Habit Burger & Grill — Restaurant in Long Beach

Yet another chain I got to try since its opening near the office a few weeks ago. I've been hearing a lot of Habit vs. In-n-Out arguments, but to me they're completely different species, able to coexist. I can't imagine craving an In-n-Out burger and thinking a Habit burger would assuage that craving, and vice versa. They're not really a typical fast food joint either; I'd say they're kind of a medium-speed food joint, a la Chipotle, Panera, etc. Consequently they offer more than burgers; they are also in the sandwich and salad biz, so that's nice if some people you're with aren't in the mood for burgers.

But hey, on my first visit I knew I needed to get the burger so I could form a baseline opinion. That said, I should've gotten just a "regular" burger but I didn't. Their Swiss mushroom char burger sounded just too good, and I got it "protein-style," no less, which meant no bun. Overall, a nice thick patty that was cooked medium (even though they didn't ask how I'd like it cooked--if you have special requirements you might consider mentioning it), with a healthy helping of swiss cheese and grilled mushrooms, yum. Overall the flavor was very good, definitely a fan. The iceberg lettuce wrap was thicker than I thought it'd be though, which resulted in quite a lot of lettuce, and it got kind of drippy. Not sure if I'd do that again; next time I'd like to evaluate the bun anyway, since that's what turned me off 5 Guys--their weird crumbly buns! Anyhoo, the order of fries I'd gotten were just so-so. They seemed like the standard frozen variety to me, not especially crispy, either, which is one of the benefits of the frozen stuff.

It's a clean, attractive environment and the servers all seemed very nice, so I'm OK with giving it 4 stars. I'll definitely be back to try some more of...

The food here is always great, buy I have been just going in a few times now for their Malts. I love Malts and even a lot of Ice Cream establishments don’t make them. You got to have the Malt Powder in it, otherwise it’s just a Shake! It still amazes me how many people don’t know the difference. Lol. Anyway, The Habit makes one of the best Malts I’ve had, next to my own home-made ones of course! Lol. I fancy myself a sort of Malt Connoisseur and The Habit definitely gets a spot on my list of favorites! I always love Vanilla, but they not only have the requisite Chocolate and Strawberry, they also offer Coffee and Mocha flavors too! Plus, they had an Oreo Cookie version the other day. So, if you like to “mix” it up, you can get one of those flavors instead of my tried and true Vanilla. They are just the right size and come with Whipped Cream, if you want it. They will ask if you do. The only thing missing in my book is the Maraschino Cherry on top! Can’t have everything though, right?! Lol. Give it a spin if you like a good Malt and if you like good food too, order a meal. You won’t be sorry! I can’t get the picture of their new French Onion Burger out of my mind! I may have another excuse to go back today! Lol.

Happy...

Review date: 6/26/2025

I placed an online order for the following items:

charburger with cheese, lettuce, extra pickles, ketchup onion rings tempura green beans

I placed the order and was told via the app it would take approximately 14 minutes. I got in my car, and started towards the restaurant. I received a text message 7 minutes later indicating that my order was ready. I arrived at the restaurant and was told that they were out of the tempura green beans, and asked if I would like onion rings or french fries. Unfortunately, my Wife wanted just the tempura green beans for dinner, so I told the manager that I would like a refund for the tempura green beans. He reached into the tip jar, and pulled out five dollar bills. He started to dig around for the $0.07, and I told him that the five dollars were okay.

My Wife and I returned home. I went to eat the charburger and found out that it was just a meat patty with cheese and ketchup. No lettuce or extra pickles.

Needless to say, the visit to The Habit this time was extremely disappointing and I'm not sure when we will be returning. It would have been nice to have been notified that they were out of the tempura green beans because I would have cancelled the order at that...