The Best Burgers in New York City

Fairfax

“The Burger (From Bar Sardine)” boasts an origin story almost as long as veteran restaurateur Gabe Stulman’s resume. First conceived as the Fedora Burger, a one-night-only special served at erstwhile West Village mainstay Fedora not long after Stulman took over, the burger gained a cult following when it joined the menu at Stulman’s nearby pub Bar Sardine (also now closed). Then it disappeared and reappeared (with a nomenclatural nod to its previous home) at Fairfax across the street, where it remains — exclusively — to this day. The juicy chuck and brisket patty, dripping with smoked cheddar cheese, is served on a toasty grilled potato roll that's pressed flat for an ideal bun-to-meat ratio. Smoky-sweet barbecue mayo, a slice of raw red onion, and a pile of frizzled shoestring potatoes (yes, right on the burger) complete this masterpiece. A side of crispy Old Bay tater tots is required.

Harlem Shake

The Harlem Classic w/ Beef is a double-patty, lacy-edged smashburger made from a proprietary blend of locally sourced Pat LaFrieda beef with a blanket of American cheese between the patties, served on a buttered and toasted Martin’s Potato Roll with onions, homemade pickles, and special sauce. The Hot Mess w/ Beef is the same burger, but instead of the aforementioned toppings you get a zingy house-made relish of pickled cherry peppers and bacon. The choice between the two is one only you can make, but either way, you won’t be disappointed (or hungry, maybe ever again).

Petey’s Burger

An old-school, no-frills fast food joint in Long Island City, Petey’s is New York’s answer to In-N-Out. And their cheeseburger — a medium-thick four-ounce patty of pure Black Angus Beef topped with lettuce, tomato, onion, and American cheese and served on a fluffy fresh-baked bun — is just about the most classic version of a cheeseburger you’ll find. Double double who?

Pastis

When this Meatpacking standby reopened after a five-year hiatus in 2019, it also brought back — to the great relief of many — its beloved Cheeseburger à l'Américaine. A Frenchified, bistro take on an American standard, the double four-ounce patties are doused in melted American cheese and served with dill pickles, red onion, and special sauce on a brioche bun. Pomme frites come on the side, of course.

Emily

Ordering a burger at a pizza restaurant may seem like a dubious choice, especially when that burger rings in at $33. But this burger, the Emmy Burger at EMILY in Clinton Hill, is no ordinary burger. A succulent, steak-like 7oz Pat LaFrieda dry-aged beef patty comes draped in Grafton cheddar, caramelized onions, and a red pepper-kissed aioli called Emmy sauce, served on a salty pretzel bun. If you want to try one of the best of the best in NYC’s burger scene, order it.

Home Frite

The cheeseburger at this Bed-Stuy standby (and Smorgasburg favorite) is as traditional as they come and undeniably ideal for those days when you just need a no-frills, good burger. We’re talking fresh ground beef, melty American cheese, caramelized onions, pickles, and a creamy-zingy secret sauce on a toasted brioche bun. This place keeps its menu simple — burgers, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, fries, and that’s pretty much it — and everything is done right.

F. Ottomanelli Burgers

Prefer your patties straight from the source? This Woodside, Queens, butcher shop, first opened by Italian immigrants in 1960, has since morphed into a burger joint-slash-butcher shop, and it serves some of the city’s juiciest double-patty brisket-and-chuck burgers — sourced straight from its own meat counter in the basement. Try the classic double cheeseburger on a seeded bun (too rare these days, IMHO) or upgrade it with their house-made candied bacon jam.

Blue Collar

This laidback Bushwick counter service spot uses a local brisket blend for their crispy-edged smashburgers, and you’d do well to get two of them on one bun. From there, it’s molten American cheese, onion, pickles, green lettuce, and flavor-packed special sauce on a squishy golden potato bun. Add a milkshake and fries if you came to party.

Gus’s

When it first opened in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, in 2022, Gus’s was Gus’s Chop House, a steak restaurant with a secret off-menu burger you could only order at the bar. Now the restaurant has rebranded, and their dripping monstrosity of a burger is not only a permanent fixture on the menu, but also available for delivery. A seriously luscious patty of blended pork, chuck, and dry-aged beef, it’s topped with a blend of raw and caramelized onions, salty aged cheddar, and housemade aioli.

Minetta Tavern

One of the West Village’s most famous dinner joints, Minetta Tavern is known for its big steaks and equally big celebrity sightings. But those in the know opt for the Black Label Burger, a dry-aged ribeye blend drizzled with clarified butter on the grill, topped with a tangled nest of caramelized onions, and served on a cloud-like, sesame-seeded bun that Balthazar Bakery custom makes just for this burger. Believe me, you won’t miss the cheese.

Shake Shack

Sure, there are Shake Shacks all over the world, but don’t you forget that the very first one was actually a hot dog cart in Madison Square Park. (And that original location remains an excellent post-game destination if Eleven Madison Park’s vegan tasting menu doesn’t quite fill you up — just sayin’.) The great thing about living in NYC, though, is that you can order a ShackBurger — Angus beef, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, and creamy-tangy ShackSauce on a toasted potato bun — from just about anywhere in the city, and it’ll arrive on your doorstep lickety split.

Win Son Bakery

This Taiwanese American bakery, deep in the heart of South Williamsburg, is home to more than exceptional pastries. Here you’ll also find one of the city’s best burgers: the double smash cheeseburger with fries. Served only at dinner, this double-patty delight arrives under a blanket of melted raclette, a garnish of scallions, and a mayo-based special sauce that, unlike most Thousand Island-esque versions, is truly unique. It’s made with a Tawainese-inspired fermented bean curd called doufu ru blended with ginger, more scallions, and ketchup. It’s all served on a cloud-like bun of milk bread that pastry chef extraordinaire Danielle Spencer bakes in-house.

Comfortland

This nostalgic little counter service spot in Astoria, originally known for its donuts, certainly lives up to its name. There’s a classic burger called the Grandstand (with a beef patty, American cheese, lettuce, and special sauce on a fluffy potato bun) but the real MVP is their burger-adjacent Old Boy: a mess of sweet-n-spicy chopped Korean ribeye, cheddar, beer battered onion rings, gochujang aioli, and pickled red onions, served on a toasty brioche bun.

Peter Luger Steak House

Williamsburg’s most epic steak experience also serves one of the city’s most epic burgers, the Luger Burger, served daily until 3:45 on the dot. What you get is just half a pound of juicy USDA prime on a golden bun — if you want cheese, tomatoes, onions, and fries, you’ll have to add them.

Au Cheval

The New York outpost of this beloved Chicago mainstay does not disappoint when it comes to burgers. Maximalism is the name of the game; order the “single” burger if you want two patties, and the “double” if you want three. Each thicker-than-it-needs-to-be patty of prime beef is seared to a nice crust on the outside and juicy on the inside, with a melted quilt of sharp American cheese and plenty of cream dijonnaise, crunchy pickles, and onion. You don’t have to add a few slabs of thick-cut bacon, but…you know…you could.

7th Street Burger

This local chain is known for its double cheeseburger, two crispy-on-the-outside patties with American cheese, grilled onions, pickles, and a house sauce on a Martin’s potato bun. To really gild the lily, you can also order spicy loaded beef fries. Yes, that is a chopped up burger topping the fries, along with melted American cheese, grilled onions, and spicy sauce.