U-Mini

Brand new spot «Open Oven Pizzeria» is opening here soon. Faces stiff competition from 800 degrees, D’Aamore’s, Lamonica’s and Enzo’s. Good luck!

Truffle Burger and Sweet Potato Fries, oh and a milk shake!
Nice to have a Umami Burger option so close.
Update — looks like it is closed. Not sure why.

Love this place and find it just as good as the other Umami locations. Lately my favorite thing to order here is actually the non-​burger CCA (Cali Chicken Avocado) and the classic fries. The chicken is moist and goes so well with the avocado, and the fries are my ideal — thin, crispy, and perfectly salted.
For a while last year I was on a real indulgent kick where I would get the truffle burger, the truffle fries (ooey gooey goodness but ended up being too soggy and just too much), and the salted caramel shake (tasted so good but my stomach just couldn’t handle the lactose load).
Yes, this place is pricey but the quality is so much better than what you’ll find at an In-​N-​Out or Five Guys. Also, they’ve never been crazy crowded busy when I’ve been here so I’ve never had to wait long — always a bonus in Westwood. They have indoor and outdoor seating, which is nice as well.

I came here last December for dinner with SZ. At that time I had never been to a Umami Burger before so I was really excited to get to try this place. We found street parking and walked over; the restaurant is pretty small with limited indoor seating, but they also have outdoor seating available. You can either order at the counter or they had an iPad set up in the corner that could be used for ordering as well.
I got the ALT Burger: Crushed Avocado, Butter Lettuce, Slow-​Roasted Tomato, Savory Onions, House American Cheese. It was pretty small and very flat. Despite its lackluster appearance, it was pretty good. And my friend and I shared the Umamifries: dusted with tomato, porcini, miso, herbs. While they are not my favourite fries, they were still pretty good and I enjoyed the seasoning. My friend also got one of their shakes, I think the Salted Caramel once since that is the most popular one, and she liked it. I didn’t have any of it though :/​
While I wasn’t the biggest fan of this place, I do consider a decent meal option in this area. I could just be remembering things a little negatively since I was sick when I went…

I’m confused about the concept of this place. I thought that the U-«Mini» meant that the burgers were smaller. When I looked at the prices though, they were identical to Umami. Then, I was told that the burgers are now the same size (6 oz.) as the original version. So why is it still called Umini???
Well, on to the food. The truffle burger exploded with flavor but it was drenched in the aioli and glaze to the point that I couldn’t really taste the other toppings. Well, I couldn’t really taste anything else for that matter. The small piece of burger that I managed to bite into without the sauce was juicy but not seasoned and the burger was cooked medium-​well. Unfortunately, the sauce overload ruined a perfectly good bun that became a soggy mess (see photo). The fries were good — thin, crispy, crunchy and salted.
I probably won’t frequent this place but if I return, I’ll try a different specialty burger. Perhaps then I’ll be able to actually taste the burger.
This wasn’t worth $ 16. Thankfully I got a 15% discount with my UCLA ID. But, even with that, it still wasn’t worth $ 14.

I just came back from eating here and sadly this place has gone down a star for me. They’ve made changes but the food for sure isn’t as good.
Instead of the iPad machines, there is someone at the counter who takes your order. Once you order, if you eat for here, they also bring your food over, which is nice.
I ordered the California Cali Avocado burger and fries. The burger was SUPER sloopy and soaked in juice. The burger was literally falling apart. It was really messy. I didn’t really like it. The fries were the same. Nothing special. I definitely probably wouldn’t come back here again. Boo.

I’m a die hard fan of in and out since I was a kid. And it was hard to eat here when there is an in and out down the street. But for something different, this was an excellent choice. I have to say right off, this is not a direct competitor with the in and out style of burger, and the $ 7 a burger price shows that. But I was happy to pay the $ 7 for what I got, much more so than the $ 13 this type of thing would be at other places. So those wining about the price, be happy it is not $ 13 or just go get a double double for $ 3.50.
I got the hatch burger. The taste was very good, very rich, which it damn well better be at a place that talks about Umami! The buns were great and loved the chiles. Service was fine, especially since it is basically a take out. But place your order, grab a seat outside and do some people watching until the lovely yummy bits of cow flesh shows up in the lovely buns.
I could totally see alternating between in and out and this place. Just for a bit of variety! But being from the east cost I’ll just have to remember the lovely taste of my hatch burger and tell those 5 guy fans back east they still don’t know where it is at.

