Fatburger

Great impossible burger, Gluten green bun was really good too.

After moving to the great state of California I soon tried Fat Burger and instantly became a big fan! As someone with celiac disease, I greatly appreciated Fat Burger’s gluten free bun option. My appreciation for Fat Burger grew further when I went with a vegan friend one night and realized the menu featured an entire vegan milkshake section! To say the least, I loved Fat Burger for its accommodation of various dietary restrictions/lifestyle preferences. I spoke extremely highly of it and vehemently defended its honor when having the classic California burger debate (Fatburger versus In-n-Out) with friends, family, and coworkers. But, alas, this love affair with Fat Burger all came crashing down on a fateful Saturday night at the Redondo Beach location. I visited that location with a friend, who also happens to have a gluten allergy. We both ordered identical burgers on gluten free buns, which were soon brought out to our table (thank goodness we chose to dine in, rather than carrying out and waiting to discover the impending disaster until we got home.) Anywho, I was two bites deep into my burger when my friend (who had not started eating) realized that my bun looked different from hers. We suspected that these two burgers were not on gluten free buns, but rather one was and the other was on a normal bun. My friend brought our burgers to the counter to investigate and as it turns out, my partially eaten burger was indeed on a glutinous bun. That was very upsetting news for me, someone with celiac disease. But alas, gluten had been ingested and the damage was done. There was nothing I could do aside from wait and see how bad this gluten episode would be. We patiently waited to be delivered a new burger on a gluten free bun. I was partially expecting a manager to come offer some token of apology, but none came. Instead, the only olive branch that was extended was the new burger, on a gluten free bun. Except, this burger was not quite new. IT WAS THE EXACT SAME BURGER PARTS, MY TWO BITE MARKS INCLUDED, ON A GLUTEN FREE BUN. I repeat: the staff literally took the patty, cheese, etc., from the original burger, all of which was cross contaminated from the original bun, and put it on a gluten free bun. This blatant cross contamination felt like severe incompetency, especially from an establishment that is typically accommodating of dietary restrictions. To say the least, I was very disappointed and I am not proud to admit this but I did eat the burger. I figured that cross contamination would be no worse than eating a quarter of a glutinous bun, plus I needed to fuel my body before a long night at Tower 12, another classic South Bay establishment. Now I am typing this and waiting to feel the damage of gluten on my fragile celiac body. Pray for me, I don’t want to have to become acquainted with the T12 bathroom.