The Fatty
An Exploration of affordable dining pleasures of the Bay Area
By Kay
Photos by Evelyn Molina

This month: Sumo Burger @ 2423-F Durant Ave. Berkeley

Da' Pository:  The Sumo burger will body slam your taste buds into submission.

Da' Negatory:  The milkshake needs to be a little less liqudy and a
little more malty.

Convenience Score: 8.  It's near campus, and not too visible because it's located in a tunnel, but the discerning Cal student should be able to find it.

Best Bet: The Sumo Cheeseburger

Price: $7 for the Cheese Burger Combo (includes fries and a drink). $4
for the fried calamari.  $3 for the chocolate milkshake.

The current trend in today's youth culture is customization.  People love to customize their cars, customize their clothes, even customize accessories if you're really on top of things.  Well now you have the power to customize your hamburger.  That's right, at Sumo Burger, you have complete control of your hamburger's destiny.  Although this eatery has only been around for less than a month, Sumo Burger has quickly established itself as being one of the better hamburger spots on the campus of UC Berkeley.

When I first walked into the restaurant situated within Sather tunnel, I was immediately impressed with its modern and colorful decor.  Sumo Burger is a comfortable, cozy joint where you can chillax while waiting for your order.  There are a variety of magazines at your disposal (including the latest Maxim swimsuit edition b.t.w.), games constantly being displayed on the wall-hanging widescreen plasma TV (little league W.S. anyone?), and easy listening music to hum along to.  The interior design is very modern and resembles the coffee bars in Asia.  The bright green and yellow walls, plush seating, and purple
high chairs give the restaurant a hip and happening setting.  As for their menu, it is diverse and comprises American and Asian food (including fried seafood).  So far I have sampled their Cheeseburger, french fries, chocolate milkshake, and fried calamari.

Again, the unique thing about Sumo Burger is that you have complete control of what goes on your burger.  Here's how it works:  Once you place your order, the server gives you your patty and buns, and then directs you to the topping bar, where you can choose from an assortment of fresh toppings and sauces.  Toppings include fresh cut lettuce, sliced tomatoes, olives, pickles, and jalepenos.  They have a variety of sauces ranging from Ketchup and mustard to ranch dressing and soy sauce for their Asian dishes.

The cheeseburger was excellent.  The patty was juicy and its charbroiled consistency gave it a backyard barbecue flavor.  In
addition to its great flavor, the sheer weight of the patty alone was enough to quell the most insatiable hunger pain.  For every hamburger you order, you get a ½ pound Nebraska patty on two big toasted buns. After I was done piling topping upon topping and sauce upon sauce, I was glad that my buns were big enough to diaper my monstrous Sumo burger.  Fitting it into my mouth was a different story, but somehow I managed to get it done.

As for the french fries, they were cut thick and long.  It's lack of crispness and saltiness didn't impress me.  Still, they were of decent quality and on par with the fries of the local competitors.

The chocolate milkshake was good but not great.  The main problem I had was that it wasn't malty enough and a little on the liquidy side. Also I had qualms about its preparation.  The person who made my shake overflowed the cup which had me dripping brown sticky goo all over my table.  However, I attribute this to the relative inexperience of a new staff, and I don't think it affected my overall dining experiences there.

To my dismay the fried calamari wasn't that great.  It was good, but not great.  The serving was a little tinier than I had anticipated and it could have used some cocktail sauce to really bring out the flavor.

Regardless, I think Sumo burger has a lot of promise.  Since they are a new establishment  it will take time for them to get their menu right, but if it's any consolation they have a feedback box where you can voice your rants and/or suggestions.  Also, the staff is very friendly.  Overall, it's a great place to eat.  So if you're in the mood for some hot patty action with buns big enough to make your mouth jiggle with excitement, then Sumo burger is the place for you.