One piece of advice: have your food preparation people wear plastic gloves when cooking. The last thing I wanted after paying way too much for fast food was to see some dude handling my burger--and I mean all of it--with his bare hands. Cradling it, laying cheese on it, etc. That goes for any country, not just China. But considering the hygiene-challenged reputation of restaurant workers here, it just becomes all the more disgusting. Gross.

An overpriced menu is to pay for rent of a large space. Tried one Double Double Wildstyle, and one Single Cheeseburger. Wildstyle tasted decent cuz of topping. Cheeseburger didn't have much meat so only tasted the other stuff in the burger. The grill guy just grabs some mix and slaps it down, leading to inconsistent patty sizes. The fries: between McD and actual In-N-Out quality fries, leaning towards McD quality. Only the bourbon spiked vanilla shake was interesting. So quite overpriced. Rather go to Dakota if I have to spend that much for not even a poor man's, more a shanzai beggar's version of an In-N-Out burger. OR swing by HK/BJ for Fatburger.

I gave Cali Burger a pretty good trashing in my first review (deservedly so), so I feel obligated to comment on the changes they've made. Apparently management has been getting the feedback and has made some significant improvements.

1. First and foremost the food has gotten better. Apparently that burger went to church and got some soul in it. The patty is still a little on the wimpy/small side, but for the price it's good. The quality of everything surrounding it has improved significantly. Lettuce and tomatoes were noticeably much better quality. The bun and dressing (thousand island?) good. The fries I had were also excellent. Crisp and thin, salted to perfection with just a bit of black pepper to give it a little pep. I also got a milkshake with my meal. Vanilla and tasty. It was thick, but not impossible to drink like I remember McDonalds shakes when I was growing up.

2. New prices have made it dangerously appealing. The prices have dropped about %15-20. Sets start around 35RMB which includes burger, fries, and a soda - the entire set is cheaper than most items at Wagas (which is right around the corner). I consider that very reasonable. I had the "A set" twice in the last week and both times it was good. I swapped the soda for a milkshake (+6RMB).

I'm pretty impressed with how quickly and effectively they made their changes. I've gone from never wanting to go back there again, to having it twice in one week.

Service is still good and friendly. Place is still clean. And I've never notice it being too crowded or noisy which makes a comfortable dining experience.

It's now become a viable option if you want some decent fast food. If anyone read my last review of CB I'm now reversing my stance. I'd go to CB before I go to Burger King.

Hopefully these changes are here to stay. I'd hate to see that they're a temporary fix just to draw customers back in.

One gets used to the reign of The Concept in Shanghai's western restaurants, and given the bucks that can be made off that combination of cheap labor and high prices, and the relatively low start-up costs, it's no wonder that ideas that might never get off the ground elsewhere so frequently metamorphose into our local version of The Real. In 'N" Out, as we Californians know, has its virtues: the reliability and repeatability common to most chains; the ease of access (always freeway close); a high bottom line on ingredient sourcing and preparation; well-paid and well-treated (by industry standards) and hence not wholly alienated or resentful employees; and design features combining familiarity (Breezy So-Cal color scheme; lots of natural light), retro charm (fonts, logo, the translucent wrappings on the burgers and the kraft-paper french fry boats), laid-back Californian-ness (free refills on drinks, non-robotic friendliness from the counter workers); secret quirkiness (small-font Bible-verse references on the hamburger bags and drink cups, plus of course the secret codes for off-menu items and styles); and at bottom a classically good-tasting hamburger and competent fries. In 'n' out's particular combinatoire has inspired countless musings along the lines of, "wouldn't it be awesome if we had an In 'n' Out in____."

