Crispy Rougamo

As long-time fans of Chinese roujiamo sandwiches – burger-like alternatives we loved from our first visit to Las Vegas’s China Poblano – we were beyond excited to see signs go up at Irvine Village Center for “Crispy Rougamo – Chinese Burger,” a restaurant with a decidedly Chinese logo but no apparent chain backing or website to explain its menu. When it opened in 2024, it was merely okay, but as of early 2025, it has improved its execution and menu enough to rate “good” in our book.

Just as the name suggests, Crispy Rougamo specializes in Chinese-style burgers made with your choice of cumin lamb, peppered beef, or shredded pork, stuffed into a bun that’s closer to a sliced-open English muffin than a typical hamburger, arriving with sliced onions and/or green peppers, but no other toppings or flavors to compete with the marinaded meat. In the photos below, you can see what the burgers look like now (first images) and originally (subsequent images). Note that the restaurant’s menu refers to them as “Crispy Buns” in English, and sells them each for $7 (beef, pork) to $8 (lamb).

At the restaurant’s launch, the rolls were bland and the meats were marinaded in thin sauces, each representing big opportunities for improvement. Over time, the rolls matured to Thousand Layer style, becoming flakier, crispier, and a little tastier, while the meats are better tenderized and slightly more flavorful; sauces at each table let you punch up the heat and vinegar levels if you want. While we originally felt the burgers were the near-exclusive draw – and not super compelling, at that – they’re now good enough to be worthy of stopping in.