Rave Burger Restaurant Review, San Mateo

Rave Burger is a new burger joint that opened October 2008 in downtown San Mateo. We were walking by and decided to give it a try to see how it rated. The provide sit down service in addition to to go food. They tout their Niman Ranch gourmet natural meats with no antibiotics and hormones. Niman ranch was sold so their quality may have changed. They serve hamburgers, vegan burgers, hot dogs, and salads.  We have been to Rave Burger several times over the last year with our last visit in May 2012.

Decor, Vibe – Modern clean decor with some nice cartoon wall art, crusty rock music. We ate during lunch and found most people giving the new place a try during their lunch break. They slightly remodeled the dining room, to include a counter area in 2012.

Rave Burger Menu Pictures (Click to zoom on any picture)

Menu

Rave Burger’s menu has beef,  chicken fish, and vegetarian burgers with lots of cheese, topping, and sauce options to personalize your burger. Daily specials were Kobe burger, ribs, and more.

Rave Burger Picks:

Western Burger with BBQ Sauce and Onion Rings ($9.89) and found it Good to Very Good.  Cooked to a requested medium rare and covered with good BBQ Sauce. They dish out free home fried potato chips now, which were a bit burned.

Cheeseburger ($9) with Natural Niman Ranch Hamburger patty, Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Fries.  They did ask us how we wanted it cooked, which is a good sign. The medium rare burger was of decent size, and slightly juicy. Big thick sesame bun was almost too fluffy, making the patty look small. Cheese was fine but not extra special. Fresh condiments, slightly above average meat taste. Definitely better than nearby Jefferys.

Cheese Sliders ($8.80) had two small but tall mini burgers that looked fun and proved to be tasty.

Two Chicken Tenders ($4.95 kids) with fries had two nice sized deep fried wonders that should satisfy the kids.

Two Mini Cheeseburgers ($4.95 kids) with garlic fries were good looking sliders with lots of cheese.  Garlic fries had mild garlic and lots of cheese.

OK:

Pear Salad ($6.95) with honey glazed pears, caramelized walnuts, spinach, crumbled bleu cheese, cranberries, served with balsamic vinaigrette dressing is there for non meat eaters.  It was fine but not special.

Pans:
None

Their business at Lunch was pretty busy, a good sign for Rave Burger. Service for refills and ordering was friendly but slow. The burger reminds me of Burger Joint’s as both use Niman Ranch meats. While this is good stuff, it is not a guarantee of the best burger around. Jack’s Prime and Jeffery’s are a nearby rivals offering slightly lower quality.

Rave Burger serves up solid food if you are nearby. This is better than the usual fast food joints, but not as good as top places like Burger Bar, Pearls, Custom Burger, or even The Counter. Kid’s menu available.

$25 Dining Certificate for $5

Rave Burger Overall Rating: (Good 2)

Come Back?

Food Rating:	(Good)
Service Rating:	(Good)
Atmosphere Rating:	(Good)
Value Rating:	(Good)

Guide: 0 = poor, 1 = Below/Average, 2 = Good, 2.5 = Very Good, 3 = Excellent , 4 = Extraordinary

Alcohol:	Beer, Wine
Attire:	Casual
Hours:	Sun-Th 11am-9pm, Fri-Sat 11am-10pm
Parking:	Street
Reservations:	No
Prices:	$5.89 - $10.89