I was visiting a friend at UCLA and decided to get something to eat before making my way up the infamous hill to campus.
I had heard a lot about U-​Mini and knew it wasn’t receiving great reviews, but I still wanted to try it. I was having a craving for something unctuous and meaty.
Looking over the menu, I ordered the Manly Burger because… oh, I guess I was feeling manly that day too. The burger came out quicker than I expected, and I dug in.
Despite the average reviews for U-​Mini, I didn’t think my burger was too bad. No, it wasn’t extraordinary, but it wasn’t terrible either. It was a well-​built burger — nothing too fancy.
I particularly liked the various textures in the burger. The crunchy fried bits of cheese. The tender bacon. The juicy patty. The fluffy Umami buns. I was having a grand time, squeezing some of Umami’s signature homemade ketchup on my burger and licking my fingers from time to time.
The reason why I think U-​Mini has such low ratings is because 1) it’s a little pricey and 2) the burgers aren’t extraordinary. But let’s be honest… compare the price of U-​Mini burgers to Umami burgers and frankly, they’re a steal (though still not cheap). Would I come back again? Sure.

U– Mini: A strip down version of the Umami burger chain.
FOOD: I’ve always been a fan of the Hatch burger or any burger specifically served with NM hatch green chille and my colleague had the truffle burger and we made it combo.
SERVICE: I finally figured out the difference between Umami and U-​mini. They minimized the service. Our burgers took forever to be served … well that’s because they forgot about it, or because it was never made. Well, I showed them my «card» and a copy of my receipt, they gave no explanation as to why the food never came, but they finally made our food and brought it to us.

Since I actually been to one of the Umami Burger (the one located at La Brea Ave), I can say one thing — U-Mini’s burger is not even close to the actual Umami burger.
Truffle Burger — It tasted … a bit greasy (in a bad way). Buns weren’t toasted, so the texture was pretty much deflated like McDonald’s buns. After I had the burger, this metallic taste continued to linger for awhile. I am pretty sure that’s not how «umami» should taste like.
Sorry U-​Mini, I probably won’t come back here again. At least your service was decent!

I have mixed feelings about U-​mini. The burgers and fries are definitely yummy and are refreshing considering the many low-​end burger joints in westwood.
However, the place itself is a bit rundown and it seems much more like a takeout place. Not somewhere where i’d like to hang out with buddies to chat (like say… Yamato or Brewco, which have a better ambience for «chilling»). Furthermore, the prices are not too different from the real Umami burger which has much better décor and service.
I have a soft spot for Westwood having going to UCLA and I think there are a lot of awesome places to eat if you are in the area. My top picks: Bella Pita (for something quick), Noodle World (for great variety), or Yamato (for a sit-​down). I don’t think U-​Mini would be close to that list.

Bottom line at the top: I’m really not sure why the reviews are so low? It’s delicious and the guys that work here are super nice.
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Had the ALT burger and it was really good. The patty (and whole burger itself) is thinner than most umami burgers, but is definitely less greasy than most umami burgers. There was plenty of avocado in mine and I was really happy with it.
The umami fries were ok but they didn’t have enough seasoning on them so by the middle they were just plain fries. Skip that.
I also had tabs for free milkshakes (they came in those small size plastic cups for water) so we had salted caramel and chocolate. Definitely get salted caramel and skip chocolate. I was really happy with the shake size (I get too full to finish the full size ones), and it was more like soft serve than a shake so that was awesome.
Try it!

Loved it!!!
It’s only 1oz less than the original Umami burgers but half the price! I think that’s a pretty good deal! So what you only have four choices of burgers to pick from, two choices of fries and you have to self order on an ipad (which I thought was pretty cool!), this place is awesome!
The college guys that work here are friendly, you get your food fast and the burgers taste amazing! I got the ALT (avocado, lettuce and tomato) burger, it was DELICIOUS! The buns were soft with a crispy toasted inside, the patty was juicy/​flavorful and the avocado just topped off the amazing-​ness!
Faster, cheaper and newer version of Umami, sign me up for this good stuff! I’m gonna start coming here more often from now on!

This is really just a so-​so place.
Yes the ipad ordering system is cool, but it is very confusing. Wouldn’t be much easier if they have a detailed menu instead of letting the girl introduce every burger?
The fires are way too salty and oily. The burger bun is good though. But the patty was just. not that impressive. The mushroom one, mushroom couldn’t hold as a whole patty. I didn’t taste the beef one, I assume it is more oily according to my friend.
Milk shake is good, caramel is not too sweet but very sweet. There are that many people dining during lunch time. Easy to seat.

U-​Mini is a perfect example of how adapting to trendy technology doesn’t necessarily help a business; in this case, it’s quite counterproductive and inefficient.
Series of events:
1. Order at (one of the two) iPad kiosks
2. Grab items from the very limited menu selection (I think there are a total of 4 burgers), put them in a «cart» as if you would shop online. But oh wait, not from the convenience of your own home, you’re at the actual store!
3. Oops, read J’s card as «ERROR.» Right, and they don’t accept cash.
4. We look around to see if there are other kiosks, only 1 other busy kiosk
5. 3 – 4 friendly workers to «help» with the situation, yet they can’t do anything but to suggest to try a different iPad. How about if they just took our orders, right?
We tried the ALT burger (Crushed Avocado, Lettuce, Onions, Tomato, American Cheese), which turned out to be incredibly salty.
$ 5 – 6 per burger, which is cheaper than regular Umami burgers, but remember that the burgers here are also smaller in size (5-​ounces as opposed to the standard 6-​ounces at regular locations).
But why not 1 star? Because their Salted Caramel shake is probably the best shake I’ve ever had, SO delicious. — the right amount of caramelly and not-​too-​salty goodness. J and I were definitely addicted and agreed that we would come back only for this.
The employees were also cheerful and personable.
I already had low expectations for U-​Mini, but without their regular Truffle burger or Manly burger, I don’t think I would come back to U-​Mini.

I like this concept. I appreciate that Umami burger is trying out a quicker, cheaper version of their food. As always, the ketchup is delicious. Also delicious was their salted caramel milkshake. It was just heavenly and made using LA Creamery ice cream. There are 2 fries to choose from and I like both. There are 4 burgers to choose from. The dad’s burger and vintage burger are pretty similar. The ALT burger was pretty good. The burger patty very big, but crumbly though. Bun was nice too. The mushroom burger is a patty made of chopped sauteed mushrooms, not sauteed mushrooms on top of a beef patty. So don’t get confused on that.
I think they still have some kinks to work out. First of all, they really need a sign that says ‘order here’ place above the 2 ipad ordering stations. Second, the interface on the ordering screens are pretty hideous. I hope they get better graphic work on that. None of the menu items had a description. Plus, they need to add instructions on each sequence and not up front the instructions on the very first screen. I am not going to remember that and the design of the ‘pay’ page is not very intuitive. All I see is the summary of my total. If there is going to be no confirmation button, then at least have some text that says ‘swipe card on reader on the right’ when ready. Also, incredibly weird and inefficient that someone has to walk over to hand you the receipt. At least staff seems friendly and helpful.

I was looking forward to trying this place with my fellow Unilocaler Elisha G. since the prospect of an Umami so close to me was pretty exciting. Unfortunately, the experience was disappointing. We both got the ALT (avocado, lettuce, tomato, onions), Umami fries, and the salted caramel shake.
I mean, the burger was okay. But here’s the problem with the concept of U-​Mini. Umami is bomb because they make delicious, high quality, intensely flavored burgers cooked to order. It’s not cheap, but you get what you pay for, and I leave Umami happy every time. A diffusion-​line Umami doesn’t really work here. It’s cheaper (~$ 5) to be sure, but it’s not very good. It has the Umami name, but nothing of what was good about Umami. If Umami wants to compete in the simple, fresh, cheap burger game, In-​N-​Out wins hands down. If they want to try for the cheap, multiple ingredients burger game, then honestly, I’d rather go to Five Guys because they have a much wider variety available (unlimited toppings!) and good Cajun fries. U-​Mini is lose-​lose in the scenario here.
So yeah. The burger and fries were just okay, and also overwhelmingly, amazingly salty. I could feel my body expanding with every bite. The salted caramel shake was actually surprisingly good, just the right amount of salt and not too sweet. We got samples of the chocolate shake which was all right, also not too sweet. Still, I wouldn’t go to U-​Mini solely for the shakes.
The iPad ordering system is, uh, cool, I guess? I didn’t really see how that made a difference in my experience, and even though the place was basically empty, the service was still awful. Parking in Westwood is also always awful. Originally, I was going to rate this place higher, but upon reflection I realized I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. Two stars. Save your time and money and go somewhere else.

No. Don’t come here.
It’s owned by Umami, but the concept is nothing short of terrible.
You order via iPads placed on opposite sides of the restaurant. One is over by the counter, and the other one is hidden by the soda machine. Wtf? Bad placement and confusing.
We ordered the mushroom burger, 2 regular fries, and 1 order of umami fries.
The mushroom burger was a surprise. It’s actually made of mushroom. We ordered it thinking it was a beef burger with mushrooms on top. This could have been avoided if the stupid menu had descriptions instead of just one photo of the item.
The fries were disgusting and extremely salty. I couldn’t eat them. It was like licking salt. Epic fail.
Westwood would have done better with an actual Umami location instead of this lame concept.
Stick to In-​N-​Out. You’ll get better food for cheaper.
Pass!

U-​Mini is the perfect name for a mini-​Umami Burger. Located in a prime location on Westwood Blvd, I was surprised this place wasn’t packed when I stopped by Thursday night – a day after their grand opening.
Place your order using the iPads on the walls. Very easy to navigate and customize your order and an employee will guide you through it if you’re new to the whole thing. The one thing I didn’t care for was the location of the iPads. There’s one next to the counter and another one off to the side by the drink dispenser and I think that one is just poorly placed. Not only is it inconveniently away from the counter (where they print your receipt and have an employee give to you), but it just seems out of place off to the side. It just screams for more employees to have to be present in the front to guide you to the location and through the ordering process – unnecessary if you ask me.
Wait-​time is not too bad. There is ample seating inside and outside the restaurant and they display your order number on the TV screens once they’re ready.
I tried the ALT Burger, which I really enjoyed – big fan of the roasted tomatoes and avocado. The one issue I had with my burger was that it was a little on the oily side and fell apart as I was eating it. It also felt a little heavy for my stomach. The Umami Fries are a delight, fried to a crisp and packed with seasoning. And of course, the UMAMI KETCHUP! I could rave on and on about it and was glad to see it offered here. Oh how tempted I was to steal a bottle or two.
Definitely would prefer this over Umami since it’s much cheaper and faster! Perfect for the busy, broke college student that I am.
Also, this is far better than 800 Degrees in my opinion. Why is the line not out the door for U-​Mini instead?

This is not Umami’s finest hour. This is not the best burger in Westwood, either. What a bummer.
I walked in to see what looked like a long line, but half the people were waiting for their food, and the other half were waiting to order on the ipad by the food counter. I walked over to the ipad by the drink machine to order, and a very nice employee walked me through the process. I ordered a vintage burger on a lettuce wrap and umami fries — $ 9. (I wish I saw how much the butter lettuce was going to cost me…)
The Umami fries were good — crisp, but there was too much rosemary and lots of oil. There were a lot of those overly crispy fries, where you bite into them, and they taste like air and oil. Bleh. The umami ketchup went pretty well with the other fries, though.
The vintage burger had cheese, lettuce, mustard, umami ketchup and pickles. The butter lettuce wrap was fresh; the meat was overcooked and really oily; the pickles were yummy, but wish I could’ve added more. Actually, it tasted a lot like a McDonald’s burger with fancier ingredients (and a higher price tag).
As for the space, the order station near the drink machines was convenient for my To Go order, and I didn’t have to get stuck behind people who didn’t know how to work the machine. The nice employee explained the order process and handed me my receipt when I finished. Also, I really liked the flat screens showing which orders are being cooked and which orders are ready.
An employee told me U-​Mini is working on a mobile web site that will roll out in next couple of months. They are still trying to work out bugs involving too many orders at once and a long wait as a result. Keep an eye out for that.
Overall, there’s room for improvement, but it has potential. 2.5 stars.