hamburger in san diego

[lovesfood11]

What's the best burger in San Diego that has a similar special sauce that the burgers have at in n out?

[Alice Q]

Try Burger Lounge or Urban Solace

[beth1]

We tried Burger Lounge for the first time last week. I liked the fact that the menu was simple and straightforward. The burger, fries, and onion rings were nicely done and high quality. It was like a burger you'd grill at home, assuming you know how to grill.

[The Old Man]

In-N-Out.

[foodiechick]

oh my - that is soooo funny. but true.

[RB Hound]

I'm sure just about anybody that makes a good burger has a bottle of Thousand Island dressing in their kitchen.

Not a lot of difference between the In-n-Out special sauce and McDonald's special sauce (used on the Big Mac). I saw you said "best", though. :)

[cstr]

Agree on the thousand island, In-N-Out has that BMac taste but a bit lighter. I like Urban Solace, Shakespeare, Ritual Tavern and Hodad's.

[Josh]

Neighborhood should be on anyone's short list of best burgers in town.

[Fake Name]

I was completely underwhelmed there- it's possible they had a bad day. Not only was the burger (their special) dry and tasteless, their "service" and attitude was on par with Pokez.

It's possible I'm simply not cool enough. Too bad, because I could throw a rock out of my window and hit the place.

Try the Kabob place around the corner.

[JonDough]

I agree, I only go to the Neighborhood for their beer selection now. I have been there a few times and the food varied each time. The last time I went they made my friend's gf a grilled cheese sandwich that was inedible.

Hodad's (ob) and Nicky Rotten's (downtown) are worth looking in to.

[Josh]

Dry?

Weird.

I had juice running down my hands.

Now, I did order it rare, which is how it came. A rare burger will never be dry. If you ordered it medium or above then I'd expect some dryness. Especially with the thickness of their patties.

The service was pretty weak, but I don't go to places for service. So long as they bring me what I order, I'm pretty content.

And for the record, I'm not cool enough for any of the places down there. :-)

[pkt63]

My husband and I went to Neighborhood last night and had a really inconsistent experience. The place has a super fun atmosphere and is cute, but is more bar than restaurant, and I wouldn't return for a meal. The sweet potato fries were great, even though they seemed to be served with Wishbone Italian Dressing (it was supposed to be some mutard seed sauce).

The homemade chips that come with the burger were also quite nice. My husband's burger was definitely dry. Yes, he ordered it medium and I would have liked R or MR, but moistness shouldn't have to come only from the bodily juices of the cow, I think! I know they are against ketchup but a little more of that carmelized onion moistness or just a bit of special sauce to lubricate that huge artisan roll (tasty, but huge!), would have made it perfect. I loved the flavor, if it had only been more moist. The arugula was a nice touch.

I had the ribs in Stone Smoked Porter which was completely flavorless. I was really disappointed. I am a Clean My Plate girl, and I didn't even finish half of it. It comes with jalapeno mac 'n' cheese, which (based on the burger being "artisan" and some of their other offerings) I thought would be some fancy 4 cheese affair, or have a baked parmesan crust or something! But, no. It was rotini pasta with spicy Velveeta. Seriously, it was the cheese that movie theatres put on chips to make "nachos". Which isn't bad per se (we all like a little over-processed mystery food sometimes, right?) but certainly not expected with their artisan burgers and no ketchup ethos.

The cheese plate the party next to us had looked tasty, so I'd definitely go back for drinks and apps, but I don't know if I'd try any of their meals again....

[daimyo]

I'd have to disagree a bit on In-n-Out tasting like a Big Mac. I know its fast food, but to me its got a completely unique taste that I've never experinenced anywhere else. I don't know what it is.

[jessicah]

I don't know about "special sauce" but Western Steakburger makes some of the best burgers in town, especially the chili burger.

[Beach Chick]

Longhorn and ask for thousand island dressing.

[ibstatguy]

always like to see Longhorn gets its due. I'll add votes for the Dobson's bar burger and the Texas burger with cheese and grilled onions at Waterfront.

