I had always heard that Rustic Canyon in Santa Monica has a great burger, but the $18 price tag kept me from going for a long time. Eventually I was rescued by a parent visit and only had eyes for the burger. Of course, there wasn’t a lot of competition with the rest of the menu. Some things looked good, but it was hard to find an item free from vegetables, including the burger itself. But Rustic Canyon does something pretty unique with its burgers.
All the toppings that aren’t cheese come in little dishes on the side. That way, the onion fondue, remoulade, house pickles, ketchup and mustard are left to the eater’s discretion. It’s kind of a “build-your-own-burger” with incredibly limited options. The benefit is that it’s easy to avoid terrible vegetables.
The remoulade was basically like a homemade thousand island dressing and was the only topping I used. The result was a pretty basic, but incredibly delicious burger. The meat was juicy, the bun was balanced and the cheese was melty.
Yet, with only three things needed for burger harmony, the $18 price tag was a bit much. Similarly delicious burgers can be found all over at a much more respectable price. It is unquestionably a burger I would eat again, I’m just not sure I would pay or ask anyone else to pay for me to do it.