- Why is seafood popular in San Diego?
- With 70 miles of coastline, it’s no surprise that freshly caught fish and seafood figure prominently on most menus in San Diego.
- How do burgers fit into San Diego’s food scene?
- So how do burgers fit in?
- What type of burgers are popular among health-conscious San Diegans?
- Health-conscious San Diegans are drawn to restaurants offering organic, grass-fed, humanely raised beef and other pastured animals.
- How has the demand for quality beef influenced San Diego’s burger scene?
- This demand has led to a wealth of burger restaurants, ranging from neighborhood joints to gourmet burger kitchens.
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1. Burger Lounge (La Jolla)
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The Burger Lounge was founded on the idea that hamburgers should do more than taste delicious, they should also use healthy ingredients sourced from a sustainable environment. They do this by utilizing 100% fresh, single-source, grass-fed beef, and organic ingredients from local small farms.
Visitors dive into hand-crafted burgers like The Husky – double beef topped with double American cheese, fresh veggies, and 1000-island dressing. Diners can order sides of fresh cut fries, house-made onion rings, or half and half. Other menu highlights include a Quinoa Veggie Burger, Alaskan Cod and Free-Range Turkey sandwiches, and seasonal items like their Grass-Fed Bison Burger.
1101 Wall Street, La Jolla, CA, Phone: 858-456-0196
2. Crazee Burger
Crazee Burger is a quaint burger joint in San Diego's ultra-hip North Park neighborhood. Customers here chow down on delicious burgers and sip local craft beers in a bright and airy ambiance. Guests can order signature burgers from grass-fed Angus beef like the Muddy Pig, which is topped with Nutella spread, crispy bacon, and caramelized plantains.
The menu includes various exotic meat burgers for the more adventurous palate such as gator, camel, elk, duck, wild boar, and elk to name a few of them. Crazee Burger also serves sandwiches, sliders, sausages, soups, and salads. Sides include chili, sweet potato fries, and Frings.
3993 30th Street, San Diego, CA, Phone: 619-282-6044
3. Hodad's
Hodad's is on the main drag of San Diego's bohemian/surfer Ocean Beach neighborhood. The 40-year-old family business is the self-described home of the best burgers in the world. The restaurant has garnered wide attention for its uber-popular burgers with features on television programs like Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, the Food Network, and CNN.
Their menu is dominated by stacked, large-and-in-charge burgers made with the freshest ingredients. Diners often have to wait in a line down the block before getting one in hand. The menu caters to lighter appetites with mini and single burgers too, along with a veggie burger and a few other sandwiches.
5010 Newport Avenue, Ocean Beach, CA
4. Neighborhood
Neighborhood is a gastropub pioneer in San Diego's East Village neighborhood. They are dedicated to using locally sourced ingredients and serving quality craft beer. This neighborhood hot spot features an eclectic menu of small plates, greens, pub selections, and of course signature burgers.
Smalls such as Fried Dill Pickle Chips, Jalapeno Mac ‘N' Cheese, and Truffle Fries pair perfectly with signature burgers like the Hood Burger, topped with gruyere and blue cheese, caramelized onions, and arugula. Diners won't find catsup here. Instead, they offer ten house-made sauces made to complement their burgers. They have twenty-eight beers on tap, and thirty-two bottled beers.
777 G Street, San Diego, CA, Phone: 619-446-0002
5. Nine-Ten Restaurant and Bar
Nine-Ten Restaurant and Bar is located on prominent Prospect Street in the upscale La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego. The restaurant strikes a balance between swank and grace with rich mahogany wood, high ceilings, white table linens, an outdoor terrace, and a sidewalk patio.
Much of the California menu is determined by daily visits to local artisan produce providers, including Chino Farms and Crows Pass, and by the fresh fish of the day. What doesn't change is the NINE-TEN Burger, an incredible half-pound burger made from grass-fed Angus beef and topped with house-made pickles, tomato, butter lettuce, and mustard-seed aioli on a brioche bun. Skinny fries can be upgraded to truffle fries.
910 Prospect Street, La Jolla, CA, Phone: 858-964-5400
6. Rocky's Crown Pub
Rocky's Crown Pub in San Diego's Pacific Beach neighborhood is the definition of a local spot. The modest pub with a rustic cedar wood interior features a five-item menu written on a chalk board, flat screen TVs with sports programming, and nostalgia-inducing SoCal memorabilia. It's friendly, relaxed, and unpretentious.
The straightforward menu includes one-third pound burgers with or without cheese, half-pound burgers with or without cheese, and a basket of fries. Each burger is topped with the standard lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles, and mayo. French fries come unseasoned and deep-fried to golden brown perfection. Rocky's serves about a dozen beers, including a few local brews.
3786 Ingraham Street, San Diego, CA, Phone: 858-273-9140
7. Slaters 50/50
SoCal native Scott Slater founded Slaters 50/50 in 2009. His intense passion for bacon, burgers, and craft beer led to the creation of the 50/50 patty, made with 50% ground bacon and 50% ground beef. The next step was to overload these juicy burgers with a pile of inventive toppings.
The Original 50/50 is piled high with pepper jack, avocado mash, chipotle adobo mayo, and a sunny-side up egg. Other designed burgers range from a California Burrito Burger to a Peanut Butter & Jeallousy Burger. Diners can create their own burgers with what the restaurant calls "excesstacy" from an expansive menu of ingredients. Burgers are paired with craft beers.
2750 Dewey Road, #193, San Diego, CA, Phone: 619-398-2600
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