Top 5 Burgers

1.DUCHESS any in ct. This is simply the best. Not comparable to a fine burger at a sit down rest. that costs 9 bucks. However far far far superior to most mentioned at little greasy spoons and Mickey D.,'s White Castle and crap like that. Check it out. Go and try a cheeseburger or Big D. chiliburg. NO CONTEST.....

quote:

Originally posted by cornfed

What is that place in Pasadena next to the Northwoods Inn that's in the shape of a boat? I used to love their chiliburgers. That was my favorite burger of all time. They also had red cabbage, tamales, and freezing beer goblets. But great burgers. Liked them more than Tommy's and In-n-Out.

Is it the place on Rosemead? When I lived there it was called the Shrimp Boat and served great shrimp dinners, but no burgers. Sounds like it closed and reopened as a burger place after I left SoCal.

Well Its been more than 15 years since I've had this burger,but what the hell. The Bosch burger,(been so long it could be incorrect)at Dupont Bar and Grill.half pound of meat with swiss and american cheddard,onions,mushrooms on a onion bun.I miss it,and then Dupont Bar and Grill.
Zdawg

By far the number one burger I have ever had is

#1 WESTPORT FLEA MARKET in Kansas City
http://www.flickr.com/photos/agraham/92675047/

#2 Port of Call in New orleans
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sabreur/507731539/in/set-72157600214801261/

#3 Chris Madrid's in San Antonio
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v207/TexasBurgerGuy/Madrids/burger2_big.jpg

#4 Christian's Tailgate Bar in Houston - Close Close 3rd and 4th
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v207/TexasBurgerGuy/Christians/herd2_big.jpg

#5 Lankford's Grocery in Houston
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v207/TexasBurgerGuy/Lankfords/burger2_big.jpg

I don't know if this is Top 5 all-time, but this is my Top 5 from the last year or so (call it "year and change"):

#5 - Pancho and Lefty's - Hare, TX



This is a place that Bushie took me to on my last visit to the Austin/Round Rock area. We drove 45 minutes from Round Rock to this place - and the payoff at the end was worth it. I had mine with hand-cut potato chips (that might have needed some slightly hotter oil - or more time in the fryer, but they were good. You can (kinda) see Bushie's fries in the background - hand-cut, as well. If you're city folk like me, you might want to take Bushie with you so the biker denizens don't rough you up!

#4 - Runyon's - East Meadow, NY



This is a tavern/sports bar just up the road from the Nassau Coliseum/Hofstra University on Hempstead Turnpike. The burger was fantastic - the fries were ordinary.

#3 - Ranchman's Cafe (Ponder Steakhouse) - Ponder, TX



Of all the people who have incredibly large lists in the[url='http://www.roadfood.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2976']These are the places I visited on Roadfood[/url] thread, few can claim this one. See the fresh-cut fries again - and let me assure you, that burger was a steak not long before I ordered it.

#2 - Kincaid's - Fort Worth, TX


This made a lot of other people's Top 5, too. Excellent burger, friendly staff, cheap, cheap pricing.

#1 - Peter Luger Steak House - Great Neck/Brooklyn, NY



OK...I know that people always say "in no particular order..." - well, the others may be in no particular order, but this is far and away the best hamburger I have ever had in a restaurant. I discussed why in the thread on [url='http://www.roadfood.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=24988']steakhouse burgers[/url].

Well, not too geographically diverse. But, Texas is a big burger place and I get their frequently. New York (especially the City) has its own burger culture, too. Still...I'd say that's a solid Top 5.

Travelin Man-
Thanks! Now I have to go get a burger for dinner!

Those are spectacular photos. They do certainly look worthy of being in any top 5. The #2 & #3 in Texas are on my list when I am in the DFW area in April.

Traveling Man, you did good. See you in Mexico Beach and Mobile next week end.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

BB - You will enjoy Ranchman's. The owner, Dave, is a fantastic guy, who has sat and chatted with me a couple of times when I was there off-hour.

