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So, for the record, I have never met or corresponded with Damon Gambuto (but, I would love to!). Also, for the record, I had Baby Blues delivered a few weeks ago, and had an extra-ordinary experience - story to follow.

To all the folks who are upset that Damon did not review the BBQ at Baby Blues, from what I can tell Damon Gambuto is a Los Angeles based burger correspondent, and he is great at what he does. Sometimes BBQ joints can offer up a good burger. In fact, Damon recently reviewed three burgers at Zeke's Smokehouse, which is directly across the street from Baby Blues. It is a great write up, and you can search for it on this site.

I went to Zeke's Smokehouse last night based on Damon's review and I loved it, and commented earlier today on that piece - thanking him, because the burger was so tasty. Damon gave baby Blues the same shot, and didn't love the burger. Oh, well. Get over it. At least he was brave enough to give that combination of flavors a fair shake.

BTW - I once had a a grilled veal chop topped with melted brie and lingonberries that was exquisite. Perhaps the burger would shine if the blue cheese and bacon stood out more and the sauce had whole berries rather than being more of a pureed sauce. It would probably require arugula to balance the sweet, salty and pungent with some peppery goodness. But, as a purist, I would still prefer a good, quality burger without all the hoopla and dressy fanfare. That's just how I roll.

I am assuming Lincolnberry is an Ebonics-esque play on lingonberry. If you are truly curious, give Baby Blues a call.

My experience at Baby Blues? My husband and I wanted beef ribs, and when I asked the gal on the phone how many came with the order she replied, "one - it's like a big steak." We decided to give it a shot, and each ordered one, which came with a choice of two sides. I opted for collards and mashed potatoes, hubby had corn and cole slaw. The sides were delish, but one of the ribs was burnt and less than half the size of the other rib.

I let my honey have the good rib and insisted he eat it while I called, because I am sweet like that (and we had just moved into our new place and he had been doing hard physical labor and desperately needed the fortification). The hostess got the manager who apologized profusely and asked if I wanted another rib. I did. Forty minutes later, the manager showed up at the door and told my hubz he cooked it himself. Maybe it was my sultry phone-sex voice, but I'd like to think it was solid dedication. Anyways, it was nice. A chuck blade, essentially. It didn't rock my socks off, but it was a good chuck rib weighing in at 16 ounces or more, and it was properly (lovingly?) cooked. The sauce was not my favorite, as it was a bit sweet and overly tart with vinegar for a tomato based sauce, and the XXX sauce was a bit salsa-like for my taste. The service, on the other hand, made a strong, favorable impression.

Thanks for the well-written review, Damon. As I left Zeke's last night, I glanced across the street and wondered if Baby Blues had a decent burger. Now I know what to expect.

Maack out.

I love the stuffed baked potatoes and the garlic bread

I went to get a burger here, when I saw the "meatball burgers" I changed my mind and left.
I must say, I am a fan of the thin double or triple patty formula, if I want MEAT!

Speaking of bad Boston Burgers, I just had my first bite of a B.Good "burger" since I first tried it when they first opened (I didn't go, they were ordered in for a catered lunch at work).

OMG.

This thing is horrible. Abominable. Outright disgusting. It makes me lose faith in humanity. Help!!!

I walk by RF's multiple times daily and have eaten there on a couple of occasions. I absolutely agree with Kenji's assesment. For me, the overcooked outer layer absolutely ruins the burger. And I do not like the massive, flabby french fries at all.

I'd much rather have a burger at Christopher's or Temple Bar.

@millions
and O'Sully's is not the kind of place where you want to get noticed...

@jbuffalo - thanks so much for the huzzah and bonus points for dropping in the "gallimaufry."

@oneiron - certainly price matters, and this burger is no cheap eat, but I think I'd say it's worth it for a special treat burger. is the "oneiron" a golf reference, if so kudos! Watch out for some golf themed posts in the future.

@mattatouille - thanks! This is indeed a "luxe burger."

@Schimming - I'll have to try Burger Lounge -- La Jolla isn't too far away.

@chrisatdomainerestaurants - glad you enjoyed it. kudos to you all on the good burger. happy to contact you. happy to talk to all our AHT readers!

@awkwardcabbage - Thanks so much. I really appreciate the support. Glad you liked the review! Two snaps up and a twist right back 'atcha!

@dzhughes - you are mucho generous. Thanks, mate!

@shred - Ok. This is a tough one. First off, I love The Golden State and think Jason and James are superstars. They've built a great cafe and I encourage everyone to support it. 25 Degrees is also a seriously good burger. Personally, I find the bacon at TGS distracting, but then again I usually feel bacon is misplaced atop burger. For me, it distracts from the clean beef taste I crave. The TGS burger sans bacon gives me just that. The 25D burger is a more extravagant burger taste. My choice of one over the other might be mostly based on my burger mood.

I was at Ray's for this - I spoke to Biden briefly, asked him what he was going to get. When he said he was getting a burger with Swiss, I pushed hard for him to add the mushrooms, which is probably Ray's best topping. He looked at me like I was crazy and didn't respond. Oh well.

My kinda Prez!

Sounds like this place needs to apply the occam's razor principle to their burger makin'... simple is best.

Google doesn't think lincolnberries exist. I don't either. Also, the combination of what are presumably lingonberries with mustard and bleu cheese sounds just awful.

I went last week, and whiule I was a skeptic beforehand, I'm now a believer. I think this is on the very short list for best burger in L.A (with the Kobe at Lucky Devil's being my other current favorite).

A couple of gripes:
1) As at Lucky Devil's (and Father's Office), the "pre-packaged" burgers get in the way. I frankly didn't want either the "Umami" burger OR the "SoCal" burger - but instead just a burger, medium rare, with cheese so as to be able to judge the burger on the taste of the base components, and not accessories. I felt compelled to order the SoCal burger, but next time I will request the butter lettuce, sauce, etc. to be left off. I don;t think they brought much to the table.

2) The fries, the fries, the fries. Maxcriden, your pictures indicate that at least for a little while they ventures away from the ultra-thick fries. I wish they had continued that experiment. I don't 4 or 5 "fries" that taste more like mashed potatoes with a crispy covering. This place really needs some version of traditional fries. Why is it such a problem? Not everything on the menu needs to be groundbreaking.

3) No wine and beer/corkage. I'm sorry, but the 5 dollar corkage needs to go if they're not going to have wine or beer available. If you're bringing a $40 bottle of wine to a steakhouse, which already has its own wine list, $5 corkage would seem like an excellent value, but this is a burger joint, and all I want is a glass or two of beer or wine. If I need to go across the streeet to buy a beer, I shouldn't have to pay an additional $5 to drink it. That's just ridiculous.

Sadly Damon no, to my knowledge my kitchen is the only place in my neck of the woods that makes a burger like that.