We here at Team Let’s Go Eat love a “local guys make good” story. And when the local guys make good … hamburgers, well that’s even better.
Folks, meet Dang Burger in Carpinteria.
“I grew up a chubby burger kid here in Carpinteria,” co-founder Gil Craddock told us. “I’ve always loved them.”
Using a smash-burger style of cooking, plus high-quality local ingredients, Craddock and co-owner Emery Hickenbotham are gaining quite a following lately.
When Team LGE operatives sent word back to headquarters, we dispatched our A team to check things out.
Results: Two big thumbs up.
Dang Burger co-owners Emery Hickenbotham, left, and Gil Craddock have found a home for their smash burger success in their hometown. Credit: Rob Raede / Noozhawk photo 
The Dang Burger menu may be short but the Spicy Dang Burger and the Veggie Burger, plus fries, are can’t miss choices. Credit: Rob Raede / Noozhawk photo 
Fresh salads are always a plus. Credit: Rob Raede / Noozhawk photo 
The Dang Burger menu is a masterpiece of simplicity. Credit: Rob Raede / Noozhawk photo 
Dang Burgers, salad and fries. Credit: Dang Burger photo 
A happy customer. Credit: Rob Raede / Noozhawk photo 
This Dang Burger fan traveled from around the world to try the Veggie Burger. Credit: Rob Raede / Noozhawk photo 
The Sunburst Winery patio sometimes hosts live music to go with Dang Burger’s smash burgers. Credit: Sunburst photo
Even though both Craddock and Hickenbotham are locals (Carpinteria and Santa Barbara, respectively), they became friends in the Bay Area while both attending college and playing in local bands.
“Neither of us was into food,” Craddock told us, “just enjoying playing music and going to school.
“And neither of us attended culinary school,” he added. “Cooking is something you can pick up if you have the passion for it.”
After college, they both moved to Los Angeles, and while working day jobs, got interested in making burgers.
“We were going to smash burger popups, and I would host dinner parties for friends serving burgers,” Craddock recalled.
Hickenbotham sensed he was on to something.
“I told him they were good enough to sell,” he said.
During the COVID-19 lockdowns, they both lost their jobs in Los Angeles, so they moved back home and started experimenting, doing their own burger pop-ups at local breweries.
“Bars and brew pubs needed to serve food to stay open during that time,” Craddock recalled, so they jumped in to fill that need starting in September 2020.
For the next three years they continued to do burger pop-ups, plus working side gigs in local restaurants like Little Dom’s Seafood in Carpinteria and Rory’s Place in Ojai.
“It was inspiring that people were really into these burgers we were making in the parking lot,” Hickenbotham said.
They also were honing their skills.
“Between popups and working at these other restaurants, we were working seven days a week,” Craddock recalled.
“That’s when we got good at cooking.”
That all got tiresome, so they decided to switch to full-time burger making.
“We called Ryan at Sunburst Winery in Carpinteria and asked about the kitchen space he had there,” Craddock shared.
“He said I was just thinking about calling you guys!”
A year later, in November 2023, they opened their doors, with Sunburst running the drink side, and Dang Burger doing the food.
“They have a good wine and beer selection,” Craddock said, “and burgers and fries go well with that.”
Craddock and Hickenbotham describe their food as California Sunny Beach Town burgers. What does that mean, we asked?
“A cheeseburger that has lettuce and pickles and tomatoes,” Craddock replied. “Similar to other SoCal burger places but with better ingredients.”
And he’s right. One of the things we noticed during our first visit was how fresh and crisp the lettuce is in their salads.
Craddock and Hickenbotham said they source all their produce from local farms, citing Darby’s, Tutti Frutti and Beylik Farms in Fillmore for tomatoes, among others.
They use well-known Martin’s potato rolls, and source their beef from Santa Carota Beef near Bakersfield.
“We sampled a bunch of different meats before we settled on this one,” Hickenbotham said.
When you take great beef and hard sear it on the griddle, you get a big-time Maillard reaction, which adds tons of flavor.
“Its like meat candy,” Craddock said, laughing.
They also offer a vegetarian patty.
“We’re not trying to pretend it’s meat, like some places,” Craddock explained. “We make it with a black bean base, adding sautéed carrots, onions, bell peppers, garlic and quinoa.”
Team LGE team members give high marks to this one.
“We’ve taken a lot of time to source good quality ingredients,” Craddock said.
In addition to the burgers and fries on the menu, our two heroes also do a weekly special on Thursdays. A recent example was lobster rolls.
“Sometimes local fishermen call us and have a deal on something, so we go with that,” Craddock added. “It’s fun.”
Fun aside, these two guys work hard, getting up at 5 a.m. every day to start prepping.
“We’re just two hometown guys trying to give a good burger to our community,” Craddock said with a smile.
“We work our buns off every day,” Hickenbotham added, with a straight face.
Locals Only
A popular item is the BOL, a burger on a bed of lettuce. Think of it as a burger salad.
When You Go
Dang Burger, located at 5080 Carpinteria Ave. in Carpinteria, is open from noon to 8:30 p.m. every day but Tuesday.
