80383 Fri Mar 31 16:15:46 -0800 2006 21 2 Los Angeles Area 0 444660 Let me start by saying I am eating this burger right now, Im fairly hungry/hung over and a bacon cheeseburger sounded very good. I know that some people have a special place for Hamburger Hamlet and its burger history in LA. But here's the thing - the burger is mediocre. Actually this is something I would expect at Burbank airport or the Chili's at LAX. Lets run it down - Bun - store bought, as fresh as bread found in a liquor store meat - so processed it resembles bologna more than beef cheese - since when does american pass for cheddar? bacon- average, at least average bacon is still bacon lettuce, tomato - quite decent considering the above I would sooner go to McDonalds. Makes me dream about being treated like garbage at Father's Office or finding out Hungry Cat is booked 11:30pm that night. Thank God for 25 degrees. Fri Mar 31 16:15:46 -0800 2006 0 blackbookali 1 444667 The burger is almost certainly the least interesting thing you can get at HH, at least in its more basic incarnations. As you expand the range of embellishments and accompaniments, it becomes almost edible. I know this because we are frequently taken there for large family brunches by the in-laws, who love the place. My favorite version is the Cajun Burger, which comes with a nice spicy chipotle mayonnaise. I ask for extra, and for the steak fries instead of whatever kind is specified on the menu. Then I season the burger heavily with one of the containers of mayo, and use the other as a dip for the fries. Not bad at all. Alternatively, I get the fish and chips, again asking for an extra tartar sauce and steak fries, and proceeding as above. You might want to try this sometime when you're REALLY hungry and not hung over. A bruised liver tends to dampen the fun of any hamburger. Trust me... Fri Mar 31 16:35:07 -0800 2006 444660 0 Will Owen 2 444942 Hungover usually means I am hungry and craving the rich and greasy. Sat Apr 01 21:21:33 -0800 2006 444667 0 blackbookali 3 445202 Just wait 'til your liver's as old as mine...you will begin craving weak green tea and soda crackers. Mon Apr 03 17:30:12 -0700 2006 444942 0 Will Owen 2 445154 My fave is the HotsBurger (no longer on the menu). When they originally took it off, they would still make it for a couple of years (Pasadena location). Then one time, they stopped makeing it and I kinda stopped going. Went again recently and the waiter came back and told me they would make it - Hurrah!! It is an open-faced burger served on their garlic toast. The meat is mixed with a spicy pico de gallo and grilled. Then a slice of Jalapeno Jack cheese on top. Served with fries, a small boat of chili and salsa. SOOOO good!! Nothing beats it! Mon Apr 03 14:32:48 -0700 2006 444667 0 WildSwede 1 444670 Something that you must understand, the Hamburger Hamlet of today is not the same Hamburger Hamlet that was founded by and operated by the Lewis's. They sold out years ago and it has never been the same, and at one point the company that owned them was in bankruptcy. Years ago they had the very best burgers in town, good meat, cooked properly, buns that were baked to their specifications. I am harking back to the 1960s, when as a young whippersnapper I used to got there on a Saturday night and have a Hamlet burger, onion rings and a thick chocolate shake, later graduating to a schooner of Michelobe. But alas, you can't go home again. I will still go there once in a while, get a burger or a patty melt and a bowl of their lobster bisque. There are very few places that offer lobster bisque (other than high end steak joints), and when their bisque is fresh, and properly heated, that and some of their garlic toast hits the spot. Link: http://www.indefatigable-indolence.org/Chow_Top_1.html Fri Mar 31 16:42:02 -0800 2006 444660 0 Chino Wayne 2 444677 Yes, that lobster bisque ("Famous For This") is pretty good unless it is old. The published recipe for this soup is amazingly long and time consuming, but not particularly difficult. Fri Mar 31 16:58:21 -0800 2006 444670 0 TomSwift 3 444723 Well the Lobster Bisque at the Pasadena location, and I have been going there since the 70's, is not even close to what it used to be. Last time the spoon could be stood up in it...yuck. And how would one go about getting it "fresh " I wonder ?? And , not to veer off into home cooking territory, but for old times sake i did try to make the HH recipe, printed in th NYtimes last year. It was not a great success, not much lobster flavor for all the work....in the future I willstick with Julia childs recipe... Fri Mar 31 18:55:38 -0800 2006 444677 0 ciaolette 4 444785 By "fresh" I mean recently prepared, as opposed to sitting around all day long