Thanks to Shanghai's low-barrier for concept realization, now we do. One can almost imagine the conversation among the partners: "Wine!" "Yeah, and shakes with booze! Yeah, and videos! Yeah, and GIrls! Cali-girls! Yeah, Cali-girls! Et voilà. The burgers and fries are pretty close--the meat's less flavorful and the buns undergrilled-- but the animal, er, Wild Style fries are, in my book, better than the original, especially when the fryer's turned up high enough. Grilled-onion spread: good. But the rest of it: the lavatorian floors, the harsh, skin-sickening overhead fluorescents, the color scheme that wanted retro but got institutional, and the anomalous and inexplicable presence of rail-thin models who clearly have no idea what they're there for... all make for a kind of down-market surrealism that makes the high prices seem just that. So who would go there? Couples on a date? No, too ugly and too weird a place, and an atmosphere that revels in its fast-foodness as it slow-blends its higher conceptual demands. Burger-gourmands? No, plenty of better burgers in Shanghai for not much more money. Fast-food types? Well, it's not that fast and it's REALLY not that cheap. Who does that leave, beyond those initially curious? Nostalgic Californians? (I know a guy who ate at In 'n' Out every day for ten days before moving here, just so he'd get sick of it and not miss it). Maybe, but once only. There's a darkness at the heart of Cali-burger, the darkness of the Big Idea gone awry, and it might remind Californians of the real state of their state, something that the real In 'n' Out--its culture, its brighter weirdness, the good taste of its food--helps them temporarily forget.

While not being American, but living near Cali burger, i felt obliged to check out this place, especially after all these vitriolic reviews.

Cali burger is to me what the generic American fast food diner is, brightly lit, colourful, and over eager fake service, with too many people asking 'how's your day going'?.

The place is way too big , too garish in its colour scheme, and a ridiculously long walk from the front door to the order counter.

The food, as mentioned before, is overpriced, but they have a slightly more affordable meal deal.
The burger,fries, and drink for the 35RMB meal deal is in my opinion still awfully overpriced for the food quality; one can even argue it has physically less food than a McDonalds burger meal deal.

The quality of the burger is most certainly nothing special, and it only beats a McDonalds burger in its bun and its onions. The rest of burger, fries and the small can of drink is significantly worse. Even McDonalds gives you more fries and drink in their set Big Mac meal deal.

The value of this place and their food just pales in comparison to nearly every other burger meal in Shanghai. Carls Junior, BK, Blue frog, Munchies are all better in both taste and value for money. Hell for less than half the price i can get a McDonalds Big Mac set meal with very little difference in taste!

Go once to Cali burger to taste for yourself, and then never again......but then again as i was told over the weekend by several FAT Americans - 'What do you know, you're English' - English people apparently dont understand the burger culture.

I'm not one to generally jump to the defense of an institution that I have no close ties too... but I have to say that I disagree with a lot of the sentiments presented here about Caliburger.

It's strange in the first place, that people wish to pass judgement on this venue without having any experience (and in some cases knowledge) with the actual inspiration behind this joint.

Caliburger is good. They are not an exact replica, of the IN N'Out's back in California, but I'd say that fairly what they have done is a faithful approximation. They had done HORRIBLY with their initial price points, but quickly remedied that to fair and reasonable meal deals which therefore greatly increase the value quotient of this place. (I'm ashamed to say, but when I have a lunch attack, I can easily drop 70 rmb at a Carl's jr. shhh!). So 55rmb for a Calidouble + fries + drink is reasonable. And yes, the cheese IS real from what I can tell (I had strange dreams each time I went there, and this only happens when I have real cheese).

I will say that the original In N'Out is better. Lemon-ups, free fountain refills, and not TOO much of a price hike to make things "wild" (or animal style), but reiterating what I have said, Caliburger is a faithful approximation. A welcome change from the mass produce we get in the other chains. I can at least tell things are fresh in Caliburger.

This is NOT health food. This is meant for those guilty "fat days" when you just wanna pig out and watch Gone with the Wind (or Battlestar Galactica).

So for anyone put off by some of these reviews... take it from this Californian who has had waaaay too much In N Out, this place is decent. If you've never had In N'Out before, then go in knowing that it wouldn't be wise to try and compare this place to another burger joint. The In'N Out style of burger is unique, and based on the precepts of "freshness" (and general uber yumminess). Give this place a try (I'd get two burgers, instead of a burger + fries... that's just me).

A heads up, I would recommend people learn how to order from In'N Out. If Caliburger has truly gone after imitating In N'Out, then they ought to also know the secret menu inside and out.

Only had the burger. Nothing special. Actually it was nothing period. No soul in that burger. The lettuce and tomatoes tasteless like cold water. The patty itself was like *yawn*. The bun was good.

