Roam Artisan Burgers – San Francisco, CA

I can’t tell you how many times I have failed at growing tomatoes. Usually they die a slow death or if I was lucky they would grow up to resemble Charlie Brown’s Christmas tree that produces one or two puny tomatoes. That was until this year – can you say prolific? The four plants have gone wild and are loaded down with fruit. Just yesterday I was pulling bright orange Sungolds off the vine and eating them like candy. It’s hard to beat the freshness and flavor of a hand picked veggie or piece of fruit. The same also applies to meat. Farm fresh grass-fed beef from a local ranch sure tastes better than ground beef that has been trucked all over the country. The owners of Roam Artisan Burgers understand the importance of using fresh local ingredients and have made it a top priority at their new burger venture – not only for their meat, but for just about everything they serve.

I’ve been excited to try the burgers at Roam ever since I saw the “coming soon” sign on the front window. I was out of town when they finally had their grand opening and I returned home to find that half of San Francisco had already given their two cents on the place in newspapers, blogs and Yelp reviews. So, just like in high school when I was the last one to get a Members Only jacket, I am apparently the last to get in on the Roam Burger craze. When I say craze, I mean crazy craze. Everyone has had really good things to say about it so I was really looking forward to my visit.

Roam’s menu is like that of a traditional burger drive-in but with a slow food twist. They have a nice line-up of carefully made burgers, sides, sodas and shakes. “From pasture to plate” is printed on the menu, suggesting the timeline of the cow’s life of roaming rolling hills eating grass before being reincarnated into a hand made patty for your burger. Speaking of burgers, you have options. Try one of their specialty burgers or build your own – starting with the patty. They have Pacific Pastures grass-fed beef, Diestel turkey, all-natural bison or a house-made veggie patty that can be dressed with a long list of organic condiments, cheeses and toppings. The Tejano burger, loaded with jalapeno relish, pepper jack and corn chips caught my eye, as did the “French and Fries” that has truffle Parmesan fries and avocado on it. Alas, I wanted to taste Roam’s burger in its purest form and settled for the quarter pound beef “Classic” with aged white cheddar ($4.99 + $1.00 for cheese).

The dimly lit dining room is very inviting and is put together with nice wood features – including a reclaimed counter made from a fallen walnut tree. The rich tones of the counter are contrasted by a row of bright red metal stools. There are also a handful of tables outside for that rare nice summer day in San Francisco. A chandelier cleverly made of Old Straus Family Creamery milk bottles hangs over a communal table that sits in the middle of the space.

It didn’t take long for the kitchen to churn out my Classic with cheese, well under ten minutes. What a great looking burger. The perfectly assembled Classic was colorful with bright green butter lettuce, fresh tomatoes and house-made pickles sitting on top of the cheese covered patty that glistened with juice. All of this was topped with the house sauce and wedged between a freshly baked sesame seed bun from Pacific Coast Bakery. I could not wait another minute to tear into this thing. As I pulled it up to my mouth, I noticed that a little bit of juice was still seeping from the patty – this was going to be good.

I had to sit in silence for a brief moment after my first bite. My taste buds were in heaven. Everything came together to compliment the star of the show – the perfectly cooked grass fed beef. The veggies were fresh and crisp and the slightly sweet homemade pickles were delicious. There was just the right amount of the tangy sweet secret sauce that I thought went really well with the meat and cheese. I ripped off a chunk of the patty to just savor the fresh beef taste. Man, it was melt in your mouth good and so fresh that I could almost hear it moo. It is hard to cook grass fed meat properly, especially if it is a relatively thin quarter pound patty. I was impressed. The last few grass fed burgers I’ve had have been dry, this one was nice and juicy. Don’t tell anyone, but I think I am in love.

On a “side” note, I don’t usually rate fries or shakes but I would be remiss if I failed to mention a few of the innovative sides and drinks that I tried with my lunch. Chipotle maple fries didn’t sound good at first, but wow, they were pretty tasty. Cooked just right, they’re slightly sweet with a touch of spice. You can also get fries flavored with Parmesan truffle and lemon chive. If you’re a milkshake fan, you need to try one at Roam. I had one that was made with organic Straus Family ice cream, fresh peaches and topped with a bruleed marshmallow – so good. I also had a house-made prickly pear soda made with agave instead of corn syrup – which by the way, you will not find corn syrup in anything on Roam’s menu. Same goes for trans fats – they don’t exist here.

The burger at Roam made my day. A classic style burger that is fresh and organic from the ground up without being ridiculously expensive. I was nervous that Roam’s prices would be through the roof due to their location on upscale Union Street and their insistence on using quality ingredients from local sources. I don’t know how they do it, but it sure works for me. If you’re looking for a more healthful and eco-friendly alternative to processed fast food, you need to get over to Roam.

RATING: 5 out of 5

Roam Artisan Burgers
1785 Union Street
San Francisco, CA 94123
(415) 440-7626
www.roamburgers.com
Hours:  7 Days a Week 11:00AM – 10:00PM

Tagged as: burger, burger joint, burger review, burgers, cheeseburger, grass fed beef, hamblogger, hamburger, organic, photo, photographer, photography, photojournalism, photojournalist, san francisco, slow food