Habit Burger & Grill — Restaurant in Vancouver

An all-bad experience on my first and last visit.

Got a free burger with drink purchase on the app, thus my visit.

The app is bad, at best, when it comes to customization, so I went in store to order

Asked the girl if a milkshake would count as my drink purchase for a free burger. She said it would (which it should as it’s literally more expensive than a soda anyway)

I ask if they could do a Neapolitan shake. She said no and listed the flavors

Asked if she knew what a Neapolitan shake was? No

I explain it, she then is stumped and asks for help

Girl #2 comes over and explains they don’t have Neapolitan shakes and lists their flavors. I explain it’s a mixture of the flavors she’s listing and ask if they can make it.

The manager comes over to interrupt and offer help. I explain I’d like a Neapolitan shake. He said they don’t have those and listed their flavors. I explain to him that I’m asking for a strawberry, chocolate, vanilla shake.

Girl #2 offers to figure out how make one while management talks over her explaining they can’t because they use syrups for their shakes?

A FOURTH person, seemingly a line cook, comes over and explains they’re out of strawberry and can’t make it but then ensues an argument amongst the staff on if they have strawberry or not. It’s decided that they do

Didn’t make any sense but eventually girl #2 takes off to make the shake and save the day. Great

Back to ordering and to save you, the reader, some time, girl #1 has no clue what’s going on. Doesn’t know what sauce they have, tried to give me my 10 piece nugget, and accompanying fries and onion rings, all BBQ sauce. I have to push back with her to get other sauces. She doesn’t know what sauce they have. Management steps in again and we’re back on track

Ordered a cheeseburger but asked to pay for an extra patty and the cashier didn’t know how, had to get the manager again.

Finally it’s time to pay and the barcode won’t work for the free burger with drink purchase. Finally the manager says “I think it’s because it needs to be a fountain drink, not a milkshake.”

What do you mean you “think”?

So I push back and asked if he’s sure about that.

He said it’s in the terms and conditions

(I’d already read those and know it’s not)

So he pulls up the terms and conditions to notice that it doesn’t say anything about it needing to be a fountain soda, just a “drink”

He’s clearly wrong but doubles down and says “well the terms and conditions don’t state specifically that a milkshake will work, so you’d need to buy a soda”

Fine. Whatever. So I buy the soda and pay as the manager turns around to tell the employee who had made my milkshake to toss it

Just awful customer service from a group of people who didn’t know anything about anything.

Girl #2 (I wish I got her name) was the only hero here and deserves a raise. She walked by me twice while waiting on my food to apologize.

Food was whatever. Fries and onion rings are fine. Chicken nuggets were subpar. Burger was good? but the ranch they put in the bag also had a loose lid so I just had ranch...

I gotta lot of habits, but this will not be one of them. I think that I shall never see, a burger quite as bland as thee. It would be nice I thought to have a new fast food spot I could drop in occasionally while out bustling about. I have a couple of places that fit that bill, Killer, Smack Town, heck, even the Jack… in a pinch. These are all solid standards, I know what I’m going to get, something savory, something that lingers in the mouth in a friendly way.

But alas, this was not to be. Not a place to come out of the jungle for, a spot to lure me out of the tree tops. There are plenty of destinations about that sing the siren song, that are tasty crumbs along the path of life, leading you through the wilderness.

I’m not fond of the kiosk model, another wedge hammered between people, the opportunity to be kind. I suppose it might suit a younger generation who are more comfortable with anonymity, to their sad misfortune, but for an old codger like myself, it’s no fun. And when the suggested tip comes up, I’m not sure what it is for. Am I tipping for the convenience of not dealing with a human? It’s a flex.

The plating was odd, handing me a tray that seemed like an empty field with a couple of shrubs hanging out in the corners. A basket, napkins, placement, anything to make this meal a little less spartan. But that’s just a quibble.

The problem was the food itself. The burger was average and wouldn’t have made much of an impression one way or the other, but then came the onion rings like a false promise. At first bite, they seemed to have a decent crunch, not too oily, a strong sense of onion, but then there is a flaw in the diamond, a crack in the foundation… I made it about 5 bites in and salt overpowered me. My mouth began to revolt like the peasants in France. Remember what happened back then!

Is this a new thing? Instead of creativity, they just use more salt. I know in the forest and field they leave salt licks out for the animals, but at my age it just rises my risk of heart attack.

I will say the limeade was pretty good and I like fountain drinks because I can mix and match and because air gets into the drink. And the short interaction I had with an employee was pleasant.

A restaurant can build up a lot of things to claim their space. They can brand themselves and streamline the system, they can wear smart clean uniforms, and choose an edgy name, but the foundation is food and if the foundation is cracked, nobody comes by to visit. Sparse brand, sparse presentation, sparse flavor (nice drinks). I’m afraid this will never...

Habit was always one of my favorite late night burger places when I lived down in SoCal. They're open til 10, and the burgers are bomb. I was super excited to hear they were opening up here in Vancouver! Just tried them on opening day, I'm def not disappointed! The wait time was normal, they make everything fresh. It was the same before and this place is new too so give them time to get into the groove of things. Biggest reason I love habit is because the burgers aren't all nasty and greasy like Burgerville or Five Guys. The price has definitely gone up but if I'm going to spend $15-17 on a burger, fries, and a drink I'd prefer to get it here than at McDonalds or somewhere else where it's literally the same price for a meal. Way better quality food in my opinion. They also have a vegetarian burger which my niece loves.

Day 1, they're very staffed up and the employees are super nice and on top of it, hoping they keep up the momentum.

I love the bbq bacon char, that's my go to. And the strawberry lemonade is divine! The fries are good but as with most places, best to eat them fresh. Only reason for 4 stars on food is that it cost $2 for an extra side of bbq sauce. I get it, inflation is a bummer. I'll pay it because the bbq sauce is amazing and it's worth it, but it def tastes better when it doesn't cost that much lol. Other than that, 10/10 recommend. Between Habit and the soon to be here In and Out, I'll for sure need to hit the gym more.

HabitBurgerville...