Come to think of it their burger reminds me of public school cafeteria hamburgers. The soul was completely sucked out of it. All that was left was a lifeless, bland, carcass of a burger.

I've heard it compared to In and Out... I've never been to In and Out, but if it tastes like Caliburger then I'm never going now.

I absolutely avoid McDonalds, Burger King, and KFC unless I'm positively SOL of things to eat. But I'll be walking over to BK to buy a Whopper if I ever get a burger craving before I ever go back to Caliburger.

Unless they make improvements to the food I'm never going back... and I live right next to the place.

On the positive side, the place is clean (though the Johnny Rocket-esque decor was tacky) and the service was friendly.

Ok, so first of let me say that I hate processed food but I love burgers. So if you're with me on that then take heed of this review. I am not saying I was looking for a gourmet burger with all sorts of weird stuff on it but I was looking for a fresh unprocessed real burger, cooked medium, with cheese from an actual cow on top of it.

I was hoping that this place was going to be just like Shakeshack, the go-to fast food burger joint in NYC. I have never been to California so I cant compare it to In N Out but I'm not sure that is necessary. I am reviewing this from the perspective that its supposed to be somewhere in between a totally shitty McDs burger and an expensive restaurant/steakhouse burger. This is why I compare it to Shakeshack a few times.

Firstly, the meat patty is pretty processed looking, it doesn't have much flavour and basically tastes slightly better than McDs/Carls Jr. Its definitely processed meat though and you would want to cook the bejesus out of it as opposed to have a nice medium patty, the way a burger should be.

A burger should always include the following: (or at least give you the option)
Tomato, Lettuce, Onions, Cheese and Gherkins.
The cheeseburger had all of the above besides gherkins. The vegtables were crispy and relatively flavourful, however the cheese was processed plastic glow-in-the-dark 'American' cheese. They lost major points on that and on the fact that there was no option to add gherkins. The bun was nothing to write home about either, just a grip for the filling really. I don't think I tasted it at all.

The chips were hot. That was the only good thing about them. They were basically the exact same as McDonalds, which in my mind is awful. Skinny, flimsy, off colour McDs style rubbish. Carls Jr. has better chips than this place. They don't really taste like potato, they have that cardboardy tasteless feeling of McDonalds. I only ate about half of them.

The milkshake tasted just like McDonalds soft serve vanilla ice cream. It was too sweet and too thick. I think it was really just ice cream in a cup. Total fail. I threw half of it away. Again Carls Jr. does better than this and I don't really think they do very good milkshakes either.

The meal was only 46RMB though and I was full in the end so it wasn't like I wanted my money back or anything but I definitely will never eat there again. The thing is, I thought that this place was supposed to be one of those new style fast food places where its still fast food but also relatively freshly made on site (like Shakeshack) but this is not the case at all. I wanted a freshly ground medium cooked beef and freshly cut chips but that is not what I got at all. This is just another run of the mill fast food burger joint with nothing special to offer. Its not quite as bad as McDonalds but its not even as good as Five Guys. At least Five Guys offer you all the trimmings with your burger and they give you fresh cut fries from an actual potato. I don't see this place staying open at all, it has nothing to offer and a handful of well established international competitors to deal with. Given that is not even as good as Carls Jr. (which I don't like either) I don't think it has a snowballs chance in hell of succeeding.

A previous reviewer wrote "Cali Burger is that happy medium between the cheap, over-processed Mickey Ds grease-burgers and the pretentious 90 kuai Gourmet Burger caramelized onions and bleu cheese productions. " It was this statement that actually convinced me to give the place a go.

This is not the case at all, it is nowhere near a happy medium, it barely surpasses McDonalds and doesn't really even live up to Five Guys or even Carls Jr. Shakeshack is that happy medium that I was looking for, and maybe it has spoiled me but I really thought that that was what Cali Burger was trying to do. I suppose in California this might not be considered processed food but to me it most certainly is. Maybe in California there is a difference between processed and over-processed as the quoted reviewer stated, who knows? Processed is processed and shite is shite. Full-stop.

