oakland burger club goes to the north bay

Super service, super value and super fun.  Hello everyone.  First of all I totally botched it posting the Christmas burger at Luka’s Tap Room, if I can even find the score sheet still I will post a blog ASAP.  Saturday April 19^th marked one of the Oakland Burger Club founders day of birth and what better way to celebrate then with a Bday burger.  Not only did we get one Bday burger, we all decided it would be a two-burger birthday bash!

Oona and Win

Our first stop of the burger tour brought us out to the North Bay to Mill Valley.  The joint we chose was Super Duper burger on Miller Ave. The modern/retro, drive through diner has charm both new and old, with sunshades in the parking lot, great sunny out door seating, rad mid 90’s jams (TLC, EnVogue), retro style signage and fonts and the clean/modern architecture made the visit feel spacious and welcoming. Though the street can get busy at times the outdoor seating is definitely a plus, as it’s great for families stopping in for lunch or cyclists rolling up for a bite.

Right off the bat the service behind the counter had a awesome family vibe and excellent upbeat service from the cashiers taking orders all the way back to the cooks flippin’ patties in the kitchen, everyone just looked liked they were having fun!  Helpful service with a smile;) When asked what was in the veggie burger they simply pulled out the recipe! The menu is simple, ingredients are local and packaging is all compostable.

The Burger:

Okay let’s get down to the meat. “Fast food burgers slow food value,” is there motto.  All beef is 100% Niman Ranch grass fed beef, cheese is from Petaluma served on a nice crunchy/soft artisianal roll.  These days the degree of doneness is serious business for burger joints.  Super Duper had a perfect medium-rare and medium color and juiciness.  The patty was seasoned nicely, nothing fancy.  All topping produce was nice and fresh no wilting lettuce or mealy tomato.  You can get jalapenos, grilled onions at the base price of $5 for a 4oz. patty or $7 for two patties!!!!  That’s just rad.  For a locally sourced burger that’s incredible.  It's wrapped up neatly in paper even one of our members two year old could hold it without it falling apart.  Honoree vegetarian clubber, Juff(Jess) said it was the best veggie burger she has had yet for burger club.  The vegi-burger, served with hummus is actually pretty delicious. 

The Sides:

My favorite thing about this place is the homemade pickles, wow just amazing, I can’t believe they are free!  The every pickle is crisp and spicy right out of the jar.  The garlic fries topped with shredded aged cheddar are so mouthwatering, under all the cheese and garlic the hand cut fries stayed crispy and golden to the last fry.  The kicker is the hand dipped chocolate, vanilla softserve cone. Made from Strauss Family Creamery.  The adult cone involves a five swirl serve or the kids sized three swirl cone which by the way is “Ok for adult’s.” I appreciate the option from the kids’ menu.

The Ratings:

	Ambiance	Value	Toppings	Sides	Taste 1-60	Score
Hannah	6	9	9	8	54	86
Win	7	9	8	8	52	84
Molly	6	9	7	7	45	74
Sarah	8	8	7	8	42	73
Enrique	8	10	7	9	56	90
				Total Average		81.4

Robison gettin' at it.

It was a great day for the Oakland Burger Clubbers.  Brunch burger, day spent at Bolinas playing Kubb and hanging on the beach with family and friends.  I even got a bite on my fishing pole.  Look out for the second post for the day for the burger review at Marin Sun Farms.

As ever,

E

scolari's...oakland burger club hits the spot

Nestled on the island of Alameda, nest to Lucky 13, Scolari's offers an array of burgers, dogs, pizza and such. The menu is huge and the restaurant is tiny. I can honestly say that any place that only takes three people and the line is out the door is my kinda place. The sassy service is kind enough to serve any order to you next door at the bar and the cook on the grill are friendly and funny.

Scolari's was recommended to the Oakland Burger Club by many sources, the meeting was initiated with full verve. The menu is extensive, well at least the specials menu is, the main menu is simple enough, but take your time reading over everything or research before you head over.
Everyone who ordered the special burger was ecstatic and glowed with satisfaction, unfortunately for myself and two others who ordered the regular cheese burger were hit with a slight musky taste in the meat? The bun was excellent, the baby lettuce crisp and the tomatoes perfect, but something was just off with my burger.

Highlights off the sides was the buffalo fries, christ almighty they were delicious! The regular fries were crispy and delicious too.

Although my burger seemed off I definitely will return for some other tasty bites. The experience was most enjoyable.

For the full review please check out the oaklandburgerclub on tumblr.

geta sushi

If your hankering for some Japanese food or sushi, Piedmont Ave. has my favorite spot for inexpensive Japanese deliciousness. This tiny restaurant is the size of three cubicles, but is full of charm, warm and detectible bites for a wonderful dining experience. It fills up quick so show early or be ready to wait for table. The servers are sweet and as show have some talent drawing homemade signs. They also have a fancier version up the street called B-dama, which serves up more traditional dishes, plus awesome skewers from the grill. Either way you want to spend your night grubbing Japanese you won't go wrong. Some of my faves are: ton katsu, sahimi salad(lunch only,) tempura udon, saba.

king cage

Ever been to a bicycle show? If not definitely check out NAHBS(North American Hand Built Bicycle Show). This year I was lucky enough that they decided to have it in Sacto. I was able set my eyes upon some of the most beautifully designed and hand crafted bikes ever.
Although i didn't pick up a new bike, i did find the rad handmade toe cages from a guy who makes them called "King Cage" check em out they're really sweet, light and a nice accent to a commuter or fixie. He also has some sweet water bottle cages online.
I will post some pics of the show soon.

burger club "Sparky's Giant Burger" "Chop Bar"

So the yet to be named burger club of Oakland CA had two more excursions to find some meat. The first of these outing brought us to the Oakland Hills a nice location for summer eating. Spark's includes a nice heated patio and fast friendly service. This shack has the charm of a small, well shack but is very well kept inside. The overall flavor of the burger was okay, like Vals the meat is unseasoned but with added topping and condimenta the club gave this establishment a "C". I will post scores of individuals and our rating card soon.

The second meat up spot, was "Chop Bar," nestle deep in Jack London Square, we went for fancy on this one and the value for the burger is still debatable. But the overall score was our highest yet a whopping "B+.". The combination of decor and ambiance was great. The kicker for me was the seasoned beef with the exquiste execution of the medium well cooked meat. Every bite juicy and flavorful, served on a kaiser roll, with a bloody burger doesn't quite hold up with all that delicious juice. Nevertheless the best burger the club has encountered yet. At 12$ base model it had better be good.

Some other notes. We added a new member to the group and can't wait for our next burger.

burger club of oakland

Recently my friend Hanna Strange introduced an idea for a few of our friends to start a burger club. Eating at various burger joints in the bay area and rating them. Tonight was our first crack at developing our club. Tasks of the evening included an agenda of rating systems, categories, name and of course eating.

I had a simple "baby" burger, a 1/3 lb of beef with cheddar cheese, tomato, grilled onions and onion rings , pickles, lettuce served between a french roll.

Vals is a historic burger diner tucked away in the east bay in the heart of Castro Valley. It is a bit of a trek but the ambience is nice. Full of east bay history Vals has been making burgers since the fifties. I heart this place. If you havent been there venture out! It will be worth it.
As for our overall rating you'll have stay tuned and look out for the burger clubs blogs for ratings and dining tips.

brunch on bikes

SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY!