The Burger Anarchy Pantheon

Everyone has a top ten best burgers in London list these days. We couldn’t come up with ten.

The B/A Pantheon is our list of favourites from our favourite cities. Only the truly exceptional get a spot on this page.

This guide is a mix of burgers, brunches, bars, BBQ and more.

London

Hawksmoor Guildhall

Weekdays and breakfast only. We’re not talking about steak. Any of the pastries are good but we love the H&K McMuffin. You’ll come out feeling like you’ve robbed the place the breakfast is such a good deal.

MEATliquor

The Bacon Cheeseburger is the all time classic, alongside the gluttonously huge Chilli Cheese Fries and deep fried pickles. Go out of hours - middle of the afternoon or after 10.30pm.

Pitt Cue Co

Still the only thing genuinely coming anywhere close to proper American BBQ in the UK. Order the pork ribs, try to leave some room for afters.

San Francisco

Roam Artisan Burgers

So upsettingly good, and manages to treat the classics with respect while churning out some radically imaginative sandwich combinations.

Mama’s

For once, Zagat doesn’t lie. The French Toast combo and Monte Cristo will change your life. Take a paper, because there will be a queue.

Los Angeles

Foodtrucks

The spiritual home of the foodtruck movement, lest we ever forget. Our essential few are Frysmith, Buttermilk Truck and, the originator, Kogi BBQ.

Umami Burger

This is what everyone is going to be copying next. A proper Marmite burger - love or loathe. No inbetween. We love. Crazy flavour combinations executed with craft precision. The best starting point is the eponymous sandwich, but we want them all.

San Diego

Hodad’s

It’s the diced ‘n smashed bacon patty in the bacon cheese that’s the winner here, along with some chunky onion rings for good measure. Go extreme and double up on the patties, cos that’s, like, totally gnarly.

Tivoli Bar and Grill

Diviest bar in the Gaslamp. Always an obligatory stop for a ten buck pitcher of PBR, some local skatepunk on the jukebox and a chinwag with the friendly barkeep.

New York

Steak ‘n Shake

With its flavoursome, crusty, smashed patties, Rob thinks this is the best fast food burger in New York.

Shake Shack

With its pillow-soft butter warmed Martins rolls, Simon thinks this is the best fast food burger in New York.

Meatball Shop

How do you like your balls? Doesn’t matter, they have them any way you like here. Grab a classic Smash with provolone, and sneak in a slider or two just to be safe.

Rosemary’s Greenpoint Tavern

Awesomely kitsch dive bar, helmed by Rosemary herself. Pound some 32oz styrofoam cups of foamy Bud for $4, then get on the hard stuff with some mixers. There isn’t much mixer.

Minetta Tavern

Breaks all the rules and delivers the fanciest plain burger we’ve ever had.

Portland

Little Big Burger

Little in size, big in flavour. Definitely order the truffle fries, one of the best examples of we’ve found. Still hungry? A cheeseburger is only $3.75, so have two.

Food Carts

With 700+ the choice is mesmerising, but you’d not go far wrong grabbing a ridiculous brunch sandwich from the Big Egg, the Khao Man Gai from Nong’s Khao Man Gai for lunch, and the PB&J Fries from Potato Champion after a few drinks in Hawthorne.

Voodoo Doughnut

Prepare to get in line to be served at this delightfully irreverent and suggestive glazed-dough mecca. With a nut-tickingly outrageous selection of the softest doughnuts, the Bacon Maple bar and Portland Cream are a couple of their classics that’ll raise gushing superlatives.

Seattle

The 5 Point Cafe

It’s open 24 hours. If you want wings, a mountainous portion of Tater Tots, and a few squiffs of the old liquor, in a bar that’s been serving boozehounds for longer than you’ve been alive, you’re in.

Macrina Bakery

The french toast and chicken apple sausage is mental good, and we defy anyone to not polish off the herb roasted potatoes left on anyone’s plate. They serve a mean latte if you’re a fussy coffee drinker who doesn’t like diner-style, and you can grab kick ass bagels and muffins for later on too.

Shorty’s

Get your Coney Island on whilst playing classic pinball and arcade machines, chowing down on a hot dog, and chasing it all with a boozy slushy. It’s small, it gets crowded, the barstaff are mono-syllabic (if responsive at all), and the booze is cheap.