NOPA’s burger is great. I also like Super Duper, nicely done for the.price. Sparky’s Giant burger in Montclair is good. In downtown San Leandro there’s Rocky’s Charcoal Grill, burgers grilled over charcoal. I haven’t been in a long time and wouldn’t make a special trip but if you’re there worth a stop.
Anyone been to Barney’s Burger recently? Use to go fairly regularly until about 10 years ago.
Kirk’s Steakburger in Palo Alto is good but it’s been a while.
I stopped going to Barney’s because they wouldn’t serve me a medium rare burger. They’re also expensive, $15.95 for just the basic burger, no sides.
Actually I had a similar experience, maybe my last time there. Ordered medium rare, came out well. Send it back…and the burger that came back was basically raw. If all you cook are burgers, and you call yourself gourmet, you should be able to make a MR burger. I guess I forget.
Agree about prices in general…burgers are creeping up in price. I wanted to check out Matty’s Place (Matt Horn’s burger joint) but the burger was $26 bucks.
I went to Barney’s on Solano recently and won’t be back again likely. It tasted “fine”, but it cost $18.95, and that did not include fries, which ran an additional $6.95 for a “half order” (which was really large enough for a reasonable person. Additionally, when they asked me what I wanted on it, I asked if I could get the onions grilled. “No problem”, I was told, but when the bill came I saw they charged me $3.00 for them. With tax, it was well north of $30 before tip. That’s more than burgers at a lot of fancier places which are preferable for atmosphere alone, and probably better quality as well. For instance, Wood Tavern charges $22 for theirs, which include french fries, and additions are only $2.
Another place I like a lot is Phyllis’ Giant Burger in San Rafael, on 4th near the border of San Anselmo. It’s charcoal grilled and really tasty, though an 8 oz patty may be too large for some. A bacon cheeseburger there (no fries) set me back 14.88 including tax. I tried posting a photo yesterday, but had trouble with the interface.
Nopa’s burger is the king of restaurant burgers.
Today we had burgers at FBI Burgers in Novato. Haven’t been here for a few years since the new owners took over from JJ’s. I had the single (pepper Jack) cheeseburger with mayo and pickles, and my husband had a single classic burger with mayo, lettuce, onion, and tomato. Both burgers were excellent, very flavorful, and arrived quickly. Next time I would order mine medium rare though. He also had fries and a chocolate shake. The fries were exceptional - crispy and salty. His milkshake got a thumbs up.
Super nice people behind the counter. The perfect burger place, nothing fancy, just good. Prices are reasonable too. We’ll be back.
Was it too rare or too well-done?
It was too well done. I’m assuming their default is medium, like a lot of places now.
For the view alone with a heaping dose of heritage, there’s the classic Red’s Java House (never lettuce and tomato) burger+Bud deal.
With a PBR for dessert. 
The sourdough “bun” will rip up the roof of your mouth if you are not careful tho.
We sort of remember fries finally appearing on menu board around the time the coffee roaster on the floor vanished.
Original Joe’s had the same “bun” problem on Taylor Street.
Cali Alley, mentioned above, has a great email list/membership program. I get special offers every couple of weeks from them. Today’s was for 1/2 off on two basic burgers, so $18 for the two. There’s also a standing deal, 35% off on dinner items ordered after 4PM. Join at calialley.com.
They don’t spam or sell your address.
If we’re reviving this thread, and I can add the peninsula because someone said Kirk’s (which I would not agree with, they are fine but not at the top of the heap), I’d say my current favorite is Refuge (San Carlos / San Mateo), for their Pastrami Burger. While I’ve had a few other people trying to do pastrami burgers, Refuge does great pastrami so the burger is most excellent. The fries are also excellent in the double-fried belgian style to go with your belgian beer. They used to have a burger called the Mole burger (the oaxacan paste not the varmint), but it’s been discontinued. The price is not really ok, it’s quite high, but between atmosphere and taste I’m willing to bend a little on price.
Downhill alert goes to my prior second favorite burger, at Stein’s. I’ve had really ugly meals there something like three times in a row now. Those “pulling a thing from your mouth because you can’t choke it down”, along with “so greasy I didnt feel good for a few days” kinds of meals. It’ll be off the list for a while.
Love the Refuge. Sitting outside with a pastrami sandwich and a glass of Prosecco is heaven!
When we lived in Sunnyvale in the 80s, we used to go to the Kirk’s out on Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road almost every weekend. Really good, and the condiments selection was stellar. I don’t think it’s around any more though.
Ah, Smokehouse! Barney’s on Piedmont Ave in Oakland and wascthereca Smokehouse across from Tech Hi in Oakland? Hippo was a trwat, but a drive to SF bitd. Any of those others still standing?
The Smokehouse I’m talking about is on Telegraph at Woolsey in Berkeley
(I don’t know why the image didn’t embed. Click on the link to view)
My 7th grade English/History teacher (she taught both in back to back classes) must have LOVED Hippo. Every year she took a class of 30 kids from Stockton to SF for some field trip (probably a museum or play…I don’t remember), and every year included a stop at Hippo for burgers. She would hype up their menu for about a month prior to the trip, and most of us brought home a paper menu as a souvenir. It wasn’t until I was in my 30s that I realized how strange it was to build a burger place into the itinerary.
Oh yeah, Hippo Burger. It was one of the first gourmet, upscale. burger joints. My uncle lived a few blocks away so he’d take me as a kid. It was a nice place and I remember the ginormus copper hood. It closed in the late 80s if I remember.
The other place that’s gone but remembered is Clown Alley. Had some fun there.
