Credit where credit is due: as burger cities go, Boston represents. We have high quantity and overall high quality, with variety to please even the most finicky taste buds.
And speaking of variety, here’s a starter list of killer burgers. With flavorful, juicy beef as a given, let's look at creative toppings. From fancy to low-brow, umami to spice, from downtown to the suburbs, we’ve got all your burger cravings covered.
The Craigie Burger from Craigie on Main
When Chef Tony Maws decides to “make something tasty that makes people happy”, the result is a study in culinary opulence that must be tried to be believed. Made with grass-fed beef sourced from New England farms, bone marrow, and suet, this eight-ounce masterpiece is seasoned with miso and served up on a light and fluffy milk-style bun made in-house. The toppings are classic — lettuce, tomato, onion, and homemade mace ketchup.
This sandwich (pictured above) is every bit as glorious as it sounds and worth every single penny of the $26 it costs. The bad news? Craigie on Main only makes 18 of these darlings each night. Don’t let that stop you, however. This burger is absolutely worth the risk.
853 Main St., Cambridge, 617-497-5511, craigieonmain.com
The Blackjack Burger at R.F. O'Sullivan & Son
Can we talk about the menu at R.F. O'Sullivan & Son? It's incredible, and chock full of the thickest, juiciest, freshest, most mouth-watering burgers around. “We have every type of burger," says owner Richard Sullivan. "We have burgers with coleslaw on it, Cajun, we have honey mustard burger, Blue Cheese burger, I mean anything you want, we can basically make up.”
But our must-have is the Blackjack burger, a half pound mountain of beef topped with one of the tastiest creole sauces in town. We love it so much that we always ask for extra; it's the perfect dip for the hand cut fries or the beer battered onion rings that come with your burger.
282 Beacon St., Somerville, 617-491-9638, rfosullivans.com
The King Burger at Boston Burger Company
Hear me out: I first regarded this burger with suspicion, because as much as I love beef and peanut butter, combining the two seemed a little forced. But I did try it—admittedly, I have loved many a weird thing over the years—and instantly I felt like I understood Elvis a little better. The smooth peanut butter works as well as any sauce to accompany the salty bacon, the sweet bananas, the juicy patty. I won’t say it’s not weird, but I will say that you should go ahead and try it anyway. It works…somehow.
Back Bay: 1100 Boylston St., Boston, 857-233-4560; Cambridge :1105 Mass Ave., Cambridge, 857-242-3605; Somerville: 37 Davis Square, Somerville, 617-440-7361, bostonburgercompany.com
The Paris Burger at the MET Bar & Grill
This oozy, umami-happy burger is a staple at the MET Bar and Grill, with locations in Boston as well as Legacy Place in Dedham, the Natick Mall, and Nantucket. The menu divides the options into “continental” and “international.” The Paris option stars melty Brie, a fried egg, caramelized onions, and truffle mayo — an international combination that’s quite comfortable right here in the US. Go into this one armed with a fork and knife; as soon as you pop the runny yolk, the burger becomes much harder to eat with your hands.
Dedham: 400 Legacy Pl., Dedham, 781-467-1234; Natick: 1245 Worcester St., Natick, 508-651-0003; sister restaurants in Back Bay and Nantucket, metrestaurantgroup.com
The Spicy Jalapeño Burger at Tasty Burger
Not every night is a fancy burger night. A lot of the time, you just need something good, fast, convenient, and affordable. And sometimes you need it at 1am on a Wednesday. This is where Tasty Burger comes in. With five restaurants across Metro Boston, most of which feature late hours and all of which feature great bang for your buck, their burgers are under $7 but taste like they should cost a lot more. In particular, the Spicy Jalapeño burger has a bit of bite from the habanero and jalapeno aioli and just enough gooey pepper jack cheese to satisfy any cravings at any time of day.
Fenway: 1301 Boylston St., Boston; Harvard Square: 40 JFK St., Cambridge; Back Bay: 145 Dartmouth St., Boston; North Station: 1 Nashua St., Boston; tastyburger.com
And for those looking for a stellar burger outside of the Metro Boston area:
The Crunchy Burger at The Fix in Worcester
The culinary staff at this hopping neighborhood joint used their superior observational skills to notice that many diners, myself included, take a bite of a burger and then immediately chase it with a fry or chip in a most uncivilized manner. So for the Crunchy Burger they cut out the middleman and put the chips right on top of the burger. Add lettuce, fried prosciutto, mustard pickle, parmesan crisp, and garlic mayo to round out the flavor profile, and you have yourself one very delicious, and crunchy, meal.
166 Shrewsbury St., Worcester, 774-823-3327, thefixburgerbar.com
