This was our first time there and it was really great. We had a great time. One of the highlights of the day was lunch because we found one of my favorite burger joints next to the museum.

The Counter is a burger restaurant where you can make your burger to order exactly as you want it. From the type of meat, to the size of the patty and every ingredient. They even have vegetarian options and by all accounts even the vegetarian options are awesome.

When they first opened, I went with my friend and we each got a monster burger, it was over $30 for each burger and we couldn't even finish them. But this time I was a bit more restrained and just ordered their 1 lb burger with some classic toppings. Check it out:

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Fast forward to today and you'll see gourmet burger joints popping up all over the place. McDonalds, Burger King and other icons of burgerdom are vanishing in exhange for higher quality and even hipster spots. Unfortunately, like most fads and trends, most of these new places are just fancy names dressed with fancy ideas but poor execution.

But when you find a good burger joint, it's like finding gold.

Such is the case with Peter's Gourmade in Tustin. I went to it a couple years back for the first time because someone told me I should try their greek fries and burgers. They were good and the burger was good too but for whatever reason I never reviewed them. So this is my turn to review this up and coming spot.

I went back recently before my trip to Hawaii to have lunch with my buddy Loren from Diesel Brew, Loren's a local guy but when he told me he had never tried this place, we stopped debating where we should eat,  this was it. I asked him after lunch if he had liked it and he said it was a great burger.

Peter's Gourmade has expanded, but something that remains true is their menu and quality. I was pleasantly reminded of how good their burgers are. I have to admit that I prefer my burger a little more seasoned but I'm picky to a fault. In a scale of 1 to 10 I would rate their burger at a high 7.

I ordered The Hermanator ($7.50)which is described in their menu as follows: All-Beef angus patty served on a toasted potato bun with bacon, pepper jack cheese, chipotle mayo, jalapeños, and lettuce. I went with this because I wanted their spiciest option. Unfortunately, this is not spicy enough for me. It was well made, and had a bit of a kick, and the flavor is great but if you're expecting something that will kick you hard, they will have to kick it up a notch.

I added a fried egg on top ($1.00) and it ended up looking like the picture below. Forgive the lackluster picture but I got so carried away chatting with my buddy that I started eating this before I took a picture so I had to re-wrap it and put it back for a shot that didn't show a big piece of the burger missing.

And it looks like this:

The hermanator name comes from the head chef and as I've been told, his name is Herman so it makes perfect sense. The price tip toes on the high end for a burger like this, but the quality of the meat and the made-to-order service would fetch closer to $10 at most other locations in Orange County so it's perfectly reasonable. Adding fries, the egg and a drink put our lunch at a little over $24 for two people. Not bad!

I'm not a huge fan of the shredded lettuce approach, but it works fine in this case, I also wish the yolk on the egg hadn't been throughly cooked; you always want a little runny yolk if you get an egg on your burger. I must admit that Red Robbin's Royal Burger turned me onto the whole egg on top thing and they always do it perfectly, but I can't judge this burger based on this minor flaw because it doesn't normally come with the egg.

I love their new redecorated and expanded location. It feels fresh and well kept and comfortable. The location isn't new, they just took over the shop next door but now they almost doubled their seating capacity so even when you come for lunch at rush hour, you'll have a good chance of getting a seat. We arrived just before the lunch rush and by the time we were finished with our food, the line was out the door and around the corner. All these people can't be wrong so if you want a good burger for a great value then go check them out.

You'll find Peter's Gourmade easily off the 55 freeway at the McFadden exit. Don't let the surrounding area discourage you, this is a gem you find in a rough spot.  I am almost sarcastic when I say rough spot; I mean, it is south Tustin which is not bad at all if you compare it to a rough spot in South LA. I recommend you beat the rush so you can find a parking spot. When it comes to the location, this is their weakness, there is only a small parking lot that is shared with another half-dozen businesses so it can be tough to find a spot.

Rumor has it that they are looking to expand and if my wishes came true they'd open up a location in Irvine or Irvine/Costa Mesa border because that's where I want to go when I eat so I can meet up with my friends and colleagues. And we all love a good burger.

