I am fully aware it isn’t a national chain but Burger Lounge (small chain in California) is much better than 5 guys
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Tried Super Duper at The Bird in Hayes Valley. Easily my least favorite burger and fries I’ve had from Super Duper, but I guess it doesn’t really count?
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I’m confused. The Bird in Hayes Valley that comes up in Google doesn’t have burgers on their menu, and Super Duper is a local chain (that I really like).
They do and that’s where I had it. And ya, I really like Super Duper too, just not from here. You know they’re owned by the same person, ya?
Chain burgers, I like Super Duper but not national. BTW, did they switch to smash burger style a couple of years ago? Habit Burger is good, char broiled, fresh beef, reasonable price, decent fries and onion rings but not national.
re: In ‘n Out, I’ll pick Super Duper and Habit over InO locally but I’ll opt for InO over any other national fast food joints. (BTW, InO is NOT fast food, really slow.) Hard to beat $3.50 for a made to order single cheeseburger with fresh beef. I think that’s why they’re popular. A family of 4 can eat for a reasonable price.
Habit Burger won’t cook to medium rare, so they’re out for me. The burgers at the Super Duper sites aren’t smashburgers.
Cheddar, no plastic cheese? Yay!
The taste of the meat, or maybe amount, on the habit burger i find well below 5 guys. Not as juicy. The char grill taste doesn’t make up for it.
Squeezer’s in San Leandro and Barney’s in Oakland had pretty good burgers, imho, but my all time favorite was a cheeseburger from a drive up somewhere in the valley along Hwy 99 many years ago. Wrapped in that checkered foil/paper wrapper it just oozed utter deliciousness. Quite a ways from the BA. Frugal’s up here is close, but is 1200 miles from the BA.
Possibly the Mammoth Orange near Fairmead, CA?
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I think I ate there (or another one) on a road trip with my family as a kid. I still remember the Orange stand but never knew what it was or called. I still remember the burger. I was in the back of the station wagon and about a half hour after leaving there was burger left, so I ate it, and it was great and it was messy.
It might have been a different giant orange but I remember the orange. Never knew what they were called. Thanks.
There were a number of them. Franchises?
http://www.weirdca.com/location.php?location=134
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.513269655397752.1073741832.389087434482642&type=3&_rdr
I remember that Orange chain. The drive up I’m thinking of (car hop service) may have been in the Modesto/Madera corridor north of Fresno and possibly near a winery. Neon light trim and lots of bugs at night! That was one great burger! It is funny but wonderful how strong food memories come about. Remember the best and forget the rest! I say that about a lot of things and situations.
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Just realized that Boss Burger next to the Albany post office is gone. Never had a burger there, just a pricey softie cone. They seemed to do a good business, though.
Oooh. One of my favorites. Great cheeseburger with perfect grilled onions. And of course an extra-large OJ to go with it!
Someone uptopic said that Super Duper made smashburgers. I replied that all their burgers that I’ve had were not. But I had one today that definitely was, with thin lacey edges of the patty extending beyond the bun. Very good!
I had a smash burger at the Emeryville shop. Maybe it’s by location.
That’s where I was today.
Giant orange at Mark’s Hot Dogs in San Jose.
Westbrae Biergarten in Berkeley, which closed last year, has reopened as Headlands
Brewery. I saw that they now serve smashburgers, and I liked the idea of having a decent burger place just a few blocks away.
Alas, no joy. The burger I had for lunch was impossibly skimpy, maybe just two ounces,
without much flavor. The bun drowned out the meat. The fries were unevenly cooked.
And it is pricey, at $11.50 for the burger (plus $4.00 for the fries) vs. $7.00 at Super Duper and $8.00 at Al’s, both much better burgers.
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We hit Smokehouse in Berkeley on Saturday. It was the first time for Mrs. ricepad and me, but Spawn2 and SIL go there now and then since it’s within walking distance from their place. I think it’s one of the best burgers I’ve had in Berkeley in a very long time, better than Bongo and Super Duper. I got a double chili cheeseburger with extra chili, and it was a delicious mess. Mrs. ricepad got a double cheeseburger that was too much for her, so I got to finish that, too. After that, we trundled off to Tokyo Fish to stock up on fixin’s for a sushi lesson for Spawn2 & SIL.
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