The ketchup tastes like it is very fresh and made by scratch, their jalapeƱo ranch dressing is tasty, not too spicy. The beet salad was excellent. My boyfriend got the original burger and I got the manly burger.
I ended up sending mine back because I don't like the fondue type of cheese that came on it... Nor did I like the bacon lardons- they are too thick and not as tasty as real bacon. I was frustrated... I just wanted a bacon cheese burger with real solid cheddar cheese or solid pepper jack cheese on it. Unfortunately I learned that Umami does not have any solid cheeses. I decided the next best thing to get would be a Parmesan cheese crisp minus bacon lardons. The bun was cute with the U on it. At first I thought the burger quality was good but it just fell apart in my hands and started breaking... My boyfriend said it was because it was too juicy... Not sure but it made it very difficult to eat. I felt bad that I needed to send so many things back...
Even the diet Pepsi because it tasted flat. So I got iced tea but there was no sugar on the table and it didn't come with a lemon. Our server was sweet but way too busy to check on us enough, perhaps due to poor staffing. There was indoor and outdoor seating. I loved the open layout with couches, our booth was comfortable, there were televisions everywhere for the sports fanatics.
The sweet potatoe fries were a little too sweet, like they had excess sugar on them. I am a sweet potato fri expert:)
Conclusion is that Umami in my opinion is better than a fast food burger but nothing compared to Hook (located in Woodland Hills). I thought Umami would be very similar in quality compared to Hook. If Umami used a pretzel bun my burger never would have fallen apart. If they used solid cheese and plane jane bacon I think they could accommodate more customer requests. I don't think I have extraordinary tastes when it comes to burgers.