G Burger is a relatively new burger joint in La Habra, California. They've been getting a lot of attention lately, probably due to their ridiculous burgers. It's located seemingly in the middle of nowhere and there's not too much space for dining in. I counted about six small tables, two booths, and a counter as well as a couple tables outside. My first impressions were that it was a sit down place, but you actually order up front and can choose to dine in or to go. I would highly recommend against the latter. These burgers are meant to be eaten right away.
On seeing the menu, I was a bit overwhelmed by the G Burger, which was what I had my eyes on. I knew that you could get whatever you want on it, but I didn't think it would come with everything and the kitchen sink by default. It normally comes with two patties, cheese, teriyaki glazed onions, portabello mushrooms, slaw, grilled pineapple, a fried egg, pastrami, avocado, chili, bacon, mixed greens, tomato, and pickles. Talk about a mouthful. I already knew that there would be too many clashing flavors, so I opted to take out the pineapple and substitute plain grilled onions for the teriyaki onions. For the cheese, I went with cheddar.
For sides, I got the gravy cheese fries because I am always on the search for some good poutine. My cousin got the G Style Fries, which are a copy of In-n-Out's infamous Animal Style Fries, but with bacon. My friend that joined us got the Tropical Fries, which come with avocado, pineapple, bacon, and 1000 Island dressing.
The food took a while to come out, but I don't blame them, there's ton of stuff to prepare for each burger.
Let's start off with our sides. I'm going to be straightforward and honest, my gravy fries sucked. The gravy had a really odd flavor profile that just didn't go well with the fries or the swiss cheese. I guess I expected something more like poutine: plain brown gravy and cheese curds. The other sides, however, were great.
The tropical fries played with sweet, savory, salty flavors which I thought worked well. The only thing that I would have changed is using riper avocados. The avocados in these fries were firmer than I like.
The G Style Fries were absolutely top notch, but I did not get a photo...they disappeared too quickly. The crispy fries with grilled onions, cheese, 1000 Island dressing, and bacon. Just wow. They took something great and made it better with bacon. Seriously, (almost) everything is better with bacon. These fries get my stamp of approval over and over again.
Now let's move on to the main event - the burgers. All of us were floored when our burgers came out. I don't remember the last time I had a burger this big (although I've seen bigger, i.e. Hawkins House of Burgers). As I mentioned before, I skipped the sweet elements of the G Burger, the pineapple and teriyaki onions. Still, the burger had way too many things going on. Because of the many bold flavors, I didn't thoroughly enjoy the burger. Let's break the monstrosity down and look at the different elements of the burger.
The buns are great, perfect for a burger this big. They are substantial and can handle the different components of the burger. They don't get soggy and fall apart from the sheer amont of toppings, which is important. The buns do their job just fine.
The patties are delicious and cooked perfectly. They have a big meaty flavor and have a good amount of juice, although not as much as I would have liked.
The bacon was amazing to say the least. It was thick cut, peppered, had a full-bodied bacon flavor, and was not too fatty. In my opinion, this is the perfect bacon for a burger.
The cheddar cheese falls in line with the previously mentioned key ingredients of a hamburger. It is just sharp enough to cut through the flavors, but not overwhelming.
Because these four key elements of the burger meet my standards, I believe that the G Burger has potential. Here are the downfalls.
The pickles are far too sweet for my tastes. I should have read the menu a bit more thoroughly to find out. I like my pickles vinegary and salty. Not sweet. The pickles cut through the melting pot of flavors and ruined the overall taste for me.
The egg was overcooked. I like my eggs with a runny yolk and whites that are just barely set.
Everything else, I either couldn't find or taste. If the slaw, pastrami, and chili weren't listed on the menu, I wouldn't have known they were in the burger. It was rather disappointing because I love all three of these things.
I would definitely go back to G Burger, but I would not get the G Burger "all the way." I'm still thinking about what the perfect combination of toppings would be, but in my opinion, the key to a great burger is simplicity. At the end of the day, the bun, patty, cheese, and (sometimes) bacon are what make or break a burger.
Go try out G Burger for yourself! Get it any way you want it, but my recommendation, keep it simple.
G Burger
421 E La Habra Blvd
La Habra, CA 90631
(562) 245-7208
www.gburger.com
This is Willi, a baristo that I met at Victorla. This guy is super friendly and is obviously passionate about what he does. He also made me a mean gibraltar.
I caught this guy celebrating the lack of a line at Paseo, a rare occasion.
The holy grail of sandwiches, Paseo's Caribbean Roast.
This thing is amazing and lived up to all the hype (everyone and their mother told me I had to try it) and then some. It's also quite a disaster to handle and quickly turns into a fork and knifer. You can't tell too well in the photo, but my vision was clouded by grease.
The aftermath.
I got a chance to see Shane and Shane play while I was there!
Another gem, Uneeda Burger.
I had forgotten that burgers could be exceptionally delicious. Then I met Uneeda Burger and was reminded that burgers can indeed be great.
After striking up conversation with Willi at Victorla, he gave me a list of coffee spots to check out. Milstead & Co. was among them.
Yep, another fantastic spot that totally fits the hipster coffee-camera lover in me.
A fine cup of Aeropressed Bows and Arrows Guatamela Finca El Tambor to end the post.
