The SF Burger Topic

[ScorchedPalate]

SeaCrotty and I had burgers at the Burgermeister on Cole earlier this week, and came away duly impressed. I'd eaten at the Church Street location earlier, and thought my burger was OK, but nothing amazing.

Both of us ordered burgers med-rare; I got the avocado-cheeseburger, Cam had the bacon-cheeseburger. They were both extremely juicy and perfectly (PERFECTLY) medium rare. The buns weren't up to the juice level, but man... these were two tasty burgers. We didn't even want to put ketchup on them.

Fries were middling, rings good but not great. Beers are $2.50 (draft pints) between 5 and 7 for happy hour.

Loved it. Will be back.

[ludja]

Getting off work at 10:30 in SF leaves few options for food.  So last night, as I cruised up 16th street at 11 p.m., seeing all the restaurants closing their doors, I settled on the aforementioned Kellys.

The good and the bad:

Good:  A very well accesorised burger.

Being in a rather self-indulgent phase (I deserve it), I ordered a bacon swiss burger with fried onion and onion rings.  Mmmm, greasy.

Kelly's does a good job with the toppings.  A generous portion of flavorful swiss cheese, melted over a healthy layer of bacon (crisp, but not dry or burnt).  The fried onions were a hit.  Freshly sauteed, they still developed a bit of sweetness and still had snap.  (A little more cooking would have helped.) 

The bun was fresh and firm, lightly toasted.  The whole shebang was served with a little cup of mayo, tomato, ice berg lettuce, and real sliced pickles (not those sweet flourescent green things).

The rings were frozen, but still good.  These had more of a cornmeal-type crust than a thick batter, which I don't enjoy as much.  But they were still good rings.

The bad:  Well, the burger.  It was thin.  They asked how I wanted it -- medium rare -- but it was still well-done.  Not even close.  It wasn't too dry, and had some good flavor.  But still, too thin to rank in the "special" burger category.

And the place is too new and pretty.  Lot's of colors.

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I remember a place on Albion and 16th that had good juicy burgers and satisfying crispy spicy potato wedges.  It was only open six months when I left in 2003, but I became a weekly staple for grease fix. Name? Still open?

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I think that must be Kelly's Burgers? I don't know if it's still open or not but they did (do?) have a great burger.

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Kelly's Burger is still around, they offer a good grease fix in the middle of the night but I wouldn't compare their burger to Absinthe or Zuni.

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Tried a Kelly Burger a few weeks ago. It hit the spot after a tour of Anchor Steam Brewing Co and the complimentary tasting of their full line of beers... (great tour by the way).

Agree with Stone on much of what he wrote a while back. I liked the ratio of meat:bun. The bun had some heft but not too much to overwhealm the meat. The meat was tasty but I also got a well done burger than the requested "medium rare". Excellent, above average pickles and the sides of mayo, tomato and lettuce were nice. Good fries. Price for a cheeseburger and soda was ~ $7.50. I'd go back again, especially after drinking as mentioned above.

[Malik]

Tried a Kelly Burger a few weeks ago.  It hit the spot after a tour of Anchor Steam Brewing Co and the complimentary tasting of their full line of beers... (great tour by the way).

Agree with Stone on much of what he wrote a while back.  I liked the ratio of meat:bun.  The bun had some heft but not too much to overwhealm the meat.  The meat was tasty but I also got a well done burger than the requested "medium rare".  Excellent, above average pickles and the sides of mayo, tomato and lettuce were nice.  Good fries.  Price for a cheeseburger and soda was ~ $7.50.  I'd go back again, especially after drinking as mentioned above.

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Kelly's Burgers definitely hits the spot after a night of drinking, especially since they're open until 3am on Friday and Saturday nights. I've wondered in there many times on my way home after a good night of drinking.

[daivmon]

Kirk's Steakburger in Palo Alto, it's worth the drive. They also have locations in Santa Clara and San Jose.

[Shel_B]

My husband and I got a kick to find the best burger - right now we're concentrating on San Francisco since that's usually the city we eat out most in.  So far we have tried:

[...]  Bill's Place ...

Just curious - what did you think of Bill's?

I was very disappointed when I ate there recently. They used pre-formed burgers that were of mediocre quality meat. Nothing like I remembered their burgers to be when I lived in SF many years back.

Edited December 30, 2008 by Shel_B (log)

[Shel_B]

East bay - Val's Burgers in Hayward. (castro valley side) Been there for years.  Still the place to go.

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Another vote for Val's ....

[Shel_B]

Oscar's in Berkeley always had tasty burgers, according to friends.  I always had their veggie burger and it was fab!  I love the way that place smells as I walk by, mmmmm.....

The air around Oscar's smells great, however their meat burgers are, at best, of medium quality. There are far better places, IMO, in the East Bay.

[AsianEscoffier]

Everyone is wrong except for me. The best burgers in town are the following... Nopa($$) and Rosamunde Sausage Grill Burger tuesday(dirt cheap). I especially like Roasmunde cos you can get a delicious cheap burger until they run out, and wash it down with a delicious beer at Tournado next door.

[Carolyn Tillie]

Everyone is wrong except for me.  The best burgers in town are the following...  Nopa($$)  and Rosamunde Sausage Grill Burger tuesday(dirt cheap).  I especially like Rosamunde cos you can get a delicious cheap burger until they run out, and wash it down with a delicious beer at Tournado next door.

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Sorry, I see your Nopa Burger and raise you the O Izakaya burger (also $$).

Clearly blows Nopa out of the water in size, quality, and to-die-for fries accompaniment. Order it with the maitake mushrooms, charred negi onion, and cheese.