Restaurant Review: Left Coast Artisan Burgers

As an American (but mostly a Californian), I love burgers. I laaahhhvvveee burgers. Unfortunately, Korea is not the place to get a decent, American-style burger. Most of them have been Koreanized, and rightly so because we are in Korea, but Itaewon was my best shot at leaving a burger joint satisfied.

Which is why I felt the need to write about Left Coast Artisan Burgers.

Located near Itaewon Station, Left Coast is on the second floor and has a very casual-cool atmosphere, and no wonder: the restaurant is oozing with California love. It's self seating, and really made us feel immediately comfortable. We grabbed a seat in the corner to people watch, ordered our food and prepared our stomachs for the feast.

So to begin with, we ordered burgers and fries. A classic. Strangely enough (but not-so-strange in Korean dining culture), our menu choices came out piecemeal, with the fries arriving 5-10 minutes before our burgers. That aside, the boyfriend and I still exchanged glances. My first thought: Are these McDonald's fries??? Not that I'm ripping on McDonald's. Their fries are delicious and everyone could use a McMuffin every now and again. But…really? 5,000 won for fries that are comparable to Mickey D's? Not off to a good start.

Now onto the main dishes. The real reason why you came here. THE BURGERS. 

[[ Side note: The last time I went to Left Coast, I got the Green Supreme, (I believe it is still a specialty item and not on the menu), which left something to be desired. It was decent, but forgettable. It's a lot of vegetables, which is what I was looking for, but a bit bland. ]]

John Wayne: Beef patty. Melted cheddar cheese. Bacon. Crispy onion rings. YUM. A solid 7 out of 10, this burger had a delicious patty with just the right amount of crunch. And as I'm sure you know, bacon makes everything taste better.

Okay. I saved the best for last. 

Popeye: TEN. Possibly an eleven, because it was just that good. Beef patty. Carmelized pork (yes, you read that correctly). Grilled onions. All sitting atop a bed of creamed spinach. Disclaimer: I go crazy over spinach. It is ridiculously expensive in Korea, so any chance I have to eat some in a restaurant, I immediately jump on. And, as usual, I made the right decision. While the John Wayne was good, the Popeye was on another level. The staff say that the Juicy Lucy (a patty with melted cheese inside) is their best seller, but I don't think they're pushing this bad boy hard enough. Best burger I've had in Korea: WINNER.

Tip: The Popeye comes with red onions, but change that for grilled onions and you won't be disappointed. In fact, Left Coast will do substitutions on all of their burgers, so go wild. Great customer service for a diverse clientele equals one more reason to check this place out!

And to top it off, the drinks come in cute (and a bit hipster) Mason jars! I got the lemonade, which was definitely on the sweet side, but still delicious. For 5,000 won, I'm not sure if I would get it again, but we had just come down from the Namsan Mountain adventure, so we needed to quench our thirst!

Most (if not all) of the burgers are between 10-15,000 won. With a side or an appetizer and drinks, this will run you and a friend about 40,000 altogether. Not a bad weekend lunch, and I'll definitely be back to try those bao buns!