Victor's Meats and Delicatessen -- Los Angeles, CA

10002 National BlvdLos Angeles, Ca 90034
310-837-8401

The second toughest guy at my morning bootcamp suggested that I try the burger at Victor's Meats and Delicatessen. What the hell--it was only a few blocks from the world headquarters, and I had been meaning to check out the butcher shop there anyway. Victor's sold Porterhouse steaks for $9.98/pound and Filets for $11.98/pound. I would be returning to Victor's for some steaks. The burger was advertised on the marquee, but there was no mention of it on the menu boards. No matter, I faked it and ordered a cheeseburger with some fries, a kiddie pool-sized soda, and a couple of pork ribs from the hot case.

Once I ordered my burger, so pretty cool things happened:

• The guy that took my order walked over to the display case and scooped up a large amount of ground Chuck.
• He formed it into a massive patty by hand.
• He created a deep dimple in the surface of the burger patty.
• He ladled some Brisket juice, from the hot case, into that dimple.
• He managed to seal the juice into the pocket.
• He then placed the burger patty onto a sizzling griddle and covered it with a grilling weight.

The whole cooking process took about 5 minutes. At the end, I had a roughly 1/2 pound cheeseburger, a gang of fries, a couple of barbequed pork ribs, and a quart of soda for $9.98. The tables (2) were outside at Victor's Meats and Delicatessen. These tables overlooked a parking lot and the 10 Freeway.

The Burger Breakdown...

The Beef: The beef at Victor's Meats and Delicatessen was freshly ground, 80/20 Chuck. The burger was wonderfully beefy. It had no trace of aging. The grind was medium. The burger was nicely juicy and moist without a hint of greasiness. The bite was amazingly tender--there was no chewiness--the burger patty yielded without protest.

The Sear: The griddle applied a moderate and thin sear to the burger patty. The sear was not noteworthy.

The Seasoning: The exterior of the burger patty was satisfyingly salty. That was only the beginning, though. The interior was infused with the brisket juice, and this amped up the flavor of the Chuck to a level more commensurate with a premium cut of beef.

The Preparation: While I requested Medium, my burger came out closer to Well-Done, but that was fine. The 8 ounce cheeseburger at Victor's Meats and Delicatessen was juicy. I assumed that the longer cooking time rendered off some of the fat from the 80/20 Chuck. This was a fine compromise.

The Cheese: Victor's Meats and Delicatessen applied two slices of American cheese to my burger. Sadly, the cheese was unmelted. This meant that the American cheese did not add its usual creaminess to the bite.

The Bun: The standard, seeded, burger bun was briefly toasted in a massive Wolf oven. Unfortunately, the bun was two days past its prime. This made for a slightly dry bun. Had the cheese been properly melted, this would have been forgivable.

The Meat To Bun Ratio: This would have been perfect, but the stale bun skewed the ratio in favor of of the starch. I at mine R-rated (topless), and it was fine.

The Toppings: The Romaine lettuce was fresh and crisp. The freshly sliced tomato was crisp. This was not what I was looking for, but it was January, so ripe tomatoes were hard to come by.

The Fries: The fries were of the frozen, bagged, skinless, shoestring variety. The fries were fine. I did not go to a butcher for great fries. Still, the fries at Victor's Meats and Delicatessen were crisp, browned, and lightly salted.

The Value: The wholes works at Victor's Meats and Delicatessen was less than $10. That was a fine value. I was not able to finish all of the food in front of me.


Victor's Meats and Delicatessen served up a better than average cheeseburger. The brisket juice really put it over the top. The value was remarkable, and the staff was friendly, knowledgeable, courteous, and prompt.

Burger Review : If you are in the Palms neighborhood, Victor's Meats and Delicatessen would be my suggestion for a darn fine burger and some very reasonably prices cuts of beef.

Rating...4 bites (rounded up from 3.5)

Mel's Drive-In -- West Hollywood, CA

8585 Sunset BLVD
West Hollywood, CA 90069
310-854-7201
website

It was a perfect LA Saturday afternoon. The exception being the Hooray-For-Me drivers on Santa Monica Blvd, but perfection is hard to come by.  Happy Meal and I had a Groupon for Mel's Drive-In, and we were hungry for cheeseburgers. Parking at Mel's was a breeze--free valet!  We chose the counter for instant seating. We ordered a couple of cheeseburgers, and Happy Meal ordered his very first float--Diet Coke with Vanilla ice cream. Our orders were up in about 5 minutes.

The Burger Breakdown...

The Beef: Mel's Drive-In used 100% Chuck for their burgers. While I made a point of ordering my burger Medium, it came out Well-Done. I really didn't want to argue, since I had already sent it back once for having the wrong cheese. That cheese (Cheddar) was partially scraped from my burger, and the American, which I ordered was just melted over the "used" burger patty. That said, the over-cooked burger patty was moderately beefy. The burger weighed in at 1/3 pound. The fat content had to be near 25%. The burger patty was not juicy, but it was on the dry and greasy side. There was no trace of minerals or aging. The bite was firm without being chewy. The beef was slightly below average.

The Seasoning: The burgers were nicely seasoned with a salty blend. The seasoning was solid.

The Sear: The griddled sear on the burgers at Mel's Drive-In was crisp, dark, and even. The bites near the edge provided a firm crunch, and that coupled with the toasted texture of the bun, were particularly satisfying.

The Preparation: Meh. The burger was over-cooked. Instead of a re-fire, the incorrect cheese was simply scraped off of my burger. The uniformly round patties were formed with medium pressure.

The Cheese: Mel's Drive-In applied 2 slices of American cheese to its cheeseburgers. The cheese was perfectly melted. It was creamy, savory, and satisfyingly gooey. The cheese picked up the slack where the beef was too dry. The cheese was the hero in this cheeseburger.

The Bun: The seeded bun was nicely toasted and mercifully unbuttered. The bun was mildly sweet. It was about a day past its prime, but the cheese filled in like a champ.

The Meat To Bun Ratio: A 1/2 pound burger would have been a better match for the Mel's Drive-In bun.

The Toppings: The Iceberg lettuce was fresh and crisp. The tomato slice was ripe and juicy.

The Fries: Mel's Drive-In served up some competent, peel-on fries. The seasoning was meager, but the color and crunch were strong.

The Value: A 1/3 pound cheeseburger was $7.95...ouch, and a ice cream float was $4.95...double ouch. The pre-Groupon total for our meal was $24.58. This was an overly steep price for a very average couple of cheeseburgers.

Mel's Drive-In served up pricey food with little regard to quality.

Burger Review : Over-priced mediocrity at Mel's Drive-In in West Hollywood.

Rating...3 Bites