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A couple of years ago, my favorite Sacramento morning television show, sent a reporter over to Hula's in Escalon, and showcased some of the burgers, and breakfast that Hula's is famous for. The feature got my interest and I vowed to pay Hula's - also known as Hula's Burgers - a visit. My visit finally happened on late Thursday morning, June 14, 2018, and I got to enjoy a genuine "Hula's Burger," along with an order of fries. As with all of reviews that I publish, I have no affiliation with the restaurant reviewed, and there is no monetary gain on my part, as I am simply a person who likes to eat, and I love to write-up, and publish my dining experiences.
Photo: Hula's is located on Jackson Ave. in the small San Joaquin County city of Escalon. The building sports a fine dining room and one of the best patios for dining that I've seen in a small valley town, as it's not only shaded by palm trees, but also has umbrellas and the building itself to offer welcome shade. It's a pleasant 80 degrees on this Flag Day, 2018, and all patrons are on the patio, so I had the dining room to myself. Note the white fence, which is required by California State law when alcohol is served outdoors.
Photo: Hula's is a cross between a drive-in and a sit-down restaurants, and combines elements of both. If you choose not to go inside the dining room, you can place your order from a window on the patio, pick your table, and when your order is ready, one of the two friendly wait staff will bring it to your table. You pay for your order at the end of the meal. If you're dining inside, you'll find menus are placed on each table. You make your selection from the menu, and a friendly gal will take your order. When your order is ready, it will be brought to your table. When you're finished, you get up and pay at the entrance to the kitchen, shown in a later photo. Be sure to leave your friendly server a generous tip!
Photo: The patio is one of the most inviting that I've seen at a valley restaurant, as it's clean, spacious and shaded by palm trees, umbrellas and the building itself. Today was a beautiful 80-degrees and all the patrons were on the patio. I had planned to sit on the vacant table in the foreground, but by the time I placed my order inside and took a few photos, the table was occupied. So I dined inside.
Photo: The dining room as soon as you walk in the door. Note the walls are decorated with sports memorabilia, with a "tropical" touch as well. I had the whole dining room to myself, except for a few folks who came in to order take-outs.
Photo: Here's the burger, hot dog, sandwich and appetizers menu. On the other side of the menu, breakfast and dinner choices are listed. Since today was my first time visiting Hula's, I decided to start at the top of the menu and order a "Hula's Burger."
Photo: As you enter the dining room, the kitchen and the work area is to your left. Today, there were two female wait staff - who were very busy - and one male chef in the kitchen. The kitchen is to the right of the gal in the photo, out of sight behind the wall and the stainless steel partition. If you're dining the dining room, as I did, when you finish your meal, you can pay at the small counter to the left.
Photo: Some of the sports memorabilia on display. I loved the faded 6-pack of Coca Cola and the little bobble-head basketball guy.
Photo: As my meal was being prepared, I looked at the sports memorabilia that covers the walls.
Photo: My "Hula's Burger" and fries was ready in FIVE minutes after placing my order. I barely made it back to my table to snap a photo of my super-friendly server, Jill, as she places my lunch on the table with a beautiful smile. The drink looks like a giant "Tom Collins," but actually it's a tall glass of ice water, with a slice of lemon. No charge for the refreshing drink. Thank you, Jill!
Photo: On my request, Jill snapped my photo of me, with my "Hula's Burger" and fries. If you don't care for fries, you can order a side salad, onion rings, sweet potato fries, or garlic fries. As this was my first visit to Hula's, I wanted the most "typical" order from the top of the menu, so I chose regular fries with my burger.
Photo: Here it is, from the top of the menu, a "Hula's Burger," along with an order of regular fries. I didn't even order cheese, as I wanted my burger "stock," which is a great way to sample a burger for the first time. As I said earlier, my burger and fries arrived in a lightning-fast time of 5 minutes. This is not "fast food," as the burger and fries are individually cooked to order. It all starts with the meat patty, which is 1/3 pound, cooked to order. For $1.10 more, you can upgrade to a 1/2 pound patty - I was tempted - but I stuck with the "stock" burger. I ordered my meat cooked "medium," and it was cooked perfectly. The bun was large, soft, fresh, sweet and complimented the meat. Hula's advertises fresh produce for their burger, and my lettuce, tomato, onion and dill pickle slices were crispy fresh, and there was a lot of produce on the burger, but not enough to overpower the goodness. The burger comes dressed with Thousand Island dressing and mayonnaise, and I didn't add any mustard, as I wanted to sample the burger, in its most basic form. Mmmmm..... good burger! You get a lot of fries, I mean a LOT of them, and the photo doesn't even show all of them. As you can see in the photo, the fries are cooked perfectly and are golden brown on the outside, and chewy tender on the inside. The fries aren't oily, nor do they have excessive salt. Even with my gargantuan appetite, I couldn't eat all of them. I guess I'm getting "wimpy." Great fries, period. Hula's sign advertises "The Best Burger in the Valley." The word "best" is an absolute superlative, and the "best burger" is certainly in the taste buds of the beholder. I don't know if Hula's serves the best burger in the valley, but what I do know is their "Hula's Burger" is as good as a burger can get, as it's perfectly cooked, the garnishes are fresh, it's flavorful, and it's a delicious bargain of a burger. Combine the superior burger and fries, along with the amazing friendly staff, and you have a combination that would be hard to beat. Hula's Copyright(c) 2018 eRench Productions. All rights reserved. We've been on the web since December 22, 2002.
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