Umami Burger, LA

Wow... I'm not a burger fan in general, but this was one of the best things I've eaten this year... Does anyone think a medium rare burger such as Umami exists here in Chicago? I'm spoiled now after eating there 3x on a visit and can't muster up the urge to eat at any burgers in Chicagoland now sadly. I guess I could ask for a burger medium rare but their umami burger with the thin cheese crisp and mushrooms, etc was amazing, as was their truffle burger!

I havent tried Father's office so on my next visit I'll have to check that out, there seems to be a division between the fans of those two establishments in terms of debate on which is better.

... yeah, there are tons of medium rare burgers in chicago...

what are you asking for, exactly? Bop 'n grill has an umami burger. Different combination of toppings.

FoodSnob-

Do you have an address for this place?

Multiple locations in the Los Angeles area, even one in SF as they are expanding rapidly... The Santa Monica location has the most items on the menu as some of the app and drinks vary from each location. If you are in LA anytime in the future this place is a must try!

http://umamiburger.com/

My favorite burgers in Chicago are as follows,

BopNGrill - Creativity and execution, great toppings and of course, the kimchee burger!
Big and Littles- close to me, simple, flawless with merks cheddar.
Rosebud-meaty high end goodness.


Umami burger is unique due to the blend that they use, and the flavor is simply out of this world. The burgers are small and I could easily eat 2, but it's one of the most unique burger's I've ever had. Tempura battered onion rings and their signature ketchup doesn't hurt either! It's also GQ's burger of the year, haha.
http://www.gq.com/food-travel/alan-rich ... z1B3eUXY28

Within approximately a 2 block radius of Sunset Blvd and Cahuenga in West Hollywood you can try four of the best burgers that L.A. puts out:
Umami Burger
Stout Burgers & Beers
Juicy Burger
Go Burger

I believe that KCRW's Good Food did a review of all of them 6 months ago or so. You can find it here.

Fujisan wrote:Within approximately a 2 block radius of Sunset Blvd and Cahuenga in West Hollywood you can try four of the best burgers that L.A. puts out:
Umami Burger
Stout Burgers & Beers
Juicy Burger
Go Burger

My friend lives off Sunset and Horn. He's got some exploring to do! Thanks.

Fujisan wrote:Within approximately a 2 block radius of Sunset Blvd and Cahuenga in West [ sic ] Hollywood you can try four of the best burgers that L.A. puts out:
Umami Burger
Stout Burgers & Beers
Juicy Burger
Go Burger

I believe that KCRW's Good Food did a review of all of them 6 months ago or so. You can find it here.

As much as Lesley Balla is the nicest gal and has a sexy voice that calls to me like no other, any list of LA burgers with both the words "Go" and "Umami" should be dumpstered. Go's product was so piss poor the restaurant is completely retooling after 1 year. Umami is about a must-try as Portillo's. It says a lot about a visitor if the foodtinerary includes such a sham (tiny burger with MSG sauces?).

For a more helter skelter best-of-LA burger list, try HuffPo's piece instead. PIGMON may disagree with #1, but skipping slide 6 and reading the comments is far more interesting than mouthing on and on about Umami.

In WeHo, the best value has to be Rounds Burger. The super buff/hot model cashiers are worth a mention as well. The one I know is better looking than Taye Diggs.

[edited for unnecessary ad hominem]

Tough but fair. Going back to its early days I've enjoyed 25 Degrees (and the hotel it's in, but definitely not the Vegas D-B pool party refugees who "live" there on the weekend). Thanks, Erik M, wherever you are. Turns out Chicago has their 3rd and only non-LA outpost after Hollywood and Huntington, but no one cares yet, it seems.

I don't eat many burgers these days, but one can do much worse than the Gage. And I think to plumb the days of not being able to order a medium rare burger anywhere, one must turn the page back to 1980, when Fuddruckers was born.

I finally had the Gage burger 2 months ago, and based on that datum, Chicagoans should be rushing to 25 Degrees in River North, assuming the Chicago outpost is serving the same product.

Was hoping to add info on 25 degrees last night since we stopped in after the Wilco show but we were too late (closed at 11:00).

Closing at 11 is definitely different from the Hollywood version. And, Tony, I don't like the Gage Burger at Gage; I get regular fixins (including Irish cheddar), medium rare, and add salt. Maybe that doesn't count. Then again, I'm no burger expert these days. I'm still partial to the simplest ones, like PJ Clarke's in NY. I regret what Kuma's and places like it have foisted on the world.

JeffB wrote:I don't like the Gage Burger at Gage; I get regular fixins (including Irish cheddar)

That makes the 2 of us (re: Kuma's). I remember going to Jury's on burger nights, and ErikM (bless his suet-clogged heart) enjoyed Jane's, which seems to be the one of my final fond Chicago burger memories.

Anywho, an interesting read on Umami Burger today in the New Yorker today. My ad hominem may have been removed above, but I think this speaks volumes:

“I eat some form of umami every day and I’ve never had any kind of reaction,” he told me. Is that in the form of Umami burgers, I wondered? No, [Fleischman] said. “I eat three fancy meals a day. I don’t eat that many umami burgers anymore.”

Take away: if you can eat 3 good meals a day, you'd not want to eat an Umami burger.

Also of note, Elina Shatkin, who sometimes appears on KCRW's Good Food, just published a top 10 LA burger list on LA Weekly yesterday. Bless her heart for giving Mom's in Compton a shout-out, but the inclusions of Lazy Ox/Comme Ca/Umami make me cringe. Again, these are all opinions, and all made in good fun. Mostly.

From today's WSJ - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142 ... 70542.html

Umami jumps into Chicago burger battle

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/ ... ger-battle

I've only been to the Hermosa Beach outpost, but I have to say it's really disappointing, and a poor value IMO.

2 burgers, some shared pickles and 2 drinks and we were out over $30. There are too many good burger places in L.A. to ever go back, and I can't see Kuma's or similar places worrying about Umami over the long haul.

Chicago's burger boom has spread to Randolph Street, where Umami Burger plans its second outpost here. Los Angeles-based Umami Restaurant Group has agreed to take over a 2,734-square-foot space at 945 W. Randolph St., where it will open a restaurant, according to people familiar with the deal. Umami entered Chicago with a Wicker Park spot that opened in September.

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/realesta ... ton-market