A follow-up to my last review. I had heard through the grapevine that Caliburger had instituted some meal deals.

By SURPRISE... my absolutely fabulous flatmate decided to take me out for Valentines day to cheer me up cause some romantic interests were starting to make me grumpy.

NOTHING is better on valentines day, than a naughty naughty meal of bugers and fries to make you feel COMPLETELY un-sexy and uninterested in cuddles (or getting laid for that matter) for at least an evening. My flatmate... she's not just a pretty face! Clever girl!

So anyway, here's the new deals for everyone plussed about their prices as I was previously.

Caliburger + Fries + Drink = 35rmb

Calicheeseburger (or whatever) + Fries + Drink = 45rmb (if I remember correctly)

Calidouble + Frieds + Drink = 55rmb

I'd say, they were trying to take over China with these prices. Well done! A note, asking for wildstyle fries for any of the combo meals means adding an additional 20rmb, which isn't SO bad in my opinion.

As I've said before, this place is a close approximation to In N'Out. Not EXACTLY them, but as close as anyone could get (especially when you compare it to Piro's wannabe In N out burger).

If Caliburger is listening... sometimes I like to get two naughty burgers instead of fries! Can I get two Calidoubles + Drink for ... say... 75rmb? Pretty please? =)

Anyway, these new prices are a good thing. But it also means I'll be spending more time at the gym. (dannnnnnng it !!! )

Today was my second time at Caliburger, the first time I was starving and just grabbed a burger to go as the decor freaked me out and also being the only person in this restaurant that seems to have no idea to do with its extra space. Today I stopped in with a friend and again the burgers were excellent though for the price it seems strange to be charging double of what you pay at mcdonalds with no extra gimmicks. They also offer alcohol in several of their shakes and wine bottles are on display but the drab brown decor does not make one wanna party. The burgers are the only thing that saves this place, I recommend the addition of some arcade machines or foosball tables to make better use of the giant space and give the place a better atmosphere.

You think I'm fat but it's an optical illusion!!!

I like to think of myself as burger connoisseur! I have tried many burgers in 3 continents, I grill my own a lot during the summer and most of my close friends have enjoyed them! I saw the billboard outside of caliburger about 5 months ago and thought wow, burger joint down on Yanping road! this is either heaven or hell! and I was like probably most of the burger lovers in town, waiting for this place to open up! I was away for a couple of weeks and when I came back, I passed by one day a couple of weeks ago and saw it open, so I wasted no time to come in for a cheeseburger.

My impression in general, was completely bad.....the place is too big, and the decoration seems to have been done on a budget! or they didn't prepare it well, it's a cold place with awful pop radio hits, I had to put on my headphones to really leave that "Shanghai pop" feeling! I ordered a Cheeseburger with onions and fries... 40RMB

I got my food, and I started to analyze it first, the idea of half a lettuce on the burger is not bad in a principle but here they do explode the concept to the limit!
Well to make it fast....the buns where super greasy...the fries seem to be some cheap cut fries that tasted mostly of low quality oil, the ketchup was not a major flavor like Heinz which is necessary for gourmet reasons!!!! duh! the meat, did not taste well at all, the vegetables had a taste of not being too "organic" meaning lots of water and no taste, and that kinda pesticide taste to them, the caramelized onions "In n' Out" style, left a bad taste in my mouth that I couldn't wash down with the Coke Can I was given.... come on... Drinks need to be fountain, and the mix needs to be good! I have had many burgers around shanghai, and this is definitely the worst. I do not recommend it to anybody...

I'm not a gourmet burger guy. I never got in to the whole high-concept, burger craze that started over a decade ago. I like burgers because they taste good and are cheap. This is the problem with CaliBurger; their whole price scheme is out of wack. It's a solid fast food joint (think Carl's Jr.), but for some strange reason they want to charge you almost gourmet burger prices to eat there.

No thanks.

I am from the magical land of Southern California. When I heard that there would be an In N'Out recplica, I was OVERCOME with excitement. I am puzzled why people who are not familiar with In N'Out are even writing reviews to begin with, as they complain about things without knowing the root inspiration of this place.

