BACHI BURGER Better Bring It

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BACHI BURGER — a place of which ELV has been less than fond in the past — is soon to open right next door to Rocket Fizz, right between RF and the Regal Village Square Theaters. We have no insider info — they don’t exactly cotton to a critic whose review headline read: “Botching Burgers” — but from the look of things, they’re less than a month away.

The space it will occupy has been home to no less than four failed restaurants in the past 15 years, including a sushi bar, an Italian joint (perhaps even two of them?), a sandwich shop, and another lost to the sands of time.

Most of the time, the space remains vacant — sometimes for years on end — as operators know what ELV has learned: restaurants next to movie theaters are always a bad bet.

It would seem otherwise, of course. By which we mean, what is more natural than dinner and a movie? It seems like a match made in heaven to have a restaurant, even an average one, right next to a multiplex, where movie goers could nosh before or after their flick. But such operations never seem to last…not just at the Village Square, but in dozens of theater complexes we’ve seen over the years.

Is it the restaurant’s fault for not being good enough? Or the theater goers’ for being too bloated on popcorn and skittles to appreciate decent food? Or the movies’ for generally being so lousy they make people lose their appetites? Probably a combination of all three, as well as the fact that many movie buffs don’t have a big budget for eating out, and the ones that do would prefer to take their meals at spots not surrounded by annoying teenagers and the coupon-clipping crowd.

Whatever the cause, Bachi Burger has its work cut out for it. Its menu would seem a good fit for film fans, but our experience tells us, no matter how good the food is, wooing the blockbuster crowd is as tough as finding a laugh in an Adam Sandler movie.

6 thoughts on “BACHI BURGER Better Bring It

  1. I think they will be fine. They don’t exactly have the greatest location now and it seems to work. I have always liked the food. The service on the other hand…

  2. Great. Another favorite moving to the other side of the valley.

    Oh freaking joy.

    In my humble opinion, the parking near movie theaters tends to suck the big wienie and thus chase away anybody looking for a parking place for a restaurant.

  3. I like Bachi Burger.. i had the kalbi burger which was terrific just the other day. They also have great appetizers including the variety of pickles and the stir fried edamame with a lot of garlic.

    Service has improved imeasurably since my first visit and will go back again.

  4. What makes you think they are moving? I heard they were looking to expand, not move. The business at the existing location seems very strong, most weeknights they are packed.

    I like Bachi. It has some consistency flaws at times but overall its a very good package and serves product from high quality sources; it is far better than most of it’s contemporaries. But I don’t understand where this comes from John: “Its menu would seem a good fit for film fans”. Most film fans are far more interested in eating at In & Out than they are in Bachi’s eclectic burger menu, it makes me think that your initial review was flawed if this is your interpretation of the Bachi menu (I assume your analysis of the movie fan is correct). Perhaps you should give them another try, focus on the side items, not just the burgers. Often I can barely finish the burger because I am stuffed on interesting starters and Monin sodas, its a good place to take a large group that is willing to share food. Give them another shot plz….

  5. In defense of Mr. Curtas’s statement about Bachi’s menu and film fans, the Village Square theater is one of only two or three in the entire valley that show foreign, art, and “Sundance” quality films. He might be right.

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