I stopped by Habit Burger's Alameda, California, location to see how the sausage — er, burger — is made and why it's America's favorite.
The restaurant had a sleek, earthy feel with lots of stainless steel and potted succulents. The design takes inspiration from fine dining and beachy Santa Barbara, California, the chain's place of origin.
Tony Serritella, Habit Burger's COO, and Pete Whitwell, chief quality officer, greeted me at the door. They've been with the brand 18 and 10 years, respectively.
I asked how the brand has changed over the years. Their answer: It hasn't much.
The number one thing we do is burgers," Serritella said. "And the way that we do them — with the care, quality, and preparation — hasn't changed.
I stepped into the kitchen to see how the signature Double Charburger comes together.
Immediately, the texture, color, and freshness of the ingredients blew me away.
The Habit Burger uses fresh, never frozen, 100% ground beef in its patties.
A kitchen manager tossed two patties over an open flame grill, which is hard to come by in the fast-food industry.
Cooking to order takes time, forcing some chains like McDonalds to nuke their patties in the microwave before grilling. Not at Habit Burger.
Even the buns are toasted on a griddle, rather than steamed.
Down the counter, I watched a kitchen manager cut into a glistening albacore tuna steak. I would have to try that later.
Meanwhile, my Double Charburger started to take shape. Mayonnaise made with real buttermilk was placed under shredded lettuce and tomato.
Slices of cheese folded at the corners as they melted on top of the patties. Serritella called this the "dog-ear approach," and said not many chains melt cheese before assembly.
Meanwhile, another cook scrambled the caramelized onions sizzling on the griddle. Their aroma made my mouth water.
The ingredients were stacked and tucked into a paper envelope, meant to keep the burger's form as you eat it.
I bit in and the meat burst with juiciness. The ripe tomato and caramelized onions added tons of flavor, and the melted cheese sealed each bite in my mouth.
While the Charburger is the item that earned Habit Burger the best-tasting title, the chain has added several other hot sandwiches to the menu over the years.
The Tri-Tip Steak uses hand-cut strips of tri-tip steak marinated in a house blend.
Sandwiched between thick slices of toasted sourdough and complimented with caramelized onions, mayo, and your choice of BBQ or teriyaki sauce, it looks like a carnivore's dream.
The Veggie Burger is a little boring. It's topped with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions, drizzled with honey Dijon dressing, and served on a toasted wheat bun.
But unlike some places — cough cough, Chipotle — Habit Burger doesn't skimp on avocado. You do have to pay for it though.
The Chicken Club contains juicy chicken breasts that have been marinated for 24 hours. The sandwich gets an extra crunch with crispy strips of bacon.
Habit Burger added salads to the menu to appeal to health-conscious diners, but the Santa Barbara Cobb has more calories than a Double Charburger.
If you're counting calories, you might be better off with the the crispy lettuce wrap version of the Charburger.
Still, I had my eye on the Albacore Tuna Filet sandwich, which I had seen a cook prep earlier. It's seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic salt.
It's seared just long enough to get those perfect grill marks.
Tuna doesn't ordinarily pack the biggest flavor punch, but it gets an assist here from a teriyaki glaze and a house-made tartar sauce, which contains nine different ingredients.
I've had some tuna burgers that taste more like a Frisbee than fish. But the Albacore Tuna Filet was moist and the slightest bit pink on the inside, just the way I like it.
Fast-food cooking is not what we do," Serritella said. "What we ask people to do back here is too meticulous.
Customers will have to cough up a little extra for this kind of value, however.
The No. 1 special includes an Original Charburger, fries, and regular drink for $6.90 — a dollar-plus more than a comparable meal at In-N-Out or McDonalds.
The fries, by the way, are worth it. They're cut thick and dropped in the fryer to order.
Serritella said there's one simple rule: The fries should be "so hot they almost burn your mouth." He doesn't believe in using heat lamps.
If you're feeling adventurous, the Tempura Green Beans make for a surprisingly decadent substitute for traditional fries.
The green beans are fresh enough to crunch when you bite into them, and they're not drowning in batter.
While it's true you can't really go wrong with any item on the Habit Burger menu, one thing became crystal clear after my visit: It's all about the burger.
My favorite indulgence was a new seasonal menu item, the Tempura Jalapeño Charburger. It cost $4.95.
The single patty was thin, but I didn't mind given the mountain of tempura jalapeño peppers, chopped lettuce, tomato, pickles, and melted American cheese. A house-made spicy ranch mustard turned the heat up to 11.
This is a culture of foodies. It's not exotic, fancy, trendy food. We don't take ourselves too seriously," Whitwell said, adding, "We take what we do very seriously.
This year, Habit Burger will continue to creep in on East Coast territory. Locations are popping up in Florida, New Jersey, and Idaho.
McDonalds better watch its back.
