Pie 'n Burger - Pasadena, CA

Pie ‘n Burger in Pasadena was recently voted best pie in L.A. We had also read the burger was very good as well. On our way out of L.A. my wife Pat and I swung through Pasadena to check it out.

Pie ‘n Burger’s interior is like a museum piece. Faux wood formica counter is the original from the restaurant opening in 1963. There were Oak chairs like those in my house when I was a kid, we. The current owner ate there as a kid and started working at Pie 'n Burger when he was a USC student in 1972. He never left. He has kept much of the original staff and the menu has barely changed.

When we walked in the U.S. Olympic basketball team was on the TV. I had to check that it wasn’t a game from the 70s when the U.S. was dominant in basketball. All the tables where packed, so we sat at the counter which wound around the grill.

We each ordered a Cheeseburger ($6.50), fries ($3.55), pecan pie ($3.65) and peach pie ($4.25). The burgers were 4 ounces of fresh beef, griddled with melted American cheese. They came with iceberg lettuce, crisp pickle chips and thousand-island dressing. The bun was crisply grilled on the griddle. This is a classic burger. Kind of like a big version of In-N-Out. Pat’s was plain. We both really liked our burgers.

The fries were medium cut, no skins form frozen potatoes. They were hot and salted perfectly. Very good.

I also liked the pecan pie. As I ate it, I was transported back to the 70s. Eating my grandmas pecan pie while watching the U.S. stomp the field in Olympic basketball on the Zenith console TV.

Burger 4.5 spatulas out of 5
Fries 3.5 spatulas
Pecan Pie 5 spatulas

Pie ‘n Burger
913 E. California Blvd.
Pasadena, CA 91106
626-795-1123
www.pienburger.com

Father's Office - Santa Monica, CA

Father's Office in Santa Monica came with a formidable reputation as one of the best burgers in L.A. Pat and I steered in around noon to its shi-shi Montana Street location amongst the designer shops and restaurants. Its retro sign stands out along the block. Upon entering the greeter told us that it was open seating. The tiny place was already packed. A row of wood tables on each side of the restaurant led back to the bar where we grabbed two of the last three stools.

39 beer taps arrayed the wall behind the bar with no beers that I have ever heard of. It was obvious this wasn't just a burger bar, but a serious beer bar as well. Insistent as they are about "no substitutions", we each ordered the hamburger ($12). We also agreed to split a basket of fries ($5).

The fries came right out in a clever miniature grocery cart. They were matchstick small and crisp. Pat loves the "crispies" in any batch of fries, so she was very excited that these were all crispies. They came with an aioli for dunking, but didn't really need it. I didn't ask for a ketchup substitution out of fear of ejection before my burger arrived.

The burgers did arrive. A massive 1/2-pound, but seemingly bigger burger was stacked upon a french roll. The burger is made of organic, grass-fed beef. Ground from a combination of chuck, sirloin and New York strip according to our server. The roll was grilled, firm but fresh. The hamburger patty itself was covered with a thick concoction of bacon, gruyere, maytag blue cheese and grilled onions. Also on top was a stack of fresh arugula. The burger was red and moist medium and already cut in half when it arrived. It was superb. The onions were sweet but not overwhelming. Everything blended with the burger in one great taste.

As we ate, the local young and hip crowd continued to pour into the restaurant. They all seemed to know the beers, comparing their fruitfulness, bitterness and all the other subtleties that beer experts know. I don't know whether the beer came first or the burgers, but both seem to attract their crowd at Father's Office.

Burger 5 spatulas (out of 5)
Fries 4.5 spatulas

Father's Office
1018 Montana Ave.
Santa Monica, CA 90403
310-393-BEER
www.fathersoffice.com

Ford's Filling Station - Culver City

Ford's Filling Station in Culver City was a back up choice when we discovered that Father's Office wasn't open during the week for lunch. It was a happy backup. We arrived early and got a great seat outside in the shade. Our table overlooked the Culver City Blvd. as the lunch crowd descended from the nearby studios.

I ordered a Pub Burger with Onion Rings ($16). The onion rings were lovely, large and crunchy. Made from red onions and beer-battered, they were very good.

The burger was also a treat. A half-pound patty, hand-ground on site from organic beef, it was very tasty indeed. It was prepared to a perfect medium. The grilled, sweet onions blended nicely with the blue cheese. Everything sat on an egg bun with onions baked in the top.

My wife Pat had read that the locals loved the burger and I can see why it was true. A definite winner.

Burger 4.5 spatulas out of 5
Onion Rings 4 spatulas

Ford's Filling Station
9531 Culver Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90232
310-202-1470
www.fordsfillingstation.net

Apple Pan - Los Angeles, CA

Apple Pan in Los Angeles is a well-known and long-standing burger institution. Pat, my wife, had read about it as a rival with Father's Office for the premier burger in L.A. Pat and I hoofed it over from our hotel in Westwood about two miles to Pico Blvd. Who says nobody walks in L.A.?

The place is nothing if not authentic. I mean, the chairs, the floor, the doors, even our waiter who had worked there 44 years was original material. I was licking my chops to try the Hickory Burger ($5.50), a recipe purported on the menu to be from 1945. We also ordered the French Fries ($2.45) and Pat had a Combination, ham and cheese, ($7.50) sandwich.

