Meet Alicia Lopez of Hangaburs

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alicia Lopez.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
We are Alicia Lopez and Cecilia Ledezma, owners and operators of Hangaburs, a smash burger pop-up in Los Angeles. Our story really goes back over 22 years when we met in high school and became best friends. After graduation, our friendship grew into love and we have been together ever since. Over the course of 18 years together (eight of which married) we have shared so many life experiences together all of which have somehow led us to starting a business. We both had zero food industry experience before this but have always had a passion for eating and trying new things. I, Alicia, have always loved to cook and although my career has been in Graphic Design, I always felt like somehow my destiny would be to work with food. Burgers have always been one of our favorite things to eat, so much so that we had them served for our wedding. So after a trip to Tepic, Nayarit in Mexico where we had a very unique burger with ham and panela cheese we were inspired to create our own version along with a classic American smash burger with our own detailed spin. For years I let a busy career, life and some fear keep me from starting the business so it wasn’t until Covid hit and I was furloughed from my job that I no longer had an excuse to take the leap. After some strong encouragement and support from Cecilia, Hangaburs was born! It’s been a year and half since our first pop-up in our front yard and it has been an amazing rollercoaster ever since including being featured by LA Taco, Eater LA and The Burger Show. After all that has happened, we are excited to see what the future holds for Hangaburs.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Opening a small business with no experience in the field and in the middle of a pandemic has had its fair share of obstacles for sure but we have been a team since day 1 and somehow, we figure things out together. We have been very fortunate in that the LA pop-up food scene is a pretty tight community and so many are willing to help and support each other along the way. We have met some really great people and are truly grateful because without them, we wouldn’t be where we are today.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We are a female-owned and operated burger pop-up in Los Angeles that specializes in smash burgers. We currently offer two different burgers on our menu, The Original and The Tepic, along with a grilled queso sandwich, chips and potato salad. The Original has a crispy smashed Angus chuck patty, American cheese, thin shaved onions, super thin long sliced pickles & our Hangaburs sauce all on a butter toasted Martin’s Potato Bun. Our Tepic also has the same crispy smashed patty along with a grilled ham slice, American cheese, grilled panela cheese, grilled onions, tomatoes, ketchup and our spicy mustard crema. Both are simple and unique but what most sets our burgers apart is our attention to detail and balance of flavors. From our playful name to our messaging of “Be Kind & Eat Burgers” we have always wanted Hangaburs to be an inclusive and welcoming space for all and we really hope that vibe is felt at our pop-ups. We pop-up all round LA so check out our Instagram for the most current schedule.

What was your favorite childhood memory?
We both come from large Latino families so for us, all of our favorite memories are tied to family. Weekends were for playing with cousins, eating and just being together.

Contact Info:

• Email: hangaburs@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hangaburs/?hl=en

Image Credits:
image F34E7C8E-BEDE-4679-BBBB-01992A45A6DD.jpg please credit. Yomara Solis @solyomaraphotography