Father's Office

Creator of the most-imitated Los Angeles dish since Nancy Silverton reinvented an obscure Piedmontese dessert called panna cotta, Sang Yoon is the baron of the new-style cheeseburger: dry-aged beef cooked exceptionally rare, dressed with onions cooked down to the sweetness of maple syrup, Gruyere and Maytag blue cheeses, smoky bacon, arugula and a tomato compote, all on a French roll. I?m not sure that a restaurant has opened on the Westside in the last couple of years without some kind of variation of Yoon?s burger ? I half expect to see a ciabatta-based version at Jack in the Box any day now. Still, at least until Yoon?s adults-only microbrew fiefdom expands to include a larger Culver City location later this year, dining here is a full-contact sport. If you want one of the few tables in the bar, you will have to circle the room until somebody gets ready to leave, then plunge into a vicious scrum. The more Unibroue you drink, the easier the battle becomes.

• Cuisine(s): California, Contemporary, Small Plates

  Hours: Sun 12pm-12am, Mon-Thu 5pm-1am, Fri 4pm-2am, Sat 12pm-2am

  Price: $$

• Payment Types: MasterCard, Visa, American Express

  Features: Takeout, Private Party

  Serving: Dinner, Late Night, Lunch

• Alcohol: Beer/Wine

  Reservations: Not Accepted

  Parking: Street