Los Angeles : 25 Degrees [Pics]

As you may or may not be aware, Los Angeles is a phenomenal burger town, with roots so deep that it is often cited as the birthplace of the cheeseburger, or "cheese hamburger," sometime in the early 1920s. In fact, burger fans from all over the world make veritable pilgrimages to a number of LA's old-time and modern burger palaces, like Cassell's, Pie 'n Burger, Apple Pan, Original Tommy's, The Counter, Irv's Burgers, and Father's Office. But, the newest kid on the scene, and the one which appears to be attracting the most attention, is 25 Degrees, located right in the heart of the Hollywood Walk of Fame. So, given my personal burger yen, and the fact that I have already tried all of the aforementioned premiere establishments at least once, if not a number of times, I decided to make 25 Degrees the very first meal of my recent 11 day dining odyssey in Los Angeles, CA:


the view whilst standing on the everly brothers' hollywood star


the "golden" age of american diners meets the "brocaded" age of spanish bordellos


tssssssssssssssssss........


hendrick's gin and onion rings: a match made in a state of hunger-induced delirium


garlic aioli, because, well, i'm an adult, and, besides, ketchup sucks


the tease...


...and the strip

In typical LA fashion, the options for burger toppings at 25 Degrees run the length of a small child’s arm. In addition to "standards" like Bacon, Fried Egg, Carmelized Onion, and Arugula, they offer Shitake Mushrooms, Sauerkraut, Green Chile, and Prosciutto. And, that’s to say nothing for the cheese roster, which includes exotica like Crescenza, Midnight Moon, Mezzo Seco Jack, St. George, Point Reyes Blue, Emmi Gruyere, Benedictine, Prelibato Gorgonzola, and Red Hawk, in addition to good ol’ plain-Jane American Cheese. And, as if that weren’t enough, there are a slew of burger "sauces" to choose from, including Dijon, Garlic Aoili, Tarragon Remoulade, Gallego, Ranch, Lemon Dill, Thousand Island, Etc.

As none of the “house” burger compositions appealed to me (think stupid, like Kuma’s creations, only more high-brow: Carmelized Onion/Prelibato Gorgonzola/Bacon/Arugula/Thousand Island Dressing, Etc.), I decided to take matters into my own hands, and settled on the fairly straight-forward combination of Carmelized Onion, Arugula, and California's own Red Hawk Triple Cream Cheese.

The verdict? I’m a genius. No, but really, I fared exceedingly well. The Red Hawk Triple Cream had a nice salty, pungent leading edge that went nicely with the rich meat and sweetly bitter vegetation. Do I think that it’s the best burger in Los Angeles? Well, no, I couldn’t possibly, because I haven’t tried them all, but it does give my current favourite, Father’s Office, a good run for its money...

25 Degrees [Official Site]
7000 Hollywood Blvd. (due south of the Everly Brothers' star!!)
Hollywood, CA
323.785.7244

E.M.

E.:

That's a mighty nice looking hamburger. The bun looks really good too.

Oh, why did I leave the Bay Area and head back this way... I should have headed south...

A

I might have to try 25 Degrees when I'm in Los Angeles later this month, although, as you have noted, it is a phenomenal burger town and there are so many places to choose from that it will be a tough decision.

But just curious - despite your having chosen the arugula/onion/cheese dressing (nice choice, btw), did they still go ahead by default and give you the lettuce/tomatoes/onions/pickles on the side anyways ?

The bun does look very good.

tatterdemalion wrote:I might have to try 25 Degrees when I'm in Los Angeles later this month, although, as you have noted, it is a phenomenal burger town and there are so many places to choose from that it will be a tough decision.

Have you tried Father's Office? It's nowhere near Hollywood, but I highly recommend the burger.

tatterdemalion wrote:But just curious - despite your having chosen the arugula/onion/cheese dressing (nice choice, btw), did they still go ahead by default and give you the lettuce/tomatoes/onions/pickles on the side anyways ?

Yes, and it bugged me to no end.