The Food:
Compared to Piro which has attempted to have an "In N'Out" style burger on their menu, Cali Burger does a very faithful representation. There are very minor differences (i.e. the meat is a tad flakey... but not in a bad way, the sauce is not AS strong as the original, but close enough, etc.). By and large, this place does seem to use fresh ingredients. The bread is soft, and doesn't taste/feel like it was mass produced and loaded with preservatives. The vegetables inside were crisp, with the tomatoes still retaining their natural characteristic juiciness. The cheese was GREAT (I know it was real stuff, cuz I had funky dreams that night. And real cheese always does that to me!).

I ordered everything wild style (akin to In N'Out's 'animal style'). Both me and friend thoroughly enjoyed the fare. It. Was. GREAT. I'd even prefer this place to Carl's Jr. if it weren't for other things I will discuss later.

One thing missing was fresh lemonade, to have lemon-ups!

One thing that DOES make this place a bit of a standout, are the bourbon shakes, and the wine on offer. Can't get those at In N'Out. The bourbon shakes were delicious! The perfect amount of bourbon added to the shake so that it was no overpowering. Highly recommended if you wanna let lose for an occasional fat day!

The Environs:
First, they opened in a seemingly cursed location. How many places have we seen come and go at the Yanping Lu, Xinzha lu? For this place to be really successful, you need foot traffic. Which they will not get aside from the local apartment complexes nearby. And unfortunately the overall package does not justify sauntering over in a taxi whenever you have a hankering for burgers in your face (which, if you are like me, happens more often than it should). The inside of the place reminded me very much of the In N'Out's back home, although less bright and, as someone else mentioned, slightly "corporatey". Perhaps the grey ceilings? But one does not go to In N'Out for the decor.

The Service:
Not much to talk about here. It's a fast food joint. But from what I could tell, they are aiming for In N'Out level training, staff were (trying to be) efficient, they were friendly, and accommodating. They seemed a tad nervous, but hey... they done well!

The Damage/Value:
Here is the kicker. If they want to survive, and if they want to become so successful that they can open up a venue in say... oh... people square, then they need to be realistic about their market and get with the program on prices. I echo EVERYONE's sentiments about the prices.

I admit, I am one of those people that NEED a good burger on occasion (hey, I cook pretty well too!). But I can go to Malone's or Blue Frog on a Monday night and not spend more than 50kuai on a meal. In N'Out style burgers do not warrant spending 48 + 38 + 28 + 12. HELL TO THE NO. Are you joking me? You guys at Cali Burger are NUTS. The people of shanghai WILL NOT stand for Highway robbery. You have a GREAT product, but you really had better adjust those prices FAST, or you will quickly succumb to a slow and painful yanping lu death.

A more appropriate adjustment (if things are fresh, then THEY HAVE to be using local ingredients), would be if they were actually faithful to In N'Out pricing as well. Check it out (and be horrified):

Double Double (equivalent to Cali Double): 26.8 rmb
Animal Style Fries (Wild Style Fries): 12rmb
A Drink which has unlimited Refils: 7rmb
A Milk Shake: I don't know, I never order these cause they don't have bourbon and I gotta watch my figure! Let's say 18rmb.

A delicious meal at In N'Out AT an actual In N'Out costs: 63.8rmb

Compared with Cali Burger:
Cali Double: 48
Wild Style Fries: 38
Coke Can (obviously not unlimited refils): 12rmb
Shake: 28rmb

A delicious meal at Cali Burger: 126rmb (and this doesn't include taxi fare oh my gawww!)

Do you think I'm going to go to Cali Burger frequently? Nah. Do I want to... DEFINITELY !!!!! But I can not support highway robbery. So, I'll go there every once in awhile, but it can't become a "regular" hangout spot unfortunately. I hope they get with the program and fix things though if they want to compete with Carl's Jr and such.

In N'Out is not one of those things you are supposed to want ONCE in awhile. It is one of those things you crave after a football game, or band competition, or choral performance (or in Shanghai's case, after a night of destroying our livers on fake alcohol). I could... AND WOULD, go there three times a week if things matched. But two things keeping me away 1) location (HAVE to taxi and not near a metro... but if I want a burger, come on, distance isn't going to stop me) and 2) prices. As I said before "hell to the NO".

