Smashburger Rocks!


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Spicy Baja Smashburger with Sweet Potato Smashfries




Original post from July 2010 with Oct. 2010 updates in green.

I had been invited as Cakegrrl's guest to the VIP opening of the new Folsom Smashburger. I took the picture above, but have procrastinated blogging about them. I'm glad I did because now I have more to say.

Then I got a free Twitter coupon for a side item (gotta love Twitter). So did Poor Girl Kimberly. We decided that since we got a special deal and Kimberly would otherwise never get to a Smashburger, we would stop by to use the coupons on our way to Lake Natoma for the day.

You can select from a selection of hamburger combos or you can build your own burger. Some of the different selections they include are different weights of patties (1/4, 1/3, and 1/2 pound), brie cheese, guacamole, chipotle bun.


I opted for one of their signature burgers. I chose the Spicy Baja which included pepper jack cheese, guacamole, jalapenos, and was on a chipotle bun. Even the bun is spiced! Kimberly went for the Nor Cal burger with applewood smoked bacon, grilled onions, and brie cheese. We both agreed that we liked that the burgers were juicy and flavorful and that the meat to bun ratio was good. Kimberly thought there would have been a better spread on hers (mayonnaise) but couldn't decide what would work without taking away from the brie. Oct. Kimberly ordered the same burger again and says she knows what was missing. This time she had a balsamic soaked tomato and she says it made all the difference. Not sure why it was missing or not the same in the July burger.


We each had our coupons for free sides. I had had the sweet potato fries last time and so I chose the haystack onions. These were wonderfully thin and crispy with no grease. They were served with a side of spicy style ranch sauce. Kimberly chose the fries which are tossed with rosemary, garlic, and olive oil. We loved them! I could easily stop by just to pick up an order of those fries! Now when I had the sweet potato fries before, they had also been tossed with this mixture. But the sweet potato flavor overpowered the rosemary garlic. But on straight french fries, that rosemary garlic is the bomb!


Our October visit was another special tasting of their new chicken additions, sandwiches and salads.
I had the Spicy Baja sandwich which is like the burger, but with chicken. For all chicken dishes you get a choice of grilled or breaded. We tried to be good by choosing grilled but the manager insisted we try the breaded because it is panko breaded. He brought out a sample piece for us to try alone. We were pleasantly surprised. The panko stays nice and crunchy and doesn't sog out like breading does. The chicken was nice and moist inside. Definitely nice. The grilled was nice too, although a little on the thin side. I would have liked it to be cut a bit thicker. But it is real, whole chicken breast and nicely grilled. Kimberly had ordered a salad with dressing on the side and liked it enough not to add the dressing at all.


I had also ordered the Oreo shake. How can you get that wrong? They blend it in a true shake machine and bring you the extra still in the canister. Yum. I also ordered the chili to take home for lunch the next day.

So am I glad that Smashburger has arrived in the Sacramento area? Sure. When I want more of a fast food style burger I only go to In n Out or Suzy's. Smashburger has won me over and I will definitely be seeing them more often as they continue opening there three more stores over the next few months.