Boston loves burgers — from pricey, iconic burgers to cheap, quick burgers; from burgers stacked high with multiple toppings to burgers that go virtually topping-free. This map includes solid options on all parts of the local burger spectrum, so there’s something here for everyone, whether you’re looking to drop a couple bucks on a simple fast-food burger or $20 on a limited-quantity legend.
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Where to Eat Burgers in Boston
A meaty to-do list

Daddy Jones
Daddy Jones’s mostly Greek menu has plenty to explore in the gyro and skewers department, but don’t ignore the excellent burgers. There’s several options, but here’s a very good starting point: the Athena burger, made with a lamb patty stuffed with feta and herbs, red pepper feta and American cheese on top, bacon, and a fig jam all smushed between two halves of an English muffin.
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Boston Burger Company
Boston Burger Company — now with locations in Harvard Square, Back Bay, and Salem as well as the original Somerville one and a kitchen takeover in Jamaica Plain — is the place to go for absolutely over-the-top burgers. Think stacked-tall combinations such as peanut butter, bacon, and fried cinnamon-and-sugar bananas (The King); mozzarella sticks, fried macaroni and cheese, onion rings, fries, bacon, golden barbecue sauce, and American cheese (the aptly named 420 Burger); and bacon, a stack of beer-battered onion rings, honey barbecue sauce, and American cheese (Killer Bee).
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R. F. O'Sullivan & Son Pub
Serving up burgers since 1992, this classic Somerville spot goes through hundreds of pounds of burgers per week, according to a 2015 interview with owner Richard Sullivan. The restaurant is known for its tall half-pound, definitely unsquished patties.
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Charlie's Kitchen
The double cheeseburger Charlie’s is famous for is unpretentiousness — flat patties topped with American cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and pickles. It’s served with perfect shoestring french fries, and is best eaten with a cold beer or several.
Little Donkey
How many luxe ingredients can one burger hold? According to Central Square mainstay Little Donkey, a bunch — and somehow, it all works out well in the end. The dry-aged beef patty is coated in cheese, onion soup mayo, and buffalo pickles, with a few crispy jalapeno chips tucked in, too. Somehow, foie gras also makes it in there. It’s decadent, and it’s well worth the splurge.
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Hojoko
At this Japanese izakaya in Fenway, save room between bites of sushi and sashimi for the burger. Made with chuck and wagyu short rib and topped with cheese, dashi pickles, red onion, and a secret sauce, it’s been a local favorite for years.
Tasty Burger
Boston’s essential burger scene tends to skew towards big, pricey, meaty burgers, but there are a few inexpensive options holding their own. Tasty Burger is the local answer to Shake Shack — thin patties, squishy buns, quick service, and relatively low prices.
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Moonshine 152
Moonshine 152 has a special, luxe burger that changes monthly, but it’s always a hit. Not into the monthly special? There’s also a grass-fed burger with sharp cheddar, lettuce, tomato, onion, and aioli, served with shoestring fries, and a similarly dressed vegetarian mushroom tofu burger (that can be made vegan).
Hunter's Kitchen and Bar
There’s a lot of tall, beefy burgers on this list, but its crispier cousin, the smashburger, also deserves a spotlight here. At Southern-style comfort food hangout Hunter’s, the smashburger is bursting with crispy onions, strips of bacon, slices of avocado, sharp cheddar cheese, and a squirt of spicy serrano aioli, all layered on a puffy potato roll.
Nubian Markets
Just shy of a smashburger, the butcher’s burger at Nubian Markets boasts wonderfully charred edges and comes slicked with both a berbere citrus mayo and savory bacon tomato jam. Lettuce and onion round out each bite, and the burger is tucked in a sturdy golden pita bun baked on the premises.
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Bred Gourmet
Located in Dorchester’s Lower Mills neighborhood, this cozy burger joint serves beef burgers and plenty of alternatives (jerk salmon, and veggie, for example) on brioche and potato buns. Try the Parisian, a grass-fed beef burger on brioche with caramelized onions, bacon, brie, sauteed mushrooms, truffle aioli, and a fried egg.