Chinese food and a good diner should not be a surprising combination. Both are welcomed when faced with a particularly strong hang over, neither should be followed with exercise and both extol value – yeah, Im talking Bang for your Burger Buck and I haven’t even dropped the price yet. Let’s talk patty melt, let’s talk a side dish and let’s talk about a damn heavy plate. $7. Do I have your attention now? Good.

Pono Burger was that run don’t walk standing order when I visited this fine burger establishment in the late spring of 2013. Though known to still be working out their kinks, when restaurants are in their first few weeks to months of opening, prices are dropped to lure and establish a customer base. That was my justification for how they could offer a premium burger for $8. There were impressive combos that hit the $12 mark but, organic grass fed ...

It has oft been said that good beef needs little else besides salt and pepper. The same holds true for the hamburger, despite the popularity of cheese, it just aint necessary. When I came upon the menu at Corner Burger, I saw the “Naked Burger” as a sort of challenge to take on a burger sans any topping(except bun) and see if my palate could appreciate this “meat minimalism“. And for $5, I was a man with nothing to lose ...

For most that ride this train of Bang for your Burger Buck, we patron and ultimately celebrate the humble luncheonette. Village Kitchen is such a place, coupled with a charitable inception as the restaurant serves as a training ground for women living at the Good Shepherd Shelter. They also happen to offer a $4 cheeseburger that despite some expected modest ingredients, delivers one juicy and tasty burger.

It is a good thing that the meteoric rise of “concept” food trucks didn’t hinder the continuance of “classic food trucks”. Whether you call it a “roach coach”, “truck” or that “guy on the corner of blank and blank”, these traveling commissaries are critical to the day to day function of our city and the sight of them, such as Levon’s Quality Foods Truck, is a welcomed one indeed. A line filled with hungry construction workers, a drifting lab tech ...

An “Old Style” hamburger charms you with it’s simplicity. More than likely you are sitting in an old school diner or dedicated burger shack, where the food tastes homemade. Beyond the requisite loose grind, most likely done in house or to order from a meat purveyor; a decent bun, fresh toppings and some love on the griddle all ad up to “sublime burger simplicity“. In Los Angeles, examples can be found at celebrated burger institutions like The Apple Pan and Pie N ...

LA Buns just may be my favorite place I have covered at Bang for your Burger Buck. Being nestled in the South Los Angeles neighborhood of Downey, they are off most people’s radar. They also toss my Bang strategy out the window, by forcing me to add on what would be costly add ons like cheddar, bacon and onion rings but are not costly because they charge .70 friggin cents for all three. And they season the hell out of ...

1/3lb of grass fed beef for $6 is straight up Bang for your Burger Buck. While the only beef I endorse is one for a fair price, I’ll always give a nod for affordable quality and Shaka Shack deserves it. Also what is totally amazeballs is that this satisfying burger delivers without the need for cheese and steps up the tangy sauce game with a house made concoction vs the typical 1000 island. But man did that grass fed beef ...

Hawkins House of Burgers is a legendary fixture in the Los Angeles burger scene. People make the trek to Watts like faithful Muslims make pilgrimage to Mecca; I saw freaking Macklemore there. Just bring an empty stomach as this burger was the only one I could not finish in the history of Bang for your Burger Buck. Heed my instance of shame, and for God’s sake don’t go double and ask em to go easy on the mayo. But don’t take ...

Etched into my memory was a straight up Twitter warning telling me never to speak of Al & Bea’s over the internet, it is that cherished. There is something about this tiny little Mexican American stand that just seems right. Lines of folks at odd hours help make that case as well. And though they are known more so for their legendary Bean and Cheese Burritos, their burgers sure do shine thanks to a well oiled griddle and rock bottom ...