Umami Buger, West Los Angeles

Saturday night, the typical foodies: Brennan, Jess and I ventured to this little restaurant in West L.A, Umami Burger. Sounds intriguing no? The first time I heard about this restaurant was through this daily e-mail I receive from Tasting Table LA. They send me all the updates on what’s happening around L.A, which restaurants have just opened and closed, new food findings, basically a foodie’s reader’s digest. Brennan is always game for burger joints and Jess follows us to wherever we go What is Umami? It’s basically the “fifth taste”, as it is distinctly not sweet, sour, hot, or salty. In addition to having a unique standalone flavor, umami appears to enhance foods it is combined with, making other flavors richer and more intense. There was actually a recent Top Chef quickfire episode where the contestants had to create a umami dish, lots of Asian woody, earthy flavors.

When we arrived, this place resembled more of a sushi dive bar rather than a burger restaurant. There were already groups of people waiting outside for a seat. Honestly, the service was really slow when we got there. We waited over 30 minutes to get a table inside, just to be seated right in front of a wall. Not kidding. It was as if we were sitting at a desk doing homework, straight across, literally facing a wall. See for yourself…

The menu is fairly simple. A couple different burgers to choose from, some sides and drinks. Jess ordered the signature “Umami burger”. I don’t know if I really “taste” umami in the food, but apparently it’s there. Oh yeah, these burgers are like little sliders, but packed with a ton of flavor. I’m not too sure what is all in this burger, but from what I could taste, it had mushrooms, a Parmesan crisp and a very fatty, but oh so delicious beef patty

Brennan ordered the Triple Pork Burger-fresh ground pork spiced with chorizo and cob-smoked bacon, aged manchego, pimenton aioli. Like always, the bacon gets him everytime.

I ordered the Truffle Burger-Italian truffle cheese, truffle glaze

Overall, I probably wouldn’t come back just because of the wait and the amount of food you get for the price. The burgers were very tasty, but I could have easily gotten the same quality burger with more choices somewhere else. Also, I wanted to order their house salad, but apparently they ran out of dressing. It’s definitely a chic, trendy place with lots of beautiful L.A people, but there are tons of restaurants on La Brea that I would rather check out next time. Jess gives it one thumbs up.