Conclusions:
This place COULD take over all of China IF... they made better business decisions. Their location works against them... BUT they could make us come even so if they made it worth our while with the prices. The food is great really, worth at least one try, but I'm not so dumb as to make my bank account succumb to bloody murder every time I want a burger. I hope they fix the prices, and restore our faith. If you make your clients feel like you are taking advantage of them, it ain't gonna work guys.

Maybe it's because I'm not familiar with In N' Out burger, but I just don't 'get' this place. Your only menu choices are burger or cheeseburger, your only sides options are fries or "wild style" fries. There's no combos, no chicken, no salads.. that's literally all the food options on the menu. "Dunno how they'll get a local crowd without any chicken" says my Taiwanese GF

A Cali Double burger + Fries + ice tea was 78 rmb. 78 RMB! Honestly the bun and meat could have been from McDonalds and maybe I wouldn't have known the difference though I'll say the veggies were fresh and cheese much nicer and the portion size was good.

I guess the kicker is the value for money here. If the total package was 35 rmb, I would probably feel a bit differently. But for this price you can definitely get a way better fast food burger in Shanghai. They seem to be after the premium fast food burger market which would put them up against my reigning champ Carl's Jr, and frankly speaking CJ's Super Star with Cheese KO's the Cali Double in the first round, and you still got money left to feed your date a 2 pcs juicy fried chicken!

Cali Burger is that happy medium between the cheap, over-processed Mickey Ds grease-burgers and the pretentious 90 kuai Gourmet Burger caramelized onions and bleu cheese productions. The regular Caliburger was satisfying, but not so big that I hated myself after eating it. The veggies were fresh and they were generous with the extra pickles. The free wifi is strong, though it is not the kind of place you want to linger after lunch (i.e. massive and corporate-y). My only request: Please add a veggie burger for my depressed vegetarian friends who are now limited to a meal of fries and shakes (which, admittedly, sounds kinda good....)

When I see independent burger joints pop-up, I usually assume that they offer something unique or a quality of food a cut above the typical fast food joint. With Caliburger, it's not the case. The menu is scarce, the food average, and the price too high. The only real difference I could see was that the prices were higher.

The burger, while not bad, was no better than any other fast food place. McDonalds/BK/Carls Jr. all offer burgers of a different taste, but that are definitely as good or better than these. The meat was probably -- and I'm guessing here simply by the looks of it -- to be a bit fresher and higher quality, though the taste didn't make that obvious. Add to the fact that major chains offer you a wide selection of burgers vs. pretty much just one at Caliburger and you'll find even less of a reason to go here. Aside from the fact that global chains operate on bulk and economies of scale, I don't really understand why a cheeseburger at Caliburger is 33 RMB. If you're going to try and sell just one style of burger, you better make it A) completely unique in taste, B) high quality, and/or C) extremely cheap. Caliburger does none of the above. The burger is essentially a Big Mac without pickles.

The wild style fries we're decent, but at 38 RMB they're terribly overpriced. Why do french fries with onions and 1000 island cost 5 RMB more than a burger with onions and thousand island? Are french fries really more expensive than the burger patty, lettuce, tomato, cheese, and bun? Someone needs to go back to the drawing board on that one.

It may seem dumb to raise issue with 70 RMB worth of food and even more so with 5 RMB over fries, but being someone who looks for some type of value in what they buy, be it 40 RMB fast food or 2000 RMB for 7 courses in a restaurant, the value for food here is non-existent. There wasn't even a meal menu. So my food with a drink (had I not already had a bottle of water on me,) would have been:

Cheeseburger - 33 RMB
Wild fries - 38 RMB
Pop - 12 RMB (if I remember correctly)

Total = 83 RMB/13 USD.

When was the last time you spent at a fast food joint for one person?

Not really much else to say about the place. The staff is friendly, but it's overkill for a burger place to be waiting on your every need and doing stuff like opening the door for you. I actually prefer less attention when I'm eating fast food. The interior is greyscale for some reason -- maybe it's a California thing? The place is pretty damn big, but I think they'd have been better off paying less for rent in a smaller place and selling food for a reasonable price.