To kick off “No Repeat October” Tim and I headed over to The Counter in Irvine. The Counter is a relatively new to Irvine – they are located in the Woodbury Shopping Center off Irvine Blvd and Sand Canyon Road. The next closest locations are in Santa Monica, Marina del Rey and Corona.

The Counter is (from their website): Anti-Established in 2003, The Counter® is the 21st century’s bold answer to the classic burger joint. Ushering in a fresh era of industrial decor, today’s music, cold beer, unique wines, cocktails, and burger options that are only limited by your imagination.

We left for lunch pretty late, so we had missed the lunch crowd entirely. It’s pretty roomy inside and they also offer outdoor seating. It’s slightly industrial, yet soft with light blue walls contrasted by dark wood and brushed steel. We were greeted by a kewl lookin dude who sat us and handed us our clipboards. Clipboards you say? Yes, each burger is custom built and your choices are on the pad. Your choices? 

• 3 different Buns
• 4 types of meat: Beef, Chicken, Turkey or Veggie
• 10 cheeses 
• 28 toppings
• 18 sauces

Build it up as much or as little as you like. Don’t have a hankerin’ for ordering one to your liking? They have about 5 signature burgers that you can choose from as well.

My burger was a 1/3 lb. burger with Gruyere cheese, alpha sprouts, dried cranberries and a honey mustard sauce. My lunch partner, Tim, had a 1/3 lb Turkey burger with bleu cheese, mushrooms, mixed greens and tomato for his. We decided to split a generous order of Sweet Potato fries. The fries were crispy on the outside and soft in the inside. There was a scant amount of salt, the way I like it, and a honey mustard sauce for dipping. I have to say that I really enjoyed the fries. They have regular fries too, with your choice of plain, cheese or chili.

So you’re probably still reading the last paragraph and questioning my choice of dried cranberries on my burger. It actually worked. The slight saltiness of the meat was a nice contrast of the somewhat sweet, somewhat tart taste of the cranberries. You should try it! :)

Overall the experience was good. My burger was moist and cooked to a level just slightly above medium-rare, although they advertise that everything is cooked medium. I didn’t mind, medium-rare is how I order my steaks. The bun was soft and fresh, just the right amount of bread for the 1/3 lb of meat. The meat itself had a good flavor, not too salty, definitely not spicy. My burger wasn’t sloppy by any means, however, my lunch parter had a different story. 

Tim had the turkey burger which looked moist. He had sauteed mushrooms and bleu cheese and that seems to ooze everywhere. I was a bad foodie and forgot to ask him how it was. Based on his empty plate, I have to assume it was good!

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The Counter is a bit higher in price than a regular burger joint, but their goal isn’t to be your regular burger place. Its about $8.50 for a 1/3 lb burger. Fries are extra, but only order one order if there are two of you. They also have a good offering of other foods there like a three-cheese trifecta grilled sandwich, a BLT, floats, shakes and malts, a full bar and a decent selection of desserts. 

The Counter: Custom Built Burgers
Woodbury Town Center
6416 Irvine Boulevard
Irvine CA 92620
949 336 7272 Directions

Mon-Thu 11am to 10pm
Fri-Sat 11am to 11pm
Sun 11am to 9pm