Sundancer - I am SO looking forward to next week, you cannot imagine. Can't wait.

Top five I have had, places may now be closed, in no order.

Corner Bistro, Greenwich Village (13 years ago--I understand it has gone downhill).
Jackson Hole, 3rd Ave, NYC (18 years ago--may have closed--Cow on a Bun).
The Syrian Burgers I make on my grill (continually, in Pita Bread, with Yogurt mint sauce and cucumber salad on it).
Louis Lunch (On the list at least until I make it to Ted's in Meriden).
Best for Last: Father's Office in Santa Monica, CA. Absolutely the best burger I have ever had. Last time was about 5 years ago or more. I understand it is still great. And no one has mentioned it yet!!

1. Los Ojos Famous Jemez burger in Jemez Springs NM. Add green chile to it of course, and a beer. See the review elsewhere on the Website.

2. Redamak's cheeseburger, It's a bar in New Buffalo MI. Juicy hamburgers smothered with Velveeta. I haven't been there in 15 years, but I remember the place well.

3. Owl Burger at the Owl Bar in San Antonio NM. Said to be the place that originated the green chile cheeseburger. Get some of the pintos too, topped with green chile.

4. Big Chief double deck cheeseburgers at the TeePee drive ins in Indianapolis (classic drive ins with carhops). They're long out of business (last one closed around 1983), but were the inspiration for Burger King's Big Chef, and probably McDonald's Big Mac.

5. Tie between Inn N Out burgers and Steak and Shake for best chain burgers.

Steak and Shake has had recent troubles with their management (I suspect mismanagement), but their burgers (especially the double cheeseburger with a side of baked beans) are still very good, and are served on china. Great shakes.

Inn N Out Cooks their burgers to order, with freshly cut fries (from the driveup you can watch the guy make fries out of raw potatoes). They have singles, doubles, triples and so on...Cheese is an option.

quote:

Originally posted by hatteras04


1. Hinkle's Hamburgers, Bloomington, IN
2. Carl's Townhouse, Chillicothe, OH
3. Thurman's, Columbus, OH
4. Sumburger, Chillicothe, OH
5. Stan's, Columbus, OH

I like when old threads come up that I posted on almost 3 years ago so I can see what I was thinking at the time. I made my top 5 before I had been to Crabill's in Urbana, OH. Now I have been there 3 or 4 times and it goes in the #2 spot and Stan's comes off the list. I was actually there this morning. They open at 10:00, and I had my 4 double cheeseburgers at 10:05. I was quickly joined by 4 or 5 other people (which almost fills the place up) who also think that a good burger before 11:00 is a great way to start a Saturday.

This will be a roadfood kind of day as my wife and I are meeting some friends at Henry's in West Jefferson for dinner. Well really just for the pie but I should probably eat something for dinner first

From our local onmilwaukee.com comes news of a Playboy magazine "A-List" for burgers.

Here is the list in its entirety (in alpha order):

Ann's Snack Bar, Atlanta
Christian's Tailgate Grill & Bar, Houston
Dyer's Burgers, Memphis
The Hungry Cat, Hollywood
Kuma's Corner, Chicago
The Meers Store & Restaurant, Meers, Okla.
Shake Shack, New York
Solly's Grill, Glendale, Wis.
Tessaro's, Pittsburgh
Town Topic, Kansas City

A couple of places worthy of being included in the discussion. The green chile cheeseburger at The Owl Bar in San Antonio, NM.


And from Tessaro's in Pittsburgh.

So I had a burger last week that I would definitely put in or near my top 5. Only the thing is that it was a VEGGIE burger. I was absolutley floored at how good this thing was. I had it at the Northstar Cafe on the north side of Columbus (they have 2 locations but this is the only one I have been to). It is by far the best vegetarian meal I have ever had. I know it was made of rice and beans like most veggie burgers but there is just something different about it. For one thing, they use roasted beets or beet juice to give it the appearance of being a bloody medium rare beef burger. They also give it a really nice char on the grill and top it with good white cheddar and serve it on a great homemade bun with all the standard toppings. Seriously, it had a great beefy flavor. It is kind of pricey. Close to $10 which includes a side salad but it is huge. I could barely finish it and I am a big eater. The whole place is good and they also have some meat items on the small menu, but for me from now on, it will be the burger.

