About the Business
You’ve likely seen them at The Wine Country in Signal Hill. Or Ambitious Ales. Or maybe even The Hawk. But there’s one thing for certain with Terrible Burger, the genre-bending burger popup from Long Beach residents Nicole and Ryan Ramirez. And that is the fact that they not only creare some terribly awesome burgers but do so with community, compassion, and collaboration.
Movie industry veterans, Terrible Burger was birthed out of necessity, adapting, career-shifting, and a bit of serendipity.
“I’ve been bartending nearly all of my life throughout Long Beach—since I was 21,” Nicole said. “But through Ryan’s dad, I was pulled into craft services for the film industry. And it was great: great money, great insurance. But the writers’ strike really put that all into a halt on top of COVID… Then the owners of Supply & Demand needed burgers for an event, we’re both big food lovers, so we agreed and they were a huge hit.”
Like many in COVID, this represented a turn for the couple who has been together for 13 years: The desire and want to have something of their own. With all their established connections across the years in Long Beach, they were able to easily fill their empty days with popup activations and their newly found love for the humble burger.
And with it, a stellar hamburger that Ryan rightfully says is a “squish burger more than a smash.” Perfectly crisped edges but a meaty center, their 73-27 fat ratio patty is nothing short of delicious.
But what about that name? Well, it has its roots in Ryan’s former punk bank, The Terrible Lizards. With Ryan’s love of dinosaurs and a play on, well, something awful, Terrible Burgers with its raptor logo was born.
Written and photos by Brian Addison.