[Beach Chick]

Longhorn is one of those classic places and love to give it props..along with your choices as well for Dobson's and the Waterfront..(one of my all time fav dive's besides Nunu's)

[oerdin]

I second longhorns. One of the few old time classics in east county which never fails to disappoint even though the decor looks like it got stuck in the mid 70's. ;)

[DiningDiva]

Make that early 70s. One of the photos in my high school yearbook is of the Patrick Henry football team at Longhorn's. Trust me, that was a L-O-N-G time ago ;-)

[cookieshoes]

I second Hodad's. Their burger is pretty much a slightly greasier/messier version of the classic In-N-Out. Longhorn's is a slightly more "done down" version.

[SeanT]

Why not just go to in n out? three by three add ketchup, perfect amount of beef to bread. I love the sauce and the added ketchup puts a zing in the burger.

[cstr]

Never did a triple but, for a three spot and change, a single is an OK burger.

[DougOLis]

Beef n' Bun's (or Fred's in Alpine) are pretty similar to In-N-Out. I wouldn't call them the best burger in San Diego but they're still good. The Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake is super yummy.

[pickypicky]

Offshore Tavern, 2253 Morena Blvd. The Offshore Burger. Didn't expect much and wow! A pretty darn fine burger, and yes, it reminded me of a bigger, better IN-N-OUT. When I peaked into the mountain of deliciousness, I found a nest of grilled onions in a mysteriously rich sauce.

[ibstatguy]

ok, so it does not exactly fit as "hamburger". but as of today, it is the bison burger at Cowboy Star. it was simply (a) profound or (b) transcendental. we argued and could not agree. try it.

[Beach Chick]

Cowboy Star's bison burger got props in the UT Night and Day section today..cumin mayo and Anaheim chile.
I've only had a bison burger in Avalon and it was quite good.

[Fake Name]

Longhorn has bison burgers, too. Not a sign, however, of cumin mayo or chiles from Anaheim. And I'll bet, as much as I LOVE CowBoy Star, they don't supply Thousand Island Dressing on request. ; )

[Beach Chick]

Fake..
Longhorn's has bison burgers..I don't see the cumin mayo or Anaheim chiles but I know for a fact that bad boy would be loaded up with thousand..
; )

[oerdin]

I've always liked the Nessie Burger at Nessy's truck stop near the 15 & 76 freeways. It's a really strange place to find a burger but that doesn't change the fact that this is a damn fine burger.

[sd4life]

A couple people have told me that the best burgers are at The Hamburger Factory. So today I was in the Poway area and I decided to try it. The area that it is in is the Old Town part of Poway. It has an old western look to it along with the other buildings near by. Inside it was nice...with a log cabin/rustic appeal and a slight "Boll Weevil" feel to it. With it being Sunday and just a little past 11am I was hoping it wasn't going to be too busy. I enter and noticed it was indeed quite busy. Luckily, I spot a fews seats open up at the bar/counter. I say bar because they have about 10 beers you can choose from. I check out the menu and I see they have a good 8 to 12 choices of burgers and all of them you can substitue with a veggie patty or a buffalo patty. As I try to place an order for the Blueburger my server behind the counter tells me "we start serving lunch at 11:45". Since I nave to wait I might as well have a beer. So I order a Fosters on draft and Than my server says "12,16 or 32oz"...So I order the 32ozer...it lasted me my whole meal and than some. Ths schooner style glass was nice and cold so it stays cold as well. I ended up getting my order in just after 11:30. I ordered it medium rare and it came medium rare which was nice. The blue cheese was nice and chunky with a really good sharpness to it. Oh yeah, I added bacon to it and the bacon was nice and crispy. The fries are sold as a side...they are thin slices with the skin still on. So over all I'd say it isn't the best burger I've ever CHOWed on but it is up there and I will be recommending it to friends.

[ginael]

I had forgotten about this place! I had also been swayed by friends to try Hamburger Factory based on the premise that it's one of "the best burgers in SD". Although it was a fun, different vibe, I was less than impressed with the food. Maybe it had to do with the hype, but I've had better burgers at places like Mr. Peabody's. Again, not bad per se, just nothing to rave about.

[sdpanda80]

This may not be teh best burger in town bue Crazy Buger in North Park has one of the most ecclectic burger menus I have ever seen...