Zagat decided to honor the humble hamburger by putting together a list of the best burgers in 25 cities. Great idea, terrible execution. To remedy this burger atrocity we have put together a burger rebuttal to their list and included a few additional cities that love burgers just as much as any other place.
The first clue that Zagat’s list was flawed was that the best burger in San Diego was listed as In-n-Out Burger. While they make a fine burger, no burger enthusiast would ever consider it the best. Other notable issues were omission of joints like Louis’ Lunch, quite possibly the home of the hamburger, or White Manna in the middle of New Jersey diner paradise.
Other issues were geographical. For example, Crave Real Burgers is 60 miles from Denver, it appears to Zagat as if Canada simply does not exist and many burger destinations listed didn’t mention the city the restaurant was actually in.
Presented in all of its juicy glory, here are the best burgers in each city Zagat covered and a few more for good measure.
Zagat | Crasstalk | |
Atlanta | Vortex Bar & Grill | Farm Burger |
Austin | Hopdoddy’s Burger Bar | P. Terry’s |
Baltimore | Linwoods | The Wharf Rat |
Boston | Mr. Bartley’s | The Haven |
Charlotte | Bad Daddy’s Burger Bar | Brooks Sandwich House |
Chicago | Edzo’s Burger Shop | Kuma’s Corner |
Dallas/Ft. Worth | Maple & Motor | Goodfriend Beer Garden & Burger House |
Denver | Crave Real Burgers | Cherry Cricket |
Ft. Lauderdale | The Le Tub Saloon | Jack’s Old Fashion Hamburger House |
Gainseville | — | Relish |
Hackensack | — | White Manna |
Honolulu | Kua ‘Aini Sandwich | Home Bar & Grill |
Houston | Goode Co. Burgers | Miller’s Cafe |
Kansas City | Burger Stand at the Casbah | Town Topic |
Key West | — | Pepe’s Cafe |
Las Vegas | Slidin’ Thru | Bachi Burger |
Los Angeles | Golden State | Father’s Office |
Miami | Flip Burger Bar | Bourbon Steak |
Milwaukee | — | Solbelman’s Pub & Grill |
Minneapolis | — | Convention Grill |
New Haven | — | Louis’ Lunch |
New Orleans | — | Port of Call |
New York City | Burger Joint | Bareburger |
Orlando | Pine Twenty 2 | BurgerFi |
Orange County, CA | — | Penguin Cafe |
Ottawa | — | Dick’s |
Philadelphia | Sketch | Royal Tavern |
Phoenix | — | La Grande Orange |
Portland, OR | Killer Burger | Burgerville |
Raleigh | — | Char-Grill |
Sacramento | Squeeze Inn | Krush Burger |
Salt Lake City | Hire’s Big H | Guzzi’s Hamburgers |
San Antonio | — | Chris Madrid’s Nachos & Burgers |
San Diego | In-n-Out Burger | Hodad’s |
San Francisco | 900 Grayson | Street |
Seattle | Broiler Bay | Kidd Valley |
Silicon Valley | — | St. John’s Bar & Grill |
St. Louis | — | Anthony’s Bar |
Tampa | — | Square 1 Burgers & Bar |
Toronto | — | The Burger’s Priest |
Tucson | — | Zinburger |
Texas Hill Country | — | Alamo Springs Café |
Washington, D.C. | Ray’s to the Third | Black & Orange |
Photo: Flickr