A $42 hamburger built on dry-aged beef, mushroom duxelles and a pepper-flecked sauce has become one of the most talked-about orders in Los Angeles, and chef Marcus Jernmark is rationing it to 25 plates a night. The burger is the centerpiece of Marée, the seasonal Californian French bistro Jernmark opened in early September above his tasting-menu restaurant Lielle in Pico-Robertson.
A Burger Built Like Fine Dining
Marée sits on the second floor at 9575 W. Pico Blvd., in a space that previously housed the beloved Peruvian restaurant Picca and then the Michelin-starred Manzke from Walter and Margarita Manzke, according to Eater LA. The au poivre hamburger itself uses aged Flannery beef pressed with pepper and finished over Japanese charcoal, served on a house-made brioche bun and placed slice-side down in a pool of au poivre sauce, per reporting from SFGATE. Toppings include mushroom duxelles, a crispy onion ring, sauce espagnole and fried kale, SFGATE reports, while the Los Angeles Times described the sauce as infused with beef trimmings and Roquefort cheese in its own account of the dish, which it called “an early hit after only a few weeks in business.”
The Los Angeles Times reported that Jernmark will only sell 25 of the burgers per night, a cap SFGATE attributes to his desire to avoid serving the dish during the restaurant's busiest crunch time. Order it with Marée's herb-dusted pommes frites and, per Eater LA, the fries alone run $16 — pushing a burger-and-fries order past $70 once tax and tip are added.
Critics Split on Whether It's Worth It
Not every reviewer is convinced the burger earns its price tag. Eater LA's critic argued it was worth the price, writing plainly, “I would argue it's worth it,” while a reviewer for The Infatuation pushed back, writing, “We're not totally sold on the overwrought burger swimming in au poivre.” The $42 hamburger has also been judged worth its price.
SFGATE's reporting also places the burger in the context of other high-priced Los Angeles orders, noting that the Big Mec burger at Petit Trois costs close to $40, the Polo Lounge's burger runs nearly $50, and a single 20-inch pizza from Gjelina Take Away can exceed $70 with delivery. Steak au poivre itself is in the midst of a broader comeback in the city, according to chef Patrick Costa of Sous Sous, who told the Los Angeles Times the dish is “having a revival” as diners gravitate toward comforting, familiar food.
Jernmark's Upstairs-Downstairs Approach
Marée functions as what SFGATE describes as a more approachable way to experience Jernmark's cooking than Lielle, the tasting-menu restaurant downstairs that the Los Angeles Times' Bill Addison and Jenn Harris ranked No. 1 on the paper's annual list of the city's 101 best restaurants, announced on October 23 at Barker Hangar at Santa Monica Airport. Lielle, open less than a year and already holding a Michelin star, charges $150 per person for four substantial courses — a price Addison's review called a relative bargain compared with similarly ambitious tasting menus that can run $400 per diner.
Jernmark told the Los Angeles Times that Marée is approached with the exact same values as Lielle, even though it's “a different genre of eating.” He also said the two restaurants pull from the same sourcing rather than separate ingredient pipelines, with Marée's kitchen taking ingredient sourcing and sauce work just as seriously as its Michelin-starred sibling downstairs. According to SFGATE, Jernmark has said Marée feels more like New York than Paris, thanks to its ambiance and warm hospitality.
Beyond the burger, Marée's menu has included a halibut crudo with radish slices, a persimmon salad with stracciatella and Marcona almonds, puffy escargot beignets, and a duck entree featuring breast slices and duck confit in a mustardy sauce ravigote priced at $62. The restaurant pours from roughly 30 by-the-glass wine options and skips cocktails altogether, according to Eater LA, which described the offering as “an approachable wine list — no cocktails here.” Dessert includes a towering chocolate mousse, and the restaurant opens nightly from 5:15 to 9 p.m., per SFGATE's reporting.