and getting all gloppy. Link: http://www.indefatigable-indolence.org/Chow_Top_1.html Fri Mar 31 21:31:27 -0800 2006 444723 0 Chino Wayne 5 444827 LOL... how would I know when to get it "fresh" , surely asking your server, what could they say, um no it was made yesterday? or possibly asking to inspect the soup before ordering?? I know what you meant, but HOW does one actually find out when the soup was made in this scenario??? Sat Apr 01 02:23:27 -0800 2006 444785 0 ciaolette 6 444832 Is it kosher to mention to the server, "Look, I've liked the lobster bisque in the past and would like to order it, but only if it is hot and fresh and not all gummy and congealed like bad chowder paste. Can you check for me, so I'm not disappointed and will not want to send it back?" A competent server will check, and a good server would bring you a little taste in an expresso cup or small ramekin. OK, I guess you can't expect kosher with lobster bisque. Sat Apr 01 03:14:05 -0800 2006 444827 0 nosh 2 444710 I agree with you Chino Wayne... Those were the days. Late '60s - early '70s, the Hamlet was a very nice restaurant and everything on the menu was absolutely delicious. It was a great date place, we'd cue up for an hour at the Van Nuys Blvd. location, and my order was always the same - a #11 (bacon and cheese of your choice - mine was swiss)and a cup of lobster bisque. When I ate at the one in WLA recently, I couldn't believe it was the same place. The decor and the food were very run down. But the lobster bisque still isn't bad. Fri Mar 31 18:31:54 -0800 2006 444670 0 Di4cats 1 444673 What do you mean treated like garbage at Father's Office? It is a very busy place but what do you mean treated poorly? Fri Mar 31 16:46:33 -0800 2006 444660 0 SCMike 2 444686 There strong suit is not service. It is masked as "bar service" but its still not very welcoming. I also love Father's Office, but i have to side step a couple of landmines to get mu hands on that burger. Fri Mar 31 17:31:40 -0800 2006 444673 0 blackbookali 3 444819 Father's Office is L.A.'s Soup Nazi! Sat Apr 01 00:30:56 -0800 2006 444686 0 nosh 2 444691 I second that response! We've been to Father's Office only twice now, but that will definitely be our last! I don't care how good your burger is, you still shouldn't treat people like crap who have waited in line for 20 minutes while being shoved around by every other person in that tiny place! The service and drama isn't worth it, the people at the register just look at you like "what the hell do YOU want?" It's almost comical. Fri Mar 31 17:42:35 -0800 2006 444673 0 Brooke V 1 444679 My favorite thing on the HH menu was always the "Chili con Queso Omelet with Cheese". A friend once ordered it, asking for "the chili con queso omelet with redundant cheese", whereupon the waitress replied, "I don't think we have that kind of cheese." An ordering moment I will never forget. Fri Mar 31 17:04:59 -0800 2006 444660 0 LBQT 2 444683 Thats the best thing I've heard in a long time... Link: http://www.jeffmauro.com Fri Mar 31 17:20:15 -0800 2006 444679 0 jeffro 1 444720 I went in for the onion soup and Chili Size. I walked out after I saw sodas at $2.50 and NO free refills! What a rip! Fri Mar 31 18:49:34 -0800 2006 444660 0 Wes 1 444844 The only one I'll ever go to is the Sunset at Doheny one. I was basically raised there. We always sat by the rotiserrie which is not there anymore. My honey and I were in fact there last night (Thursday night) and everything was great. And, that is always the case there. I hate the other locations I've been to. At the sunset one, they treat you like you own the joint. They treat everyone like that. Even when I look like a ragedy kid they treat me better than the celebrity at the next table. I just love it there. My burger was super juicy (exactly medium rare) and my steak fries (ofcourse well done) were perfection. And, my honey let me lick out the crock o' lobster bisque. It is that good. (Yes, I'm kidding. He let me scrape out the bowl with a spoon.) I'm just saying that HH should only be judged by that location. If you don't like it, you're probably cooler, younger, richer, and more pompous than I. Thee end. Sat Apr 01 04:53:36 -0800 2006 444660 0 kiwi 2 444862 Kiwi, you are correct. I live in Sherman Oaks, and the one on Van Nuys Blvd. locally is awful. I, like you, only go to the West Hwd. Sunset Blvd. location, and have never been disappointed. It is not what it used to be, but still good enough, unlike the others. Sat Apr 01 10:03:37 -0800 2006 444844 0 carter 2 444902 Sepulveda near National -- depressing and so old. Brentwood on San Vicente -- ok, has parking, not bad if a game is on. Westwood Village -- closed for years. Sat Apr 01 15:40:27 -0800 2006 444844 0 nosh