Antonius wrote:The bun looks really good too.

tatterdemalion wrote:The bun does look very good.

Oh, yes, and it was great.

E.M.

For what it's worth, my brother and fiancee live in L.A. While her favorite is Father's Office, my brother prefers the plainer Apple Pan burgers. They also recommend The Stand in Encino. I haven't been so I can't comment.

Have you tried Father's Office? It's nowhere near Hollywood, but I highly recommend the burger.

I have actually tried My Father's Office and I was so biased into hating it before I went, I was suprised that I actually really liked it. For some reason, alot of folks really like to hate on this place. Maybe because it's hyped a little, but I think it's because they don't serve ketchup. I'm actually going to be in Santa Monica for a little bit so stopping in to MFO and the Farmer's Market is definitely on the radar.

tatterdemalion wrote:I'm actually going to be in Santa Monica for a little bit so stopping in to MFO and the Farmer's Market is definitely on the radar.

FWIW, my dear friend, M.A.P., who has also tried the burger at Father's Office, and who recently took up residence on the Westside, swears by the burger at Bruce Marder's place in Santa Monica called Cora's Coffee Shop.

E.M.

Just tried a burger from 25 degrees last night and I was impressed. The quality of the meat of the burger was probably the best I've had in town thus far. I liked being able to get some cheddar (a rarity in LA), a fried egg and fresh lettuce and tomatoes. All in all I will definitely be back to this joint even though it was a little expensive for a relaxed burger place.

aschie30 wrote:For what it's worth, my brother and fiancee live in L.A. While her favorite is Father's Office, my brother prefers the plainer Apple Pan burgers. They also recommend The Stand in Encino. I haven't been so I can't comment.

Speaking of The Apple Pan, here is a video by George Motz about Charles Collins, the General Manager there. The video really gives the viewer a great feel for the place.

E.M.

My friend and I are in LA for long weekend until Sunday. After arriving and settling in, we decided to head straight to 25 Degrees for a great burger.

After ordering a couple of martini's, we split the onion rings with garlic aioli. The sauce was great but could have been a bit more garlicky. The onion rings were fried perfectly.

My friend orderd a sirloin burger with carmelized onions, smoked mozzarella and ranch dressing. I ordered a sirloin burger with fried egg, green chile and chipotle sauce. Both burgers were extremely juicy and had a great beefy flavor. My friend loved the smoked mozzarella as she said it "enveloped" her whole burger. My combo with the fried egg and green chile spiced up the burger quite nicely.

I loved this place. The food was great and the decor was fun. They know how to make a good drink as well. I was especially interested in this restaurant because of its location in the newly renovated Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. When I lived in LA, the hotel was sad relic of lost era. It is now restored and absolutely exquisite. We treated ourselves to a drink in the Library Bar in the lobby of the hotel before heading back to our hotel in Santa Monica.

I have only been to LA once, and that was about 5 years ago now. Can someone tell me about what makes an LA-burger great? I ask this because my friend and I tailgate often at Sox games, and we try to tailor our tailgate menu to the visiting team. I thought burgers would be a good choice for when the Angels are here next week.

PlayItGeorge wrote:I have only been to LA once, and that was about 5 years ago now. Can someone tell me about what makes an LA-burger great? I ask this because my friend and I tailgate often at Sox games, and we try to tailor our tailgate menu to the visiting team. I thought burgers would be a good choice for when the Angels are here next week.

In my experience, the beef was freshly ground, and tasted like a mix of cuts. No gristle, juicy and, well, beefy.

is it just me, or did something happen to the pix?

Geo

The pics were hosted on Erik's domain, silapaahaan.com, which his provider deleted and stopped hosting in error. So the pics are gone.

Too bad, because they were sexy.

DANG! Tnx Ed....

Flickr fo-evah, I guess.

Geo

Geo wrote:DANG! Tnx Ed....

Flickr fo-evah, I guess.

Geo

Flickr fo-nevah, in my book.

Anyway, I'll get the pictures back up when I get my site running again.

E.M.

I'll wait here.

Geo