Umami Burger is definitely one of those places that you have to visit anytime you're in Los Angeles - It's a quintessential institution that always hits the spot when you're in need of a favorite American food. While they've branched out to various places in the U.S., it's a burger that was born in L.A. which is why I had to check it out for myself. For this meal I asked 3 friends to join me at their location in Hollywood to try their 9-course tasting menu. 

Umami burger's 9- course tasting menu. Not to be taken lightly! Make sure you come hungry!

The tasting menu is certainly not a small feat and it is not recommended for the faint of heart. I left feeling as though I had taken gluttony to a totally unchartered territory of gluttony levels. On a scale from 1-10 of full we left at like a 17 1/2. Our entire party had to take frequent breaks to try to get through all of these burgers. The server informed us we were the first actual table he's seen finish the entire tasting. This obviously made us all genuinely proud. 

Highlights of our dinner included: "The Manly Burger"- cheddar cheese, bacon lardons, onion strings, and Umami's special house ketchup, "The Greenbird Burger" (best turkey burger I've ever had)- green cheese, smashed avocado, sprouts, green goddess dressing, butter lettuce, and a "Maple Bacon Old Fashioned" which was just how I like my whiskey cocktails- nice and strong! 

Umami's signature burger the "Truffle Burger" . Highly recommended for all my fellow truffle lovers.

Umami Ahi Tuna Burger

Back to what I'm good at, talking about clothes ;). When eating a 9 course burger meal, what does one wear? Well... I opted for all black. I mean, this sort of meal is not for a lacy white dress or anything "dry clean only" if you know what I mean! I'm wearing here high waisted black pants, a For Love and Lemons Knitz body suit, Sam Edelman booties, and my favorite tan Topshop duster jacket. There's something about black and tan as a combo that has been calling me lately, and I've been wearing these colors together more and more. Check out the photos below and let me know what you think!

My friend Jackie and I before dinner

All photos in this blog courtesy of Brian Gove, copyright The Style Sauce 2016.

Shop this post

Pantone's colors for 2016, Serenity and Rose Quartz are everywhere right now, and I've certainly found my favorite in Rose Quartz. Whether it's hats, dresses, or bags (like the one I've featured here from Flat Iron) I just keep reaching for the color pink! Pink is always tricky to wear, it can look much too frilly or gaudy if not styled correctly. I find that I usually like to anchor pink with black, or a dark grey. (I did this also in a post from last year, Think Pink.) It's a great way to have masculine and feminine colors meet each other. Think James Dean meets Barbie, ha! For this outfit I also am sporting my new favorite Page boy hat that I can't help but wear all of the time. While I still love my fedoras, it's a fresh silhouette of hat that has open a whole new realm of possibilities of outfits. I love the unexpected edge it gives even a t-shirt and jeans look.

I also find it looks great with a turtleneck or mock neck a la Kate Moss (below)

...Or as I've styled it in these photos here! For this series, I also did an alternate version with no hat and a pair of lace up heels I've been living in since I got them on sale at Nordstrom.

For the shoot, I met with Jasmine Ayala in Beverly Hills. She did an amazing job of capturing the gorgeous aesthetic of the Rodeo Drive area at twilight. Of course, I couldn't resist doing some shopping while we were there too! Let me know what you think of the look, and tell me how you're wearing Rose Quartz this year, too!

Bag, Flat Iron Official

View fullsize

Ear crawlers, Humble Chic NY.

All images in this post courtesy of Jasmine Ayala, copyright The Style Sauce 2016, unless otherwise stated.

Shop The Look