The post Checking out the Hermanator Burger at Peter’s Gourmade appeared first on Digital Marketing Through Content & Influence.

Ha! but we made it, and that's what matters.

We unloaded our stuff and headed down to Tropics. One of the beach front restaurants at our hotel. I don't usually expect much from hotel resaurants, even at the Hilton. But this was pretty good.

I started with a Mai Tai. I should tell you that this is my first Mai Tai ever. As far as I can recall, I have never ordered one before. I'm more of a gin & tonic kind of guy, But I'm in Hawaii so I figured, why not!

The Mai Tai was awesome. This is my new favorite beach cocktail. Gotta find out how to make one...

The food was good but it all depends on the price. For $19.00... the burger  I ordered was just okay. If It were $14.00, it would have been amazing. If I judged it only on price and taste, it was okay. But this burger comes as a whole experience. The flavor was good and although the patty was overpressed and slightly overcooked beyond the medium level that I requested.

It is a 1/3 lb beef patty served on a super soft and sweet bun topped with sweet pulled pork. They finish off the burger with tomato, pickle and some lettuce

For Claire we ordered the fish and chips which came with a small bowl of cut fruit. The fish and chips was neither here nor there. It was just fish and chips. Helen in the other hand ordered the spicy kalua chicken sandwich which was good too. Served on a ciabatta type of bread, it also could have been much better but it came up short with a thin piece of chicken that was overcooked. I liked it enough, but probably wouldn't order it for myself.

But you don't come to Tropics to eat amazing inexpensive food, you eat there to enjoy an amazing view of the beach and the ocean while enjoying your vacation with a Mai Tai, and your loved ones. So if you're thinking about it, go check it out, just make sure you get a beach front seat. The experience is worth the $60.00 lunch.

Today we are off to go snorkeling and exploring some of the other wonders of Waikiki. We can't wait and I can't wait to show you more pictures and tell you some more stories. Wifi is outrageously expensive at $20/day so I will be showing you what I can as I sneak away late at night or early morning to do some blogging from the lobby. Aloha!

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The Habit is nice. Even though prices are comparable to fast food places... or even less expensive, the decor and ambiance is more upscale than your average fast food joint. They even use those buzzers like regular sit down restaurants to call you when your order is ready. That was a nice touch.

Staff was friendly and despite being in a long line I was in and out of there in about 10 minutes.

I ordered their double cheeseburger. With fries. Someone had mentioned that the patties were thin so it would be better if I got a double burger. Turns out, I thought the patties were thin like the patties for In n Out. I was really hungry so I ordered an additional patty. Making this a triple cheeseburger... Except they didn't put cheese on the third patty.

Side dishes at The Habit in #Irvine

A photo posted by Oscar Gonzalez (@notagrouch) on Apr 9, 2013 at 11:05am PDT

Just a few minutes later I was out the door with my order and an order for a friend, the original char burger with fries. My order was to go ao I headed back home to chow down.

The fact is that this is one of the best burgers I have had in a while. For this price and basically a fast food burger, The Habit's double char cheeseburger is hard to beat. I know I had an extra patty, and that just put my burger over the top. The patties are substantially bigger than In and Out's, and I really did not need to order a third patty, but it was good.

Maybe I am being a little bit unfair to my other beloved burger joints like In and Out because the flavor was totally different, but it just tasted really good. It reminded me of a really good home made burger.
The burgers normally come with lettuce, tomatoes, mayo. It was pretty perfect, but knowing me I had to get some of the sliced jalapeños and chilies they have as condiments. #Delish.

I will definitely be back soon. It was totally a great experience, tasty and at a terrific price. (I am blogging this from my phone so forgive my typos, but enjoy the pictures.)

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What's #Foodiechats all about?

I found #FoodieChats by accident while I was working on one of my other accounts @incentivegifts. FoodieChats seems to be as the name suggests a Twitter chat for foodies and food lovers. Lots of good stuff went on, here's their official website:

http://www.foodiechats.com/

Below is a recap of the tweets I found would represent the chat well. Thanks for reading and visiting!

