Food Coma 911

I’m always on the look out for a “better” burger with a focus on quality food for the customer and the environment. So far I’ve had the pleasure to be able to eat at Burger Lounge where their beef is grass-fed, free-range, and no antibiotics/growth-promoting hormones; and Diablo Burger where their beef is local, open range-raised, and no antibiotics/growth-promoting hormones.

Recently, I was invited to try out Elevation Burger in Carlsbad, their first west coast location. It’s the only franchised burger chain serving organic beef. Yes, there is such a thing as organic beef and according to Wiki, USDA has some strict requirements for the cattle:

• Born and raised on certified organic pasture
• Never receive antibiotics
• Never receive growth-promoting hormones
• Are fed only certified organic grains and grasses
• Must have unrestricted outdoor access

Elevation Burger uses 100% USDA-certified organic beef and they take it a step further by doing fresh ground beef on-site which is then hand formed into patties. Sounds too good to be true for a franchise, but thankfully it is. So off I went to check it out with my friend, Medi.

Large Cookie $1.79
Fresh baked chocolate chip oatmeal pecan cookie made with organic eggs and butter

I was a bit surprised to see they sold cookies, even more so when I found out that the recipe was Hans Hess’, the founder. Pretty cool and pretty good cookie; however, different. More like a granola bar since it’s dense, but still soft and more on the doughy side. I liked it, but others might not, like Medi. As you can see Elevation Burger doesn’t use all organic ingredients like O Burger, but at least they make an effort.

Chocolate Shake with Oreo $3.89

I was really glad to see that they served shakes here. In my opinion, it’s a must for a burger joint. Elevation Burger’s shakes were nice and thick. Also, you can choose either chocolate, vanilla, or coffee ice cream with the choice to include up to two addiontal ingredients like real fruit or Oreo. Not pictured, but also ordered a coffee shake with bananas and mangoes. Sounds kind of weird, huh? Well, the owner of the Carlsbad location suggested it and it was actually a really good combination.

Overview

Elevation Burger lets you choose as many toppings from the following: lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, raw onions, caramelized onions, hot pepper relish, ketchup, mayo, elevation sauce, and balsamic mustard.

Half Guilt Burger #2 $5.59
One beef patty and one #2 veggie patty (organic vegan)

I got this because I could get the best of both worlds, a veggie and a beef patty. Awesome! I heard great reviews about their vegetarian burgers. They have two varieties, the #1 which is a veggie patty that consists of cheese and the #2 which is just a veggie patty (no cheese). I got the #2 and loved it. You can see and taste the veggies, and was a flavorful patty. Not like your typical boca burger, thank you Elevation Burger. Since I got the Half Guilt, it was hard to judge on the meat itself. Thankfully, I had a taste of The Elevation Burger.

The Elevation Burger $5.99
Double meat, double cheese (real cheddar)

This was Medi’s order and it was delicious. As you can see their patties are a bit thin like In-N-Out’s, but the quality of the beef sure made up for it. Medi declared it the best burger he has ever ate, but I’m not sure if I can make that bold of a statement. However in the thin burger category, I would have to say it is a top contender with joints like In-N-Out. Yup, I think In-N-Out may have some real competition if Elevation Burger is able to be as consistent as In-N-Out.

One thing I will change when ordering in the future (which I do at In-N-Out too), is only getting one slice of cheese instead of two. I thought the cheddar was overpowering the beef a bit since they aren’t as thick. Just my preference and also save you some calories

Fresh Fries $2.89
Cooked in 100% olive oil

So good! They are freshly cut and fried in 100% olive oil. Just as a FYI, you can fry food in olive oil as long as it doesn’t go over the smoke point which then denatures the health benefits of using olive oil. Don’t get confused with extra-virgin or virgin olive oil which is typically not recommended for high heat since it has an even lower smoke point. You can be rest assured that at Elevation Burger the oil temperature doesn’t go over the smoke point. I asked and made sure since I was concerned hah. So, don’t worry and dig right in. The olive oil makes the fries taste so much better, yum! I also liked how thin they are and even though they are slightly on the soggy side, I thought were still delicious.

FYI: Currently on the Yelp app, there is a check-in offer of 15% off a hamburger or veggie burger. Not a bad deal

This meal was complimentary and provided to us by the restaurant. I was not compensated for the review and all the opinions are my own.