What was the best burger you've ever had?

I picked up food poisoning eating beef tartar in a third world country. Came back home, couldn't eat anything for 3 days.
On day number four, I broke my fast with a mozza burger from A&W.
I'm sure it was the lack of any taste for the previous 4 days, but that was the very best thing I've ever ate. Such vivid and pronounced flavours.
It was unforgettable.
- Food after gastroenteritis is the best. Anything will taste like the best food you have ever tasted because your stomach demands to be filled.

Not knowing it was plant-based, I got a monstrous jumbo something-or-other burger from Monty's Good Burger in LA.
Honestly I almost freaked out at how good it was, and even went back to the place just to tell them it was the best burger I ever had.
It's the one thing pulling me west
- I’m not vegan but I agree. I’ve said this before but meat is kind of a crutch and branching out into plant based menus has led to a lot of creativity. Plus plant based dishes look better— not terribly important, but nice.
  I find 11MP’s food to be better now that it’s entirely plant based, and have found myself using less and less meat at home. Besides unhealthy fast food for the calories while bulking and some restaurants that aren’t as forward thinking, I’ve found myself accidentally almost pescatarian these days. Meat based dishes just lack a certain something.
  One day I’d like to be vegan but I lack the strength of will. It does feel like talented chefs like Crenn or Kofoed could have me there sooner than expected, and largely unintentionally.

The best burger I ever had was in New York. I can’t remember then name of the place, or even where it was but it had an autographed picture of Regis Philbin on the wall with a comment on how much he loved the burger there.
On to the burger:
That first bite… oh, what heaven that first bite is. The bun, like a sesame freckled breast of an angel, resting gently on the ketchup and mustard below, flavors mingling in a seductive pas de deux. And then...a pickle! The most playful little pickle!
Then a slice of tomato, a leaf of lettuce and a...a patty of ground beef so exquisite, swirling in your mouth, breaking apart, and combining again in a fugue of sweets and savor so delightful. This is no mere sandwich of grilled meat and toasted bread- This is God, speaking to us in food.
- Oh i know that place! It's the corner bistro!
  
  Oh, the Corner Bistro! It's amazing, I spent a quarter of my life searching for the best burger in New York City, but silly me, it never occurred to me to check the highest-rated burger in the Zagat guide. Wow, thanks a lot, guy. Let me return the favor.
  Great cup of coffee: Starbucks.
- Often it is the bun that can destroy a burger. There is a limit to how much variety and taste in the meat. But most times it is the main thing people focus on. How it is cooked factors a great deal mind you.
  A good burger is far more then the meat alone.

I make myself one every week, green chile cheeseburger.
- Recipe?
- Yeah, homemade is best. It takes a bit of practice though because there's so many things one can use. A good burger doesn't have too much stuff and not too little and it needs balanced flavours and textures.

Seattle has a chain called Dick's. Their burgers are tasty and cheap. A couple of Deluxes after a night out really hits the spot.

It was during a trip to Norway. I was in Stavanger, walking around with my friend. It was noon. We stumbled across a hamburger stand on the street next to a monument or something.
The burger (with no side dish) was quite expensive for street food (about $20), but we realized it was not made with beef or pork. It was reindeer meet.
And also the best fucking burger I've ever had.

Coming down from 5 days in the mountains backpacking, eating freeze-dried food. It's not that I was suffering; I like the meals I pick, and I done this dozens of times before, but for some reason, that burger was fantastic. It was at the first restaurant we came across, and the beer was on tap and cold.
Maybe because it'd been a particularly grueling hike back out, and we'd skipped the last camp site and were racing the sun.
Good burger.

Not sure I'll be able to get over In N Out Burger. For a chain their consistency is incredible. Good quality ingredients, but most specifically, they always get the toast on the bun perfect, soft in the center, crispy just around the edges, and thousand Island style dressing on a burger is the shit.
- In N Out burger might be the sole push I need to leave the east coast tbh. I spent last summer in CO and probably ate my body weight in those burgers and animal style fries
  
  Hell just go to Vegas. Flights are shorter and cheaper.

It was a burger I ate when the chef was going to kill us all.
- Did you eat the whole thing or get some of it in a doggy bag to go?
  
  I really liked that movie, but it feels impossible to convince anyone to watch, lol.

It's a tie for me.
A place where they served only the bun and meat, and you got to serve yourself your own salad and sauces. I made some absurdly tall burgers. The taste was phenomenal too. Very handy place when I was a student with very little money.
Playing a gig in a small town. Saw a burger called The Carnivore. Was assured it was worth the cost, so I bought one. This thing had mince patty, bacon, sausage, steak, chop (pork or lamb, can't remember which), then cheese, onion, lettuce, tomato, egg... and I'm probably still forgetting something it had. It was monstrous. It took me almost an hour to eat it, and I enjoyed every minute.
- If your #1 is in San Jose, CA, I'd be willing to bet it was "juicy burger". Still to this day, I've never had a better fast food burger.
  
  Not San Jose, and not Juicy Burger. It was a small franchise that went broke.

Father’s Office in Santa Monica. You get it one way, no changes. If you want ketchup on it, F Off. Heck, if you want ketchup for your sweet potato fries (the seasoning on them is delightful), F Off again. But, and I say this after trying a million burgers (slight exaggeration), no contest.
That said, somebody commented with a burger in West LA that I’ll be shortlisting.