By the looks of it, @steveGOgreen is the host of the twitter chat. He's another person I invest in at the time-sucking ever-growing Empire Avenue. Find Steve here http://empireavenue.com/STEVEGOGREEN.

What do people talk about on #Foodiechats

Maggie Rupel - @MaggieRupel
Choux full of vanilla pastry cream #foodiechats http://t.co/0MqnSUoP

This little pastry reminded me of #mochilato in Irvine. So tasty!

Mary Kay - @MKinChiTown
Bacon wrapped scallop @drinkingbirdchi. It's HUGE. #TWSS #foodiechats http://t.co/NyAT3Mgu

Totally different than the previous picture, but this is an absolute favorite of mine. I love scallops, bacon wrapped? even better. It's making my mouth water just thinking about it.

Shirley Lum - @ATasteofWorld
Next: "burger" flavoured potato chips;-) @kingofthenerds I mean really, who the hell wants "hot dog" flavoured potato chips? #FoodieChats

Meh, I'd say who the hell wants a "burger" flavoured anything other than burgers? burger-flavor isn't like bacon-flavor. One does not simply make something "burger-flavored".

Steve Green - @steveGOgreen
I am editing #Foodiechats 1-Year Video & U R in it @seamless @ramon_deleon @eatatunion @chi_dmb @NickCanHelpU @mommacuisine

One of the things regular #Foodiechats members have to look forward is a video that @steveGOgreen is putting together.

Steve Green - @steveGOgreen
Love your segment in #Foodiechats 1-Year Video @mafiahairdreser

O apparently the video is up already? I just don't know where it is... must investigate.

Michelle - @browneyedbaker
Nothing better than a blackened hot dog fresh off the charcoal grill! Pass the ketchup!

Delicious food, not the healthiest, but who cares? I'm imagining a good grilled hot dog just because of this tweet!

#Foodiechats - @FoodieChats
Spicy Tina and avocado go great together. #foodiechats http://t.co/Jd0tpJsK

Spicy Tuna & avocado, yes, a great combination. Avocado goes well with everything, including bacon. Sweet, sour or savory Avocado is the man!

Green Global Travel - @GreenGlobalTrvl
RT @myschatheriault 20 Cost-Effective Cucumber #Recipe Ideas #foodiechats

This was a great post with a lot of good ideas. I love cucumber, but didn't think about all these options before.sd

In Closing

It seems that I joined #FoodieChats at an odd time. The 25th should be much more active as it appears that there is a real life meetup for this in San Francisco I think. Well anyway, That does it for testing out more "live blogging" with Dashter.

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People talk about the delicious scrumptious burgers you can get here. They say "Five Guys' got nothing on these guys" "In and Out... in and what?" I've even heard people say "it's better than The Counter" Better than The Counter is almost impossible because The Counter makes YOUR favorite burger, but I digress...

My honest opinion about Umami Burger is that I don't get the buzz. I liked the burger, don't get me wrong. It was tasty and fulfilling. The crispy wafer was a nice gimmick.

But as I thought about it more and looked around the restaurant more I wondered. What else will I find in here? There are so many things going on with the dishes that it's hard to appreciate individual flavors or the carefully crafted food. It seems that my friend Anita also feels the same way about Umami Burger.

Let's just say that they didn't get a glowing review. She reserves high marks for the best of the best and Umami didn't quite get that.

I'd give it a 2.5 - 3 rating. Maybe more so in the lower end because of the price. And I don't know... they just tried too hard to impress. It seems to be working too, people are gobbling up the idea that,  ooooh ahhh they have "real" Coca-Cola.

Go to the local supermarket and you buy yourself a six-pack of that. What's the big deal? If you order a regular drink, apparently you get one refill, really? One refill? for a 10+ dollar burger.

Something I found very gimmicky was their plates. They're made out of banana leaves or something, maybe straw. The truth is that it seems ridiculous to pay for these plates.

I get it, they're recyclable but how much are these? And whatever happened to just regular dishes that you wash and stuff? It seems that a good washing system with water conservation put into the mix would be better for the environment and our pockets.

Overall, I'd go back for another lunch with friends or something but I don't know that I would go back to Umami burger.

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