ADVERTISEMENT

Post a culinary specialty from your city or region . . .

Finding The Best Cheeseburger In Los Angeles | Food Tours | Food Insider

Haha...that is a bat signal for me. Pie n Burger is legit. It's not my favorite version of that cheeseburger, as I think The Apple Pan does it better. I also think that Apple Pan's pies are far superior, at least the banana cream pie, which is my favorite, is.
Apple-Pan-Hamburgers-13.jpg

Apple-Pan-Hamburgers-3.jpg

Goldburger is fine, but it is just one of a bunch of grass-fed smashburger stands to pop up over the last several years. The burger at For The Win is better:
full

But my favorite smashburger is also the cheapest from The Win-Dow. The steakhouse to which it is attached is quite good, though slightly more expensive than it should be, which I attribute to location. The cheeseburger at the Win-Dow, however, is the same superlatively high quality ingredients for under five bucks.
DSCF4031.jpg

I am not a huge fan of pastrami burgers, and I do not think that The Oinkster does a particularly good version of it. There is so much great pastrami in LA that any restaurant wading into that area is facing extraordinary competition. I think the pastrami burger at Hawkin's House of Burgers is probably the best with The Hat being a close second. My personal favorite is at Johnny's in West Adams:
Johnny%27s+Burger+Web.jpg

The Office Burger at Father's Office has been arguably the best burger in Los Angeles for the last 25 years. It is shockingly good, and it is the only dish that I insist friends and family get when they visit the city for the first time. The location that the guys in the video visited is my least favorite, just because it is the newest and has the least character, I think. I love the original location in Santa Monica, though it is often prohibitively crowed. The french fries served in little shopping carts definitely amuses visitors. Yet, the location in the historic Helms Bakery building has been my favorite for a very long time. During the pandemic, they had one of my favorite delivery pivots: an Office Burger and two Pliny the Elders delivered fresh to the door quicker than I could typically get one ordered right at the bar.

90
 
Last edited:
Haha...that is a bat signal for me. Pie n Burger is legit. It's not my favorite version of that cheeseburger, as I think The Apple Pan does it better. I also think that Apple Pan's pies are far superior, at least the banana cream pie, which is my favorite, is.
Apple-Pan-Hamburgers-13.jpg
The one on the right is missing a burger. Or is that extra cheese?
 
I am just getting started with the Thai food tour, but the fact that he is starting with Sapp Coffee Shop in Thai Town means that he got very good advice. I think the jade noodles are the hero dish, but the boat noodles are definitely great.
 
I just remembered that one of my all-time favorite celebrity encounters was next door to Father's Office at the Helm's Bakery. My partner and I were waiting for friends to join us and had wandered next door to the HDButtercup furniture store to browse the mattresses that cost more than my car. I was not really paying attention to where I was going, and I almost walked directly into Olivia Munn who was apparently legitimately shopping for furniture. She was stunningly pretty in person and very gracious and friendly in accepting my apology for being a klutz.
 
Haha...that is a bat signal for me. Pie n Burger is legit. It's not my favorite version of that cheeseburger, as I think The Apple Pan does it better. I also think that Apple Pan's pies are far superior, at least the banana cream pie, which is my favorite, is.
Apple-Pan-Hamburgers-13.jpg

Apple-Pan-Hamburgers-3.jpg

Goldburger is fine, but it is just one of a bunch of grass-fed smashburger stands to pop up over the last several years. The burger at For The Win is better:
full

But my favorite smashburger is also the cheapest from The Win-Dow. The steakhouse to which it is attached is quite good, though slightly more expensive than it should be, which I attribute to location. The cheeseburger at the Win-Dow, however, is the same superlatively high quality ingredients for under five bucks.
DSCF4031.jpg

I am not a huge fan of pastrami burgers, and I do not think that The Oinkster does a particularly good version of it. There is so much great pastrami in LA that any restaurant wading into that area is facing extraordinary competition. I think the pastrami burger at Hawkin's House of Burgers is probably the best with The Hat being a close second. My personal favorite is at Johnny's in West Adams:
Johnny%27s+Burger+Web.jpg

The Office Burger at Father's Office has been arguably the best burger in Los Angeles for the last 25 years. It is shockingly good, and it is the only dish that I insist friends and family get when they visit the city for the first time. The location that the guys in the video visited is my least favorite, just because it is the newest and has the least character, I think. I love the original location in Santa Monica, though it is often prohibitively crowed. The french fries served in little shopping carts definitely amuses visitors. Yet, the location in the historic Helms Bakery building has been my favorite for a very long time. During the pandemic, they had one of my favorite delivery pivots: an Office Burger and two Pliny the Elders delivered fresh to the door quicker than I could typically get one ordered right at the bar.

