Crave – food & drink

May is National Burger Month. To celebrate, two carnivores took me to Smashburger.

Heads up! If your name has “burger” in it, Smashburger invites you to celebrate National Burger Month today, May 28, 2013 with a free Classic Smash!

Smashburger says its “handcrafted burgers are smashed, seared and seasoned to order, using fresh, never frozen 100% Certified Angus Beef.” Smashburger has locations across the U.S. and Canada, including 16 stores in Southern California. I visited the Rancho Penasquitos store at 13219 Black Mountain Rd. #7 in San Diego (hours 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.)

Right away, I noticed 2 cool things about Smashburger:

  1. Every Smashburger menu is specially crafted to reflect the tastes and flavors of its city or state.
  2. You can choose a burger off the menu or create your own.

Since it was my first visit, I chose the Classic Smash ($4.99) – American cheese, smash sauce, ketchup, lettuce, tomato, pickles and onion on an egg bun. The burger was big, juicy, and had a rich smoky BBQ flavor.

We also ordered the Smashfries ($2.09), which are tossed with rosemary, olive oil and garlic. The fries are tasty with a nice rosemary flavor, and the serving size is large. We found one order to be more than enough for two people when paired with a burger.

Other local options that sounded very tempting were the:

  • San Diego ($5.99) – Fresh avocado, cilantro, pepper jack, lettuce, tomato, onion, sour cream and chipotle mayo on a torta roll served with a wedge of lime.
  • Spicy Baja ($5.99) – Fresh jalapenos, guacamole, pepper jack, lettuce, tomato, onion and chipotle mayo on a spicy chipotle bun.

You can also choose from several burger “Add Ons” (ranging from $1.25 to $1.50 per item), like applewood smoked bacon, avocado, baby portabella mushrooms, beefy chili, fried egg, or guacamole.

Or you can create your own burger (Smash $4.29 or Big Smash $5.59):

  • Pick an artisan bun: egg, multi-grain, spicy chipotle, torta roll, or lettuce
  • Add free sauces and toppings: Smash sauce, ketchup, mustard, mayo, chipotle mayo, Frank’s RedHot Buffalo Sauce, BBQ, ranch, fresh jalapenos, sliced cucumbers, baby spinach, lettuce, tomato, kosher pickles, red onion, grilled onions
  • Choose a cheese ($0.70): American, cheddar, pepper jack, swiss, blue, or goat cheese

In addition to burgers, Smashburger offers all-white-meat crispy or grilled chicken sandwiches, veggie (black bean) burgers, hot dogs, salads, sides, and Häagen-Dazs shakes.

Happy burger month!