a bottled beer. The burger came with red onion, tomato, lettuce, pickles, Tillamook cheese, and black pepper aioli. I then added bacon and avocado for an extra dollar each, which was a steal of a deal. A little more of the aioli would have maybe pushed this burger into the top two of my burger week experiences. The bun was nice and toasted and each layer of the burger added a nice component to my overall burger-eating experience. The fries were fine and made a little better after a brief spin in the microwave.
#2 Andrei's Conscious Cuisine and Cocktails - Irvine
I have only been to Andrei's for a media event, so I was excited to see what they could do on a regular visit. Needless to say, I was impressed. They had one of the most generous $20 Burger Week menus. I received their Andrei's Cheeseburger, Kennebec French Fries, Carrot Cake, and an Iced Tea. The burger at Andrei's came with a Wagyu beef patty, Havarti cheese, red onion preserves, bacon aioli, tomato, lettuce, and dill pickles. Everything here combined to make the best traditional burger I had this week. The brioche bun was fantastic, the beef was seasoned and cooked wonderfully, the produce was fresh, the bacon aioli was front and center, and the choice of Havarti added good flavor and creaminess to the burger. The fries were also the second-best I had all week, only being beaten out by the garlic fries from Rock and Brews. The carrot cake did not last too long and I'm sorry I forgot to snap a picture of it. I'll blame the burger nirvana I experienced.
The number one burger spot I went to for Burger Week was Bello, an Italian restaurant in Newport. This burger sang with flavor from the first bite until the last. I did not want it to end. This was another burger that was a collaboration, this time with Geoff Kutnick, who works for FoodBeast. This burger utilized two pork patties and was complemented by a tuna aioli, caramelized onions, sliced tomato, and salsa verde. When I had read the description I did not think it was going to work too well, but I was wrong. The tuna aioli was the biggest surprise for me, as it was not too fishy and played nicely with the wonderfully seasoned pork. The green salsa hung out in the background and added just the right amount of acidity to cut the richness of this a bit. The smashed potatoes were another standout, with plenty of garlic, gorgonzola, and herbs. I loved the burst of flavor from the gorgonzola and the different textures of the potatoes. This was my first burger during Burger Week and one that I knew would be hard to beat.
Burger Week was an excellent distraction from the wackiness in the world right now. Yes, I gained almost five pounds during the week, but I'd do it all again right now if they greenlighted another week of burgers. It gave me a sense of normalcy as I plotted where I was going to eat each day. I loved seeing the creativity that restaurants put into their menus and it made me feel that I was doing something positive for the restaurant industry by going out and supporting them. Get that same feeling when you leave the cooking to your favorite local restaurant the next time you don't feel like making dinner.
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