By TR Robertson
Burger Bench Vista is now officially open at 230 Main Street in Downtown Historic Vista. Taking over the former location of When Pigs Fly, Burger Bench opened on Wednesday morning to waiting customers excited to order one of their delicious burgers or other items on their menu. Opening on December 21, 2015, in Escondido, this is the second location for the restaurant. One of Burger Bench’s four owners, Derek Loranger, said it felt great to finally be open for business and found this opening a lot less stressful than their first opening as they had a seasoned and well-trained team to get everything ready for opening the doors to customers. He said the family-owned business consists of himself, his wife Hoa, brother-in-law Mark Dinh and his wife Hanh Duong. Derek also said they wanted to thank and compliment four specific members of their staff for being a part of helping make all of this happen. This includes General Manager Aly Jeffrey (who has been with Burger Bench since day one of their opening in 2015), Beer Buyer Adam Buenconsejo, Operations Lead Christine Weisberger (with Burger Bench for 8 years), and Lead Cook Ismael DeLoera. All had a role in either training or interviewing numerous applicants, finally settling on 40 staff members. Those hired, trained at the Escondido Burger Bench to make sure they had firsthand experience in the “Burger Bench Way”, as General Manager Aly said. Aly also said it has been a team effort leading up to the opening and they will always offer stellar customer service, serving a delicious meal and catering to everyone’s food palate. All of this has led to a smooth opening with a very competent and experienced staff.
Derek said Burger Bench offers something for everyone and their incredible menu covers a range of tastes and food choices.
These cover both meat eaters, plant-based food trends, vegan and gluten-free offerings.
He wants to ensure everyone that they constantly keep an eye on food trends and styles to be able to offer what a customer wants. The Escondido Burger Bench currently offers a breakfast menu on weekends, and the Vista location will be looking into adding a weekend breakfast menu to the Vista Burger Bench at a later date. They also offer a wide selection of San Diego County beers on tap. He also said the City of Vista has been extremely helpful all along the way leading up to their opening.
As you enter Burger Bench Vista you will first notice the large menu board over the center ordering and service area with beer taps located on the right side back wall and soda selections toward the back wall left side. All along both walls are long benches with comfortable cushions with tables and chairs also lining the walls and additional seating both inside and outside. The rustic modern look is also found on the decorations inside the restaurant. Derek added that as the various vendors that have been bringing products into the restaurant have said Burger Bench has the cleanest kitchen they have ever seen. But what makes Burger Bench so popular is their food choices.
These are some of the highlights of the Burger Bench meal options. There are thirteen burger choices including the Classic (I had this one – delicious), Chorizo Diablo, Bench Burger (Blue Cheese and Hickory BBQ included), Sunrise (Sunny Side Egg), Smokehouse (with BBQ Ranch Dressing), Swiss Mushroom, Taco Burger (Housemade Pico de Gallo), Handmade Black Bean, California Turkey Burger, Grilled Chicken Club, Fried Chicken Sandwich, Golden Rooster, Inferno Fried Chicken (Cajun-style with Housemade Come-back Sauce). Many sandwiches include thick smoked bacon and grilled onions or mushrooms. Great bread, shredded lettuce and other veggies, variety of cheese selections all make this a great burger place. There are 9 slider choices that come in single or a 3-slider sampler. If you are not in the mood for a burger, but want a hot sandwich, Burger Bench offers 6 Grilled Cheese selections including the Classic, Patty Melt, Veggie Melt, Brie & Fig Melt, Bacon & Cheese Melt and Pestomato. If it’s a salad choice you want you have 5 to choose from like Chicken Caesar, Chicken Cobb, Arugula & Apple, Taco and Western Fried Chicken. Burger Bench also serves House Tomato Soup and Grand Avenue Chili.
Burger Bench also serves a number of Appetizers that include Fries, Tots, Truffle Parmesan Fries or Tots, Sweet Potato Fries, Beer Battered Onion Rings, Mini-corn Dogs, a Half & Half order, Wings and Fried Chicken Bites. For drinks a selection of sodas and tea are available and an ever-changing choice of San Diego County beers on tap. A few of the current selections include beer from Pizza Port, Burgeon, Carlsbad Brewing, Weir, Ketch Brewing, Battlemage, Mother Earth and a Burger Bench House Blonde made by Karl Strauss. To see more information about the Burger Bench menu go to www.burgerbench.com. The Vista location will soon be taking online orders for pick-up.
The Burger Bench management and employees all said they are ready and more than able to serve customers and are excited about being open in Vista. Their hours of operation are Monday-Thursday and on Sunday 11:30 am-9:00 pm and Friday and Saturday 11:30 am-10:00 pm. The location on Main Street in Downtown Historic Vista is between Mexico Viejo Restaurant and InZane Brewing. There is a great vibe in Burger Bench, and they make a scrumptious burger. Stop by and check out what they have to offer.
