I live close to these places and the best burger by far is Mo Better Burger, but they are not always open.
Which burger and fries are good. Or at least as good as Lucky Boys in Pasadena. Sometimes, I don’t want those chi-chi poo poo burgers like at Golden State. Just want a burger fix.
Howard’s Big Burger
Smash Burger
L A Burger
Marty’s Hamburger Stand
Elat Burger
Marty’s Hamburger Stand
Dino’s Chicken & Burgers (yes, I know about the chicken and fries)
Jeff’s Gourmet Sausage Factory
I get The Combo with chili and pastrami at Marty’s routinely after tennis at Rancho Park. Pair it with some tater tots and wash it all down with “the Horchata Bang” (a 50-50 of Horchata and Orange Bang).
Marty’s burger is pretty tasty, but the chili cheese firedog add pastrami is what I get when I go there. Not a fan of there fries nor onion rings, usually get a side chili cheese burger or a pit stop at Primo’s afterwards.
I haven’t tried any of the food. I sit and watch E. eat. When that gets boring, I watch the guys grill. They’re really good at it, and pretty friendly.
If you find yourself a little more east check out Yuca’s/Hillhurst location, one of neighborhood boy Leonardo DiCaprio’s favorite joint, for the cheeseburgers. Pretty darn tasty to me.
Also wanted to try Howard’s when I pass by on the bus. Bacon? Yes. Avocado? Yes.
I haven’t been in years, but Howard’s is . . . just . . . disappoingnant. You heard me.
Just looking at that sign that promises so much and then remembering the burger that delivered so little is heartbreaking. I’ve trained myself to not look in that plaza because I want so much for Howard’s to be at least good enough.
The burgers here are just terrible.
That said, I could be wrong.
Almost everything. They are those really skinny frozen variety that don’t have any potato flavor. I would just get a chili dog or add pastrami to your meal and skip the fries.
I sometimes go chili cheese firedog and chili cheese burger but usually stick to my usually chili cheese firedog add pastrami and a Primos donut after.
You know what makes Yuca’s burger’s uber special? They grill them on the same flat-top they use to cook the carne asada.
So what, you say? Well, the little bits of carne asada trimmings and leftovers, as well as good beefy drippings, all sort of sit there waiting to just encase the burger patty when that round ball of meat hits the flat-top.
Result? This burger patty, if left to its own devices would be something straight out of the Smart-N-Final “managers’s special” bin, instead becomes the epitome of bovinity deliciousness.
Yeah, we went a few years ago for nostalgia’s sake. Different owners than when I was a kid and the burgers were so, so bad. And this used to be everyone’s dads favorite burger place.