Valentine's Weekend in Healdsburg: Umami Burger

We really didn't do much on the second day of our Valentine's weekend getaway.  We woke up late to maximize our time off :p, and then headed down to the first floor for the complimentary breakfast at the hotel.  Then we went back to the room and watched the second DVD movie we borrowed from the hotel.  After we were done with the movie, it was time to check out.  :(

On our drive back down to the South Bay, we stopped for lunch at the new Umami Burger in San Francisco.  We had heard a couple of friends mention this new burger joint, which originated in LA.

Umami Burger sign

Umami Burger is located in the Marina/Cow Hollow area, and as usual, parking was a bit hard to find (even though it was lunchtime on a Monday).  The sign for the restaurant was somewhat cute, reminded us of lips.  We heard that the wait during nights/weekends could be quite long, so we were glad that there was no line when we went.

Bar area

The restaurant was actually one of the nicer burger joints we've seen:  The decor was modern, and there was actually table service as opposed to ordering at the counter.  Burger prices were in the $10-$15 range, and fries were around $4 each.

Entry way

We ordered the scallop burger with bacon, the umami burger, cheesy tots, and truffle fries.  Note that both the cheesy tots and truffle fries were not on the printed menu...but I saw pictures on Yelp and asked for them.  Kind of like the "secret" menu at In-N-Out.  :)

Scallop & bacon burger

I wanted to try the scallop and bacon burger because it sounded very unique.  I don't think I'd ever had a scallop burger before.  It was actually chunks of scallop made into a patty, topped with two chunks of pretty fatty, thick bacon.  The sauce was a bit sweet, so the whole dish was actually sweet -- which was different.

Scallop & bacon burger - cut in half

Dan ordered the signature Umami burger, made with wagyu beef, shitake mushroom, parmesan crisp, and their homemade ketchup.  Dan really enjoyed his burger and commented that the burger was good.

Umami Burger

Umami Burger - cut in half

Since we couldn't decide between the cheesy tots and the truffle fries, we ended up ordering both!  An order of cheesy tots actually only included six pieces, though they were much bigger than regular tater tots size.  It was very good--crunchy on the outside, and soft on the inside, with tiny filling of cheese in the middle.

Cheesy Tots

I really enjoyed the cheesy truffle fries.  They were the perfect size and had a slight crunch, and the melted cheese and truffle were a nice flavorful addition.

Truffle Fries

We also asked for their different dipping sauces, which I recommend.  My favorite was the garlic aioli!  Oh, and they also have home made ketchup was was good, slightly on the sweeter side compared to regular Heinz ketchup.

Various dipping sauces

Our total bill was around $50 after tax and tip--pretty pricey for burgers.  Price-wise, it's similar to Gott's Roadside (formerly Taylors Refesher) at the Ferry building.  We both enjoyed our burgers, but we probably would rather go to Gott's given the choice.


Links to our Valentine's Weekend in Healdsburg Trip Report:
Introduction

Day 1
Lunch at Barn Diva
Segway of Healdsburg
H2 Hotel Healdsburg
Dinner at Cyrus

Day 2
Lunch at Umami Burger
Bi-Rite Ice Cream