London, UK: Burger & Beyond, Bleecker Burger (RIP the Bleecker black), maybe Patty & Bun
North West, UK: Almost Famous, maybe Burgerism
What I fancy ordering from these places varies based on mood, but they're good enough there's pretty much no bad choices
There's nothing else in the same category I've had in this country so far, but open to suggestions.

This restaurant in Argentina. Didn't even go there for the burger. Wasn't sure what to get on the menu. Place was on the "at least where a collar" type with low lighting and cocktails and all that. Type of place you'd usually eat with fork and knife.
Anyways, I saw they had a burger on the menu and the ingredients just sounded good. Nothing far out there or anything, but it gave me the craving. When it finally came out, the first bite was so. Fucking. Good. Meat in general has a very high floor in Argentina, but that burger was something else. My wife agrees that was the best burger we've ever tried as well.
We went back to Argentina about a year after we had had that burger. About a month in, I surprised my wife with a reservation at the restaurant. We had been talking about getting that burger again for weeks before coming to Argentina. We get to the place, order a drink, and pick up the menu. For about 2 minutes the table was silent. Then we started looking at each other quizzically. "Do you see the burger?", I asked. She shakes her head. We signal to the waiter that we have a Q. He comes over and we ask him about the burger. "Ah, I'm sorry, the chef took it off the menu a couple of months ago. I guess not enough people were ordering it.". Man, both our hearts sank.
TLDR; life is unfair. The best burgers can only be eaten once.
- That story made me sad for you both.

Philadelphia, but I don't remember the restaurant: I had something called a "French Toast Burger." In place of buns were two pieces of French Toast and it was topped with egg and cheddar, and came with maple syrup on the side (this is the only time I've ever gotten real maple in a restaurant.) It was the best meal that I will never eat again.

At Hubert Keller's Burger Bar in Vegas. Wagyu burger black and blue.
Second best is the house burger at Tolon in Fort Wayne, IN.
Third best is one I cooked over charcoal at a campsite in North Dakota.
- Tolon is an absolute shining gem of food in Fort Wayne and I'm thoroughly amused seeing it mentioned here. I've never had the burger but the duck fat frites are always great.

Mushroom and Swiss burger from Worthy Burger, South Royalton, Vermont.
I also like my standard 5 Guys order: bacon cheese burger, grilled onions, grilled mushrooms, BBQ sauce.

At a fast food place, Shake Shack is the best I've ever had. Burger Fi is also good, but can be inconsistent sometimes. Now, the best burgers I eat are the ones we grill at home, a local butcher makes a blend mixed with Japaleños and they're delicious.
- I discovered a random Shake Shack in Dubai. I was really surprised by how good they were. Definitely didn’t tip the In n out experience but definitely very enjoyable!
  
  Glad you enjoyed it, the only one near here is at a place that's almost impossible to find parking for so we don't go very often.

It was at a country club in a small town I used to work in. It was called "The Cowboy", and it was one of the best burgers I've ever had. It was pretty sizable and it had bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and cheese.

Casino El Camino in Austin TX has some amazing burgers. Total dive bar, but worth it for the food.

Nick’s Burger from Nick’s Tavern in Lemont, IL. 1/2 lb of deliciousness, built for the industrial workers at the plants along the Des Plaines River.
Hothead Burger from Lucky Monk in South Barrington, IL. T’was the perfect combo of spicy and fresh cow. Sadly, it is no longer on the menu.
Yeah, you get two best burgers. Complaints to /dev/null.

About a decade ago at a job in Philly, we’d hunt down the spOt Burger cart (that’s how they capitalized it). Tiny little trailer/cart only big enough for one person to stand in, and this guy would park it somewhere new around center city/university city area every day. My memory is a little hazy so I might have some details wrong, but every day he’d grind a blend of ribeye and filet fresh to make the burgers in his cart, cooked around a medium, and served them on a brioche bun with pickled red cabbage and some other fixings. He got the fat content just perfect with the steak blend, and the toppings were unexpected but incredible together.
I haven’t been back in awhile but I heard he was opening a brick and mortar restaurant because his cart was so successful. Hope it’s true!

In Kansas City there's a little shack called Town Topic. 8 people get in that place and it's packed tight. Been around forever. I first noticed it when I moved here and late night Friday and Saturday when the bar crowd was looking for food a line would be wrapped around the building.
It is a type of smash burger that's cooked on an old griddle, greasy in all the right ways a drunk man could want at 2am without being a problem during the more sober times. To me it's the best burger I can get hold of.

Burgers from BurgerFuel. They are from NZ and have only very few outposts elsewhere. But they are the best I’ve ever eaten.

https://www.mussel-burger-bar.com/ Louisville, KY
The C.E.O. and Argentinean are my favorites.

Burger Paradox in Duluth, MN. I think the burger was called the Whompling? One of the only things I miss about living in Duluth right there.
- Wow, I'll be in Duluth in a couple days. Now I have somewhere to check out.

The best tasting burger I ever had was at this tiny restaurant in this small town called Salado
The best burger I ever had was when my now wife introduced me to Whataburger on our first date (technically second? it's kinda weird...)

Terry's Turf Club in Cincinnati. Haven't been there in a long time, and they went through some major changes a few years ago because apparently Terry was a major creep, but God damn did he know how to make a burger.

Home made burger from quality steak beef with smoked cheese and a secret ingredient - home made Korean carrots. That's some next level shit!

Carl's Jr. Breakfast burger, so good make it at home

Bacon Cheeseburger on Steroids at Bad Daddy's Burger Bar

Depends on what you mean by best