I see that several of you have mentioned Kincaid's in Ft Worth- seems they are having Landlord Problems and are being forced to move to another location- as yet, not specified. Should happen sometime this summer. This just broke on our local news last night! The landlord wants to triple their rent and also wants an 8% cut of the profits! Seems to me, since they ave been there for over 60 years that the building is already paid for (a few times over would be my guess)and that this guy (the landlord) is just looking for a quick fix to his own bottom line!

Wow...I hope that Kincaid's can get their rent situation resolved. Too often places change location and they end up with new equipment and the product just doesn't taste the same. The grills need to be seasoned properly to maintain a consistent product.

There is a pizza place that used to be located right near my office. The pizza was just OK - but, it was convenient. They moved - not far, but not out the back door anymore and we went there for lunch the other day. The pizza was terrible - undercooked, to start. It is a shame because the new location is nicer, bigger, and will - in the long-term - be more profitable. Until they get their ovens seasoned just right (something that just takes time), it will be tough for me to eat there.

I've been to McGuire's several years ago on our trip across country to Denver. This place was terrific. They had this 12 oz burger, but they also had like 25 varieties on it that you could choose from. It was a great burger, too. (roadfooder "Dholk" is right on the $$) The ceiling of the place was stapled with one dollar bills..Some say there was a million of them. People would sign them and staple them to the ceiling, the walls, etc.

That also have this cute little trick they like to play on their partrons. You need to go to the bathroom? The first door you come to will say "MEN'S ROOM" and then underneath, in a sort of confusing little design, there's an arrow pointing to the next door down! So, of course, I never saw that little arrow and proceeded to go into the ladies room!

I don't know what I was thinking (I was so proud I'd found this place in my research and my friend Jack was so happy...He had the blackened prime rib sandwich and I got the burger and we shared both) as I entered the wrong bathroom ..It never dawned on me that there were all these toilets and no urinals.

Anyway, I did what I had to and on the way out, in front of me was a woman! Thank G-D she did not turn around and nobody was on the way in as I rushed out. I got out of there fast and said something to our waitress before ordering their apple walnut something..It was wonderful, too. The waitress laughs and said "Oh we get them all the time with that one" Real cute.

I am glad to see the Hurricane did not destroy this place or did it? Has it been rebuilt or did it survive? When you are coming west on I-10 you have to go over this really low part of the highway and I remember commenting about it. I mean you were literally jsut on top of the water! Sure enough, that was the part of I-10 that was underwater and crushed two or three years ago. Very scary. They had to build this temporary bridge that floated. Now, I believe all is fixed.

After we left Penscola, we stopped in Biloxi and one of the best seafood places I've eve eaten at..McElroy's. Right on the water. It was trashed by that hurricane. Does anyone know if it was ever re-built? I was so proud of myself. I spend so many weeks researching each and every meal on the way to Denver and we had only a few disappointments. By far, the best meal was Arthur Bryant's in KC.

Oh, my top 5 burgers:

Bob Cat Bite, Sante Fe - Everything below is real good, but there's nothing to compare with the Bob Cat..In a league of it's own

Roaring Fork, Scottsdale
Tessarro's - Pittsburgh
Brickyard Lounge, Daytona Beach
PJ Clarke's, NYC

1. Miller's (Dearborn, MI)
2. Red Coat Tavern (Royal Oak, MI)
3. Krazy Jim's Blimpy Burger (Ann Arbor, MI)
4. Irish Coffee (Grosse Pointe, MI)

I'm at a loss for number 5, since really great burgers are hard to come by. Also, I haven't had many burgers outside of Michigan, so once I start traveling I'll have more input.

Travelin Man and Buffetbuster, great photos.
I must be hungry, because I'm up at 3:00 in the morning reading about hamburgers on Roadfood, and I'm a vegetarian!
Well, when I wasn't, my favorite food was a cheeseburger, and I've got a few places in mind.
The bottom four are, in no particular order:
Longhorn Grill, Amado, Arizona (great atmosphere, too- shaped like a longhorn)
Commonwealth Brewery, North Station, Boston, Massachusetts (closed long ago)
the Black Rose, Cambridge, Massachusetts
John Harvard's Brew House, Cambridge, Massachusetts,
and the winner, hands down, by a few hundred miles or more,
(Drum roll......KINCAID's, Fort Worth!
Sorry to hear that they must move, and I wish them success at their new location.
I'm sorry to say that I would find it hard to remain a vegetarian if I lived in Fort Worth.

quote:

Originally posted by hatteras04

quote:

Originally posted by hatteras04


1. Hinkle's Hamburgers, Bloomington, IN
2. Carl's Townhouse, Chillicothe, OH
3. Thurman's, Columbus, OH
4. Sumburger, Chillicothe, OH
5. Stan's, Columbus, OH

I like when old threads come up that I posted on almost 3 years ago so I can see what I was thinking at the time. I made my top 5 before I had been to Crabill's in Urbana, OH. Now I have been there 3 or 4 times and it goes in the #2 spot and Stan's comes off the list. I was actually there this morning. They open at 10:00, and I had my 4 double cheeseburgers at 10:05. I was quickly joined by 4 or 5 other people (which almost fills the place up) who also think that a good burger before 11:00 is a great way to start a Saturday.

This will be a roadfood kind of day as my wife and I are meeting some friends at Henry's in West Jefferson for dinner. Well really just for the pie but I should probably eat something for dinner first

You're right about Crabill's, and Stans has to come off the list -- It's been closed for months because a fire destroyed the place.

#1 Bates Burgers Livonia Michigan
#2 Millers Bar Dearborn Michigan
#3 Your Place San Diego (No Longer in Business)
#4 In-n-Out
#5 Crabills Urbana Ohio
...Russ

1-Kewpee Lima Ohio- grew up on it

2-Crabills- Urbana Ohio

3-Gahanna Grill -Gahanna Ohio

4-The Jug- Middletown Ohio

5-Sonics-everywere- what can I say. I enjoy there burgers

The Travelin Man


I don't know if this is Top 5 all-time, but this is my Top 5 from the last year or so (call it "year and change"):

#5 - Pancho and Lefty's - Hare, TX
This is a place that Bushie took me to on my last visit to the Austin/Round Rock area. We drove 45 minutes from Round Rock to this place - and the payoff at the end was worth it. I had mine with hand-cut potato chips (that might have needed some slightly hotter oil - or more time in the fryer, but they were good. You can (kinda) see Bushie's fries in the background - hand-cut, as well. If you're city folk like me, you might want to take Bushie with you so the biker denizens don't rough you up!

#4 - Runyon's - East Meadow, NY
This is a tavern/sports bar just up the road from the Nassau Coliseum/Hofstra University on Hempstead Turnpike. The burger was fantastic - the fries were ordinary.

#3 - Ranchman's Cafe (Ponder Steakhouse) - Ponder, TX


Of all the people who have incredibly large lists in the[url='http://www.roadfood.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2976']These are the places I visited on Roadfood[/url] thread, few can claim this one. See the fresh-cut fries again - and let me assure you, that burger was a steak not long before I ordered it.

#2 - Kincaid's - Fort Worth, TX
This made a lot of other people's Top 5, too. Excellent burger, friendly staff, cheap, cheap pricing.

#1 - Peter Luger Steak House - Great Neck/Brooklyn, NY
OK...I know that people always say "in no particular order..." - well, the others may be in no particular order, but this is far and away the best hamburger I have ever had in a restaurant. I discussed why in the thread on [url='http://www.roadfood.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=24988']steakhouse burgers[/url].

Well, not too geographically diverse. But, Texas is a big burger place and I get their frequently. New York (especially the City) has its own burger culture, too. Still...I'd say that's a solid Top 5.

Okay, I'm blown away that anyone knows about Ponder, Texas (just a short drive from Denton) 
If you're ever near Amarillo, the Golden Light off old route 66 is a top 10 greasy spoon burger and you can add green chiles when available.
Outstanding.
I'm a devout hamburger lover and soon, burgertopia.com will come on-line to cover the All American burger.
I cover most of North Central Texas for my job and Kincaid's is great - don't forget Fred's in downtown Ft Worth

 

My passionate love affair with hamburgers started way back when I was just a wee bit taller than Scott Carey ( obscure cinema reference. ) Unfortunately, the burger that I considered to be #1 on planet Earth is no more; the Kodiakburger at the late, great Come Back Inn in Melrose Park IL ( R.I.P., old friend. ) My current favorite is the Countryburger at the Country House in Clarenden Hills IL ( a real winner ), and a close second is the famed Hackneyburger at Chicagoland's Hackney's chain. The half-pounder at Moody's Pub on Chicago's north side is number three, and next would be the classic Charco-burger at Dog n' Suds on US 52 on the southeast side of Lafayette IN ( seasonal, unfortunately. ) Number five is the double-steakburger at Steak n' Shake, a large regional chain but definitely not fast food. Other favorites: Red Robin, Schoops, Gale Street Inn in Chgo., the Cedar Lake Kitchen in Cedar Lake IN ( my favorite patty-melt ), and Nick's Tavern in Lemont IL. I've yet to try Winstead's, Kincaid's, Dyer's ( next month! ), Solly's and Kewpee. How about a thread on Burgers To Avoid? I've got a loooooong list of those! 

wheregreggeats.com


Two Bell's Tavern, Seattle

I can attest to Two Bell's.  It met and axceeded my expectations.  I woullld recommend it to anyone visiting.

Here's two more Chicago-area burger places that are near n' dear to the hearts of many, myself included - Hamburger Heaven in Elmhurst, at the corner of North Ave. and York Rd.; and Bill Grant's Wonderburger, at 111th and Kedzie on Chicago's southwest side. Neither one is the least bit fancy ( in fact, HH is take-out only ), but both are good, dependable burger stops that have been around a very long time. Note that Hamburger Heaven is seasonal ( May thru October, I think. ) Coming up next: Burgers To Avoid.....

Like I said, Burgers To Avoid. I know this should be a separate thread, but frankly, I haven't got a clue how to do that ( quit shaking your heads out there! ) Anyway, here's some really bad hamburgers. Outback Steakhouse - oh man, I couldn't believe how awful this burger was; I had to force it down. A  similar disaster was the burger at a chain called Bar Louie's; misery on a bun. Everything at Chili's is inedible, so why should their burger be any different? Guess what - it isn't. A family restaurant called The Wheel in Hammond IN has a burger that should be avoided; same goes for The Steer in Highland IN. Both of those places are on Indianapolis Blvd.  The Fuddruckers chain used to have great burgers - not anymore! Last week I had a burger at the Triple XXX Drive-In in West Lafayette IN - never again. I could go on, but ......

A couple of days ago, I made a one-day roadtrip to Lima OH to sample the hamburger at the famed Kewpee ( downtown location. ) It was pretty tasty, although I don't think it quite lived up to it's lofty reputation. The fries were okay, and the chocolate milkshake was better than average. It's not a place that I would recommend as a roadfood destination, but you're passing through the Lima area, it's a good, dependable stop. The downtown location is a 1930s-era art-deco building; a real beauty.

If you are in the Burg......Top 5...

1.) Atrias - Pittsburgh
2.) Tassarios - Bloomfield
3.) Amiels - Pittsburgh
4.) Fatheads - South Side
5.) Sauce - Bridgeville

1. Rotiers Nashville Tn. I have mine served on french bread, WOW!!!
2. My grill!!! Grilled Med. and slow cooked on one side until done