At last, my time working in the sync community finally came full circle when the Burger master himself, Brayden, gracefully asked me to be this month’s BEU blogger. Look Mama, we finally made it! After a slight hesitation I finally agreed to don the infamous burger hat that very few are brave and worthy enough to wear. My mission? Conquer and write about the casual restaurant, Mix & Match Burger.

I personally never even heard of the place before this BEU, but a quick search on the interwebz will describe it as a cheap, quick-bite, build-your-own-burger type of place. Brayden described it as the “Subway” of burger joints. I say fuck those so called “Sandwich Artists” because I’d compare it more to a “Chipotle” but like, Chipotle when it was actually still cool and people were proud to eat there. Like, PRE-queso, PRE-various food-related diseases Chipotle.  

The spot is in Glendale (hello easy parking!) not too far from the Galleria. When you walk into the place for the first time it immediately feels like a big major burger franchise. Is Mix & Match Burger a franchise, or a one-off restaurant with dreams of growing? I wish I could answer. The best part of my BEU blogger experience was asking one of the employees if this was the only Mix & Match in California and she honestly did not know.  

One look at the menu and you won’t believe the prices. Is everything this cheap in Glendale? A slider is $3, a burger for $6, add another $3 and you can make your burger a double! They have so many options for toppings, breads, meat, and sauces that after my calculations, I can confidently say that there are exactly 3,690,235 original burger combinations that you can create. (*Not actual math, but probs pretty close*) If there is a topping that you can think of, they probably have it here.

Oh ya, forgot to mention; ALL OF THE TOPPINGS ARE FREE. You want bacon on your burger? FREE. You want extra bacon on your bacon? STILL FREE. You want some avocado slices? FREEE. Wait, you don’t like avocado by itself and you want some…GUACAMOLE? Yeah, that shit is free too. TAKE THAT CHIPOTLE wit yo “Guac-is-Extra” havin ass!!!! They have a few “template combinations” that you can choose from, but honestly, where is the fun in that?!?!

For my own burger, I decided to keep it Cali style. I opted for an Avocado-Bacon cheeseburger with red onion, tomato, lettuce and some ranch. After yapping away with all of the new BEU’ers (aka “fresh meat”) and the usual suspects in attendance, I practically inhaled my burger. Overall the burger was good. Nothing particular to rave about, but it’s a solid burger. One thing that I wish they could have done was toast the buns of my burger, but that’s just me. (Total diva, I know)

After eating my burger, I started to have self doubt about my own burger creativity. Was the burger mediocre because I made it that way? Or was it their fault? I started asking others about their own burgers, and the general vibe seemed to be the same all around. The burger is alright, the value and final price for a full meal (burger + fries + drink for almost $10) make this burger more enjoyable than it actually is.

Would I call this the “Best Burger of 2018”? Nah. Would I call it the “Best Burger of 2018 to-Take-Your-Family-Visiting-from-the-Midwest-When-They-Want-a-Fun-Burger-Without-all-of-the-LA-Traffic”? You bet your ass I would. Mix & Match Burger, a solid 7/10 and probably going to be taking over every strip mall across America soon. Call it the “Chipotle effect”.

Until next time fellow burger feens!

Best,

Mike Kunzweiler

Out of 56 people in attendance, here’s how Mix & Match fared:

Appearance: 7.8611

Patty: 8.1513

Taste: 7.8388

Fries/Sides: 7.0304

Bun: 6.5255

Toppings: 7.9166

Value/Price: 9.1055

Service: 8.7111

TOTAL: 7.8925

And Trader Joe’s beat out Whole Foods in the “Who would win in a fight?” category (paint names).

Additional Comments:

Vitaly Shenderovsky: I’ll be honest. I wasn’t expecting much from “The Chipotle of burgers”, but DAMN, that was a good burger.

Peter Wade: Went with lettuce instead of trad. bun – was quite messy but tasted great!! Would Mix & Match again.

Jamin Mandel: They didn’t cook to order and only served well done, but the meat was still tender and well seasoned so it’s all good!!!

Nyiko: Crispy jalapenos give me life!

Brayden: Two words: truffle aioli. Also, some of the best onion rings I think I’ve ever had in my life! Honestly!!

Sarah Scarlata: The bun might have been baked the last time Britney Spears was on the Billboard charts….it was stale, like my jokes.

Kristoph Jeffers: The mushrooms were bomb!

Jonathan Lane: My double patty lettuce-wrapped mustard-only burger was as joyless as the whole 30 diet that dictated it. Presentation was solid and ultimately, it’ll make a turd and fend off my hunger until my next and joyless meal.

Chad Brown: Fantastic and healthy. My Chemical Romance is awesome.

Thomas Miller: Needs more soft furnishings or sound panels! I can’t hear you!

Ali D.: Nice concept, poorly executed.

Sarah Grocock: Value/price was unmatchable. Slightly disappointed in the lack of flavor.

Casey N: I’m about to win this Easter egg hunt.

Rye Guy: So good I was eating crumbs off the table. Couldn’t get enough!

Tina C.: I got a spicy chicken burger. Most delicious $6 sandwich EVER.

Alex Waters: $7.99 for a burger with 6 toppings and a milkshake???? Yes please!

Paul Rocha: Honestly…meh!

Tiffany Su: Eh!

Kristen: Strawberry milkshake! Oh my!!

Vince Villanueva: Match burger was a little dry as it came, but added extra jam and it became legit. The tots were not too oily and the amount was a lot!! Generous portions make for a satisfied Vince.

Natasha Albert: The little burger that mixed & matched its way into my heart. I actually got a menu item but it’s still in my heart.

Amanda Grocky: Eh…

Lindsey Odom: Liked the detail on the bun!

Alex Taggart: If I hadn’t made the mistake of getting a chicken burger first (amateur), I feel like I would’ve hit the ground running and had a better overall experience.

Jess Ruoti: Mix? And Match? What a concept. I’m overwhelmed by a buffet of toppings and sauces but I’m not mad about it. You bet I mooched on someone’s cheesy tots!

Max Levin: Meh. However, amazing vaue. Budget pick, I’m down.

Patrick Clancy: So good. Glad I showed up late so I didn’t wait as long as everyone else.