90

Good info
 
Next time I go to LA, one of the first stops will be Northern Thai Food Club


LA’s Favorite Authentic Northern Thai Spot

 
  • Like
Reactions: BrainVision
I have yet to try Quad Cities pizza because I am never there more than an hour or so. However, their local ice cream chain is as good as any in the country.





 
Next time I go to LA, one of the first stops will be Northern Thai Food Club


LA’s Favorite Authentic Northern Thai Spot

That place looks great. I have not been there, but I wonder if my partner has, as she has spent a lot more time in that neighborhood than I have. One block over is Jitlada, where you have probably been. If you haven't, it is a must visit for Southern Thai food. Two warnings: do not order from the black and white paper menu and do NOT order spicy if you do not know what you are doing.

If you do stop by, I think it's worth the 15 minute walk up the block to the Barnsdall Art Park. Frank Loyd Wright's Hollyhock House is right there and fully restored and accessible.
 
Lone Star tick?
Likely, tho I haven’t seen a tick on me in years. We camp and hike in SW Virginia a lot and the Lone Star is prevalent there. I nearly tapped out one day after having an Italian sub for lunch.
 
Likely, tho I haven’t seen a tick on me in years. We camp and hike in SW Virginia a lot and the Lone Star is prevalent there. I nearly tapped out one day after having an Italian sub for lunch.
My best friend's wife is the same. She spent a bunch of time in the hospital before they figured out what it was.
 
  • Like
Reactions: billanole
I first experienced alpha-gal in late January last year. A couple of hours after eating an Italian sub I began to itch like crazy, starting on my upper back and then hives ensued. I took a couple of Benadryl pills and got pretty quick relief. WTH?
A month later on a work trip, once again hours after a sub for lunch, the itching and massive hives started. Took some Benadryl and told my crowd that I was gonna chill out a bit.
Got dizzy, passed out and was “unresponsive“ when my crew checked in on me.
After kinda waking up, EMT asked me if I realized I was in shock and my response was basically “If you say so…” They could not find a pulse at first and they were getting a bit nervous.
A couple of fluid bags and an Epi pen later, I walked out of the emergency room.

Allergy Doc “tentatively” attributes it to alpha-gal and I had a yearly checkup recently.
Oddly enough, after a turkey Sammie today, there was a mild episode that Benadryl contained. Likely cross contamination at the sandwich shop. I always quiz about ingredients and ask for the prep folks to use clean gloves.

No mammal meat products… losing bacon and bbq hurts the mostest.
Best wishes to your buddy’s wife.
 
  • Like
Reactions: F4Gary
I first experienced alpha-gal in late January last year. A couple of hours after eating an Italian sub I began to itch like crazy, starting on my upper back and then hives ensued. I took a couple of Benadryl pills and got pretty quick relief. WTH?
A month later on a work trip, once again hours after a sub for lunch, the itching and massive hives started. Took some Benadryl and told my crowd that I was gonna chill out a bit.
Got dizzy, passed out and was “unresponsive“ when my crew checked in on me.
After kinda waking up, EMT asked me if I realized I was in shock and my response was basically “If you say so…” They could not find a pulse at first and they were getting a bit nervous.
A couple of fluid bags and an Epi pen later, I walked out of the emergency room.

Allergy Doc “tentatively” attributes it to alpha-gal and I had a yearly checkup recently.
Oddly enough, after a turkey Sammie today, there was a mild episode that Benadryl contained. Likely cross contamination at the sandwich shop. I always quiz about ingredients and ask for the prep folks to use clean gloves.

No mammal meat products… losing bacon and bbq hurts the mostest.
Best wishes to your buddy’s wife.
Gelatin can cause reactions as well since a lot of it is derived from cows and pigs. Some of the more processed deli meats contain gelatin among other things. Tick born illnesses are really strange and hard to trace. It's crazy what damage those things can do.
 
Gelatin can cause reactions as well since a lot of it is derived from cows and pigs. Some of the more processed deli meats contain gelatin among other things. Tick born illnesses are really strange and hard to trace. It's crazy what damage those things can do.
I do avoid gelatin as much as possible, but have not traced an “episode” to gelatin intake.
Thankfully dairy products elicit no reaction. My intake of fowl and seafood has ticked upwards, as well as more veggie focused meals.
 
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT