16 Must-Eat Burgers in NYC

With its endless well of choices, New York City is nothing short of a burger bonanza. The trick is to find and eat the best burgers when you’re in NYC. This guide reveals 16 juicy options.

Hamburger lovers have a happy place in New York City. Actually, they have a lot of happy places.

Historically famous for its bagels and pizza, the city has quietly become a hub for some of the best hamburgers in the world. These juicy gems can be found everywhere from smash patty burgers at retro counters to ginormous burgers at fancy-schmancy restaurants. In fact, some of the city’s top eateries now serve burgers at premium prices that easily exceed $30. And, sadly, a side of fries is often extra.

Don’t despair if you can’t justify big bucks for a hamburger or if you’re unable to score a reservation at the hot NYC restaurant du jour. There are still New York City burgers that clock in under $10 and many are served at restaurants where reservations aren’t a must.

We ate a lot of hamburgers when we lived and worked in NYC, and we’ve made it our mission to eat more each time we return to the Big Apple. With a diverse range of sizes, shapes and flavors, these burgers never bore us. In fact, we have no problem eating a different hamburger every day during a week-long visit.

These are our favorite hamburgers in Manhattan and Brooklyn:

1. Red Hook Tavern – Best Hamburger in NYC

Price Level: Premium
Reservations: Recommended
Burger to Order: Dry-Aged Red Hook Tavern Burger

You may be surprised that our pick for the best New York City hamburger is in Brooklyn instead of Manhattan. We were surprised, too, especially since getting to Red Hook is quite the schlep. But choosing Red Hook Tavern for this honor was a no-brainer once we bit into a dry-aged Red Hook Tavern burger. That burger was nothing short of a monstrous, juicy masterpiece.

Open since 2019, Red Hook Tavern is one of New York City’s great gastropubs with a bustling saloon vibe and a menu filled with elevated pub dishes, including one of the best wedge salads we’ve ever eaten. Billy Durney first achieved fame for his smoked meat at Hometown Bar-B-Que, also in Red Hook, and now his burger is in the spotlight.

Thick and juicy, Durney’s dry-aged patties are perfectly cooked to a mid-rare pink before they’re simply adorned with American cheese and raw white onion slices. Crinkly potato rounds are a welcome addition that complete the dish.

Pro Tip
Save room for dessert and walk over to Steve’s Authentic Key Lime Pie where you can eat a key lime tart with a view of the Statue of Liberty. If you’re feeling frisky, order a Swingle. Hand-dipped in molten Belgian chocolate, the frozen key lime tart is like a popsicle but more decadent.

Red Hook Tavern is located at 329 Van Brunt Street, Brooklyn, NY 11231, United States.

Price Level: Premium
Reservations: Necessary
Burger to Order: Black Label Burger

Minetta Tavern is a classic New York tavern with excellent food and two famous burgers on its menu. Topped with cheddar cheese and caramelized onions, the Minetta Burger is great. However, it’s the restaurant’s Black Label Burger that ranks as one of the richest single bites of burger bliss in the city. Both hamburgers are served on brioche buns and come with fries on the side. Interestingly, the more expensive Black Label Burger is cheese-free as not to disturb its tasty melange of ‘prime dry-aged beef cuts’.

Operated by one of New York’s great restaurateurs, Keith McNally, Minetta Tavern is an iconic NYC restaurant with a history that dates back to 1937. Originally a West Village hangout for some of the city’s most notable writers, the historic restaurant lost its luster over the years. Things changed in 2009 when restauranteur McNally took the reins. Not only did he transform the tavern into a modern American bistro with French accents, but he also added two of the city’s best hamburgers to its menu.

Pro Tip
While you can request that cheddar be added to your Black Label Burger, we say skip the cheese and enjoy the burger’s big, fatty, beefy flavors without distraction.

Minetta Tavern is located at 113 MacDougal Street, New York, NY 10012, United States.

Unlike most chefs who achieve fame after they pay their dues in the kitchen, hamburger aficionado George Motz opened Hamburger America after he achieved multimedia fame with books, a documentary and a Travel Channel show. That early fame hasn’t dimmed Motz’s carnivorous passion. In fact, it was on full display during our midday lunch.

While Motz didn’t physically cook our hamburgers, his enthusiasm was palpable as he mingled with patrons who filled all eleven counter stools at his Soho luncheonette. (There’s booth seating at Hamburger America too.) After missing out on eating at the restaurant soon after it opened in late 2023, we were happy to snag two of those stools and eat three of Motz’s signature hamburgers.

To be clear, we didn’t intend to eat three hamburgers at Hamburger America. We initially ordered two – the classic smash burger and Motz’s Oklahoma-style fried onion burger – plus an order of fries. However, after watching the guy next to us scarf down three burgers including one oddly topped with peanut butter, we went crazy and ordered an off-menu patty melt known as the Chester. All three of the juicy, classic burger beauties we ordered were made with ground chuck sourced from Schweid & Sons in New Jersey.

Sitting at the counter was like attending a hamburger sporting event with a front-row view of burger chefs working flat-top grills with finesse. As to which was the best hamburger, we agree to disagree. One of us favored the smash burger topped with mustard, diced onion, dill pickle and cheese. He was obviously wrong since our fried onion burger was a meaty masterpiece enhanced by its melty blend of American cheese and gooey caramelized onions. The patty melt was tasty too.

Pro Tip
Arrive on a weekday at an off-peak time to avoid a long wait for a stool at Hamburger America’s burger bar.

Hamburger America is located at 51 MacDougal Street, New York, NY 10012, United States.

If you’re a TikTok fan, then you already know four things about 4 Charles Prime Rib. First, you know that its cheeseburgers are the holy grail in NYC. Second, you know to splurge and add both a farm egg and a bacon slab to that cheeseburger. Third, you know that a loaded cheeseburger at the intimate supper club is luxury priced. And, fourth, you know that scoring a 4 Charles reservation is next to impossible.

Since we knew these four things, our eyes were wide open when we pulled every stop to score a brunch reservation at the clubby West Village hot spot. Then, after we accomplished our goal, we wondered if the 4 Charles cheeseburger would live up to our lofty expectations. Spoiler Alert… It did.

The experience of eating a loaded 4 Charles cheeseburger starts when it arrives at the table. That’s when a white-gloved server cracks the egg before cutting the double wagyu burger in half. It’s quite the show. For us, though, the real entertainment occurred when we bit into the über-juicy cheeseburger. It reminded us of the first time we bit into an Au Cheval burger in Chicago but even better.

Ironically, as much as we liked the cheeseburger, it wasn’t our favorite dish at 4 Charles. That honor goes to the French dip sandwich that stole our hearts and filled our bellies. Paired with a bowl of strawberry ice cream, the chocolate cream pie we shared for dessert was great too.

Pro Tip
4 Charles releases reservations on a rolling basis 21 days in advance at 9:00 a.m. via the Resy reservation system. If you don’t score a reservation on your first try, sign up to be notified when/if tables become available. Beyond that, our best advice is to be diligent and creative.

4 Charles Prime Rib is located at 4 Charles Street, New York, NY 10014, United States.

Price Level: High
Reservations: Recommended
Burgers to Order: Emmy Burger (Brooklyn) and Emmy Double Stack Burger (West Village)

The concept of ordering a hamburger at a pizzeria is counterintuitive to pizza snobs (like us). However, that’s exactly what we did during our dinner at Emily when, we ordered a Detroit-style pie and an Emmy double stack burger.

That cheeseburger, the only burger available on Emily’s West Village menu, was a messy beast. Its two patties, made with dry-aged grass-fed beef sourced from Pat LaFrieda, were topped with caramelized onion, American cheese, spicy sauce and sliced pickles. A pretzel bun provided the burger’s finishing touch while waffle fries filled the plate.

Pro Tip
The sole hamburger on the menu at the original Emily in Brooklyn comes with one patty instead of two, Grafton cheddar instead of American cheese and waffle fries instead of regular fries. Neither Emily location allows hamburger modifications.

Emily has locations in Brooklyn and Manhattan. We chowed down at the West Village Emily located at 35 Downing Street, New York, NY 10014, United States.

Price Level: Moderate
Reservations: Nope – First Come, First Served
Burger to Order: Cheeseburger

The JG Melon burger is a classic New York pub burger made tasty with plenty of fat and served simply with a pickle on a generic white plate. The restaurant doubles as one of the classic bars of NYC – a tin-ceilinged saloon with wood floors and bartenders who may have worked there longer than the bar has been serving hamburgers.

Eating at JG Melon, which has been serving its legendary burgers for over half a century, has its quirks. Expect to wait in a queue and bring cash since the Upper East Side saloon doesn’t take credit cards. However, you’ll forget about those first-world hardships as soon as simple yet enormous pub burgers and cottage fries hit your table.

Pro Tip
JG Melon has five burger options: plain hamburger, cheeseburger, baconburger, cheeseburger with bacon and turkey burger. They’re all currently priced under the $20 threshold.

JG Melon is located at 1291 3rd Avenue, New York, NY 10021, United States.

Price Level: Moderate
Reservations: Necessary
Burger to Order: Double Cheeseburger

Rolo’s is located at 8-53 Onderdonk Avenue, Ridgewood, NY 11385, United States.

Schlepping to Rolo’s during rush hour is worth the extra effort. You have to arrive early if you want to score one of the Ridgewood restaurant’s burgers. (Like many trendy restaurants, Rolo’s intentionally limits its burger production.) Since those burgers typically sell out by 6:00 p.m. in the evening and 1:00 p.m. during brunch, we reserved a 5:00 p.m. dinner slot and ordered a double cheeseburger before we even looked at the menu. Yes, we’re that obsessed.

The melty mouthful lived up to its reputation. Made with freshly ground beef, the double cheeseburger’s thin patties, cooked uniformly pink, were topped with grilled onions and a Dijon-mayo mix appropriately called dijonnaise. A pickled long hot pepper added a smoky element that was both unique and tasty.

Don’t sweat if you can’t get to Rolo’s that early. Beyond burgers, the restaurant, helmed by Gramercy Tavern alums, is notable for its wood-fire grill and in-house butchering program. Its eclectic menu features great dishes like grilled polenta bread and two-sheet lasagna verde bolognese as well as house dry-aged steaks. But if you’re burger-obsessed like us, get there early.

Pro Tip
Treat yourself to pastries at Radio Bakery. The Greenpoint bakery is helmed by Kelly Mencin who was the opening pastry chef at Rolo’s. We’re big fans of her Earl Grey-morning bun and cheesey pretzel bear claw.

Price Level: Moderate
Reservations: Not Normally Necessary
Burger to Order: Pat LaFrieda Burger

Established in 1817, The Ear Inn has many stories to tell for those willing to listen. Some of those stories involve its status as the city’s oldest drinking establishment while others involve its historic 18th-century building, its quirky sign and its auspicious former residents. It’s also home to some of the city’s best burgers.

We’re fans of The Ear Inn’s Pat LaFrieda burger which is made with eight ounces of meat sourced from the vaunted NY area meat purveyor. It’s caramelized on a flat top, cooked medium rare and served with both salad and home fries. Other burger options include a lamb burger topped with tzatziki sauce and a veggie burger.

Pro Tip
Check out The Ear Inn’s music schedule and plan your visit accordingly.

Ear Inn is located at 326 Spring Street, New York, NY 10013, United States.

Price Level: Moderate
Reservations: Difficult
Burger to Order: Golden Cheeseburger

Golden Diner is justifiably famous for its Honey Butter Pancakes. If you haven’t previously eaten at the Chinatown eatery located under the Manhattan Bridge, you’ll obviously need to order the fluffy breakfast staple. However, if you’re a burger fan, go with a friend and order the Golden Cheeseburger too.

Despite its appearance, the Golden Cheeseburger is far from standard. That’s thanks to the addition of Korean-inspired mushroom gochujang sauce. This earthy sauce adds a spicy yet sweet element to the big meaty burger. The burger is served on a sesame scallion milk bun and also topped with sliced pickles from The Pickle Guys located in the nearby Lower East Side.

Pro Tip
Upgrade your Golden Cheeseburger to include fries and a pickle.

Golden Diner is located at 123 Madison Street, New York, NY 10002, United States.

Price Level: Premium
Reservations: Necessary
Burger to Order: Sailor Burger

The thing about eating a burger at Sailor is that it has to happen at lunchtime or during brunch – the Fort Greene bistro doesn’t serve burgers at night. With that in mind, we set our sails (i.e. made a reservation) for a midday meal. Ordering a burger was a must for us since Sailor’s head chef, April Bloomfield, was globally famous for her Roquefort topped burgers at The Spotted Pig. The Manhattan gastropub inauspiciously closed in 2020.

We didn’t just order a burger when we dined at the nautically decorated Sailor. (We also ordered a Caesar salad, deviled eggs and a croque monsieur. Oh, ginger cake happened too.) Once the burger arrived, we couldn’t help comparing it to its predecessor. Not surprisingly, it arrived in a grilled brioche bun and was surrounded by a heaping pile of fries. It was also cooked beautifully, with a crisp char on the outside and juicy red finish on the inside. However, unlike the Spotted Pig burger we ate years ago, this one sported both caramelized onions and Cheddar cheese.

Pro Tip
Pair your Sailor burger with a glass of house wine unless you’re more in the mood for beer, cider or a phony Negroni.

Sailor is located at 228 DeKalb Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11205, United States.

Price Level: Affordable
Reservations: Nope
Burger to Order: Gotham Smash

Gotham Burger Social Club proved us wrong just when we were starting to think that smash burgers had jumped the shark. The double Gotham Smash Burger we ate at the hamburger joint’s Brooklyn location had two smashed patties that were charred on the outside yet not at all burnt tasting. It also had grilled onions, American cheese, pickle slices, jalapeño peppers, club sauce, ketchup, mustard and a buttery bun.

Mike Puma opened the original Lower East Side ‘club’ in 2024 after smashing burgers for years while operating his popular pop-up. Beyond his signature smash burger, Puma has added comfort foods like chopped cheese tacos, hot dogs and tater tots to the menu. His menu also includes a vegan smash burger if that’s how you roll.

Pro Tip
Skip the fries and order frickles (i.e. fried pickles) instead.

The original Gotham Burger Social Club is located at 131 Essex St, New York, NY 10002, United States. We ate our smash burger at the Brooklyn location inside Threes Brewery in Green Point.

Price Level: High
Reservations: Necessary
Burger to Order: 19th Street Burger

Before Shake Shack (see below) achieved global burger fame, Danny Meyer showed his burger prowess at the original Union Square Cafe. It’s the restaurant that launched his culinary empire in 1985. It’s also the restaurant where we both experienced Meyer’s burgers, both beef and tuna, for the first time.

Daryl shared business lunches at the original Union Square Cafe with his Dad and Mindi enjoyed more than a few business lunches there too.The restaurant’s yellowfin tuna burger was a classic go-to for both of us of back in the day. With the restaurant’s evolution, that burger is not currently on the menu.

Although Union Square Cafe moved from Park Avenue to 19th Street in 2014, the restaurant is still going strong and the same can be said about its 19th Street burger. Made with a blend of brisket, chuck and short rib, the juicy burger comes with cheddar cheese, herb aioli and heritage bacon plus lettuce, tomato and onion. A generous pile of rosemary shoestring fries completes the dish.

Pro Tip
Make lunch or brunch reservations if you want to chow down on a 19th Street burger – it’s not on the dinner menu.

Union Square Cafe is located at 101 East 19th Street, New York, NY 10003, United States.

We could be snooty and pretend that we don’t love the burgers at Shake Shack but that wouldn’t be truthful. It’s been our favorite American fast food restaurant since we first visited the original location back in 2007. And, while we like Shake Shack’s standard ShackBurger with its Angus beef blend patty, melted cheese and special sauce, we’re partial to the SmokeShack. That big boy burger is topped with applewood-smoked bacon, chopped cherry peppers and special sauce.

Yes, we know that Shake Shack is a chain restaurant with hundreds of locations throughout the US plus more in Asia, Europe and Mexico. However, we consider Shake Shack to be a New York hamburger joint since its original location is in Manhattan. Plus, Shake Shack founder, Danny Meyer, is a New Yorker.

Pro Tip
Pair your hamburger with crinkle cut fries and a black and white shake for the full Shake Shack experience.

Price Level: Affordable
Reservations: Nope
Burger to Order: SmokeShack Burger

Shake Shack has multiple NYC locations. We’ve eaten at several including the original Shake Shack inside Madison Square Park, the Shake Shack inside Grand Central and a Shake Shack near Carnegie Hall.

Price Level: Moderate
Reservations: Optional
Burger to Order: Veselka Burger

Is it just us or does it seem like every NYC restaurant has at least one burger on its menu these days? Veselka, despite its Ukrainian theme, is no exception to this trend. While not a new development, burgers weren’t on the original Veselka menu when the East Village institution started serving pierogis and stuffed cabbage in 1966. Now there are two burgers, one for carnivores and one for vegetarians, on the restaurant’s menu.

We ordered a classic Veselka burger during our most recent late night meal. Served in a sesame bun, its flame-grilled Angus beef patty was topped with cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato and onion. Ukrainian dressing (similar to Russian dressing) provided the burger’s appropriate final touch.

Pro Tip
Pair your Veselka burger with kasha or a potato pancake if you want to lean into the restaurant’s Eastern European roots.

The original Veselka is located at 144 2nd Avenue, New York, NY 10003, United States.

Price Level: Premium
Reservations: Recommended
Burger to Order: Cheeseburger à l’Américaine

Located in the formerly seedy Meatpacking district, Pastis isn’t a typical burger joint. Re-opened in 2019 by Keith McNally and Stephen Starr, it’s a French-style brasserie notable for its hip clientele, a snazzy zinc bar and a menu filled with dishes more typically eaten in Paris than in Manhattan. That menu includes a burger and it’s a doozy.

Make no mistake – Pastis’ cheeseburger à l’Américaine is an all-American concoction (per its name) that features two beef patties, cheese, pickles, onions and special sauce. We’ve heard that Pastis’ seeded buns are baked at McNally’s Balthazar which is a good thing unless you follow a gluten-free diet. If that’s the case, maybe you should order a Salade Nicoise or Steak Frites instead.

Pro Tip
Burn off some burger calories by taking a walk on the nearby High Line.

Pastis is located at 52 Gansevoort Street, New York, NY 10014, United States.

Price Level: Premium
Reservations: Necessary
Burger to Order: Cheeseburger

The Grill’s cheeseburger is only available for lunch and it’s not cheap. But, despite those limitations, it’s a solid cheeseburger that comes with a major perk – eating in the magnificent dining room designed by Philip Johnson. That room, located in the Seagrams building, became famous when the legendary Four Seasons restaurant occupied the space. As grand as ever, it’s a slice of New York history that justifies the cheeseburger cost of admission.

You may not be familiar with The Grill since it’s not typically included in NYC burger lists. The restaurant is a big time steak house that’s part of the Major Food Group along with heavy hitters like Carbone, Dirty French and Sadelle’s. Steaks are the primary draw here for those with big appetites and even bigger expense accounts.

Pro Tip
Don’t skip dessert. Mindi’s mom deemed The Grill’s Lemon Chiffon Cake to be the best cake she ever ate.

The Grill is located in the Seagram Building at 99 E 52nd Street, New York, NY 10022, United States.

The only way to find your favorite New York City burger is to eat as many as possible. Once you try our favorite spots, consider adding the following restaurants to your hit list:

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Original Publication Date: July 25, 2024
Republication Date: August 9, 2026