The fries and ham sandwich came out to the counter almost immediately. When my burger came out a few seconds later, it was placed in my hand by the cook, wrapped neatly in white paper.

The burger was obviously hot. It had a little more lettuce on it than I like. The quarter-pound patty was nicely cooked and did its best to stand out against the mayo, hickory sauce. There were also pickle chips. The white bun was nicely grilled. But the whole thing wasn't that impressive to me. Except for the hickory sauce which was basically smokey ketchup, it wasn't that unique.

The fries were hot and thin. A little greasy but crisp. Also not spectacular. Pat liked her ham sandwich which was piled high with ham they make right there.

We had to try some apple pie ($5.50) which our waiter nicely split for us on two plates. I liked it, Pat was indifferent.

I really wanted to fall in love with the charming little relic of a restaurant, but in the end, I found the burger to be good, not great. The restaurant itself though, is worth a visit and is a lot of fun.

Burger 3.5 spatulas out of 5
Fries 3 spatulas

Apple Pan
10801 W. Pico Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90064
310-475-3585

Dan's Hambugers - Austin, TX

Dan’s Hamburgers in Austin, TX was the closest of the popular hamburger stands when I was on a recent furniture expedition in Austin. I found it to be a fun, low-key place for a quick burger.

Dan’s is in its own freestanding building several miles north of Downtown Austin. I was greeted by very friendly people; just like everyone else I met in Austin. They were astonished to hear I had never been to Dan’s. When I told them this would be my first Austin hamburger, they we very excited. The menu offered three sizes small, medium (quarter pound) and large (6 oz). I ordered the medium cheeseburger ($3.14) with everything, small French fries ($1.29), onion rings ($1.79). The guy at the counter said the strawberry shake ($1.59) was the best they had so I stepped up to the plate on that as well.

I took my number, my shake and a seat in one of the faux wood booths. I am in the furniture business and have never seen a laminate like these. Multicolored and rough-hewn looking, they gave the place a unique charm. The shake was creamy, cold and sweet. It tasted very fresh. It was thick so the extra fat straw was a nice touch. The shake was very refreshing on this 100-degree day.

The burger, fries and o-rings arrived quickly. The hamburger bun was impressively grilled inside and out. The burger was a thin quarter pound patty matching the size of the bun. It was loaded with the lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, mustard, ketchup and American cheese. It was hot and the vegetables were crisp and cold. I didn’t find it terribly distinctive, but it was god for what it was. It just didn’t put much emphasis on the meat.

The onion rings were thick, hot, crisp and cornmeal crusted. The fries were hot and salty, skinless and medium thick-cut.

Overall, I would say Dan’s does a nice job, but doesn’t distinguish itself on the burger. I will say the place is friendly and the food was hot and fast.

Burger 3.0 spatulas out of 5
Fries 2.5 spatulas
Onion Rings 3.5 spatulas
Shake 4 spatulas

Dan’s Hamburgers
5602 N. Lamar
Austin, TX
512-459-3239

The Charcoaler Restaurant- El Paso, TX

The Charcoaler in El Paso, Texas, looks like it fell out of time capsule from the 1950s. That is a good thing. A beautiful glass fronted open building sits back from busy Mesa Drive with an expansive lawn stretching to the seriously retro sign out front. This is truly a classic drive through restaurant.

You pull your 1955 Chevy up to one of four speaker signs depicting a chef holding a big sign with the menu on it. A helpful voice crackles on the speaker asking you for your order. You reply Cheeseburger ($1.95), French fries ($1.00), Onion Rings ($1.55) and a chocolate shake ($1.20). “Sorry, we only have vanilla shakes today.” The voice crackles back. You answer that is fine. “That will be $6.19. Please pull around to the window.”

You oblige and pull up behind three other hamburger hopefuls in the queue. When you get to the window, a neatly dressed young man takes your money and hands you three identical white paper sacks, with the Charcoaler logo on them and a small red cup with your vanilla shake. You thank the man and pull the car under one of two 100-foot long awnings, that will shield you form the Texas sun while you feast.

In bag number 1, you see your hamburger, wrapped in white paper. It is a thing of classic burger beauty. Maybe 2 or 3 ounces of a thin beef patty sitting on a pillowy white bun with sesame seeds. The diameter of the bun and hamburger patty are identical. You take a bite and savor the combination of meat, bun, onion pieces, pickle chips, and American cheese. But what’s this? The ketchup is spicy - an unexpected pleasure for your taste buds.

The onion rings are something completely unexpected. Huge slices of sweet onion, lightly battered in tempura-like crust. Perfect if they only had ranch dressing in which to dunk, but spectacular none-the-less with ketchup. The fries disappoint in relation to the rest of the experience. They are hot, thick and a little too greasy, but not bad.

You get ready to pop the clutch in your muscle car and hit the streets, when you remember you are driving a Chevy Tahoe burning $4 gas every 12 miles or so.

Burger 4 spatulas out of 5
Fries 3 spatulas
Onion Rings 5 spatulas
Vanilla Shake 4 spatulas

The Charcoaler Drive-In Restaurant
5837 N. Mesa Drive
El Paso, TX

Breaded Cheesburger - Yum?

From deepest darkest Indiana, burger safari expert, Curt has found the rare and sought after breaded cheeseburger. The photo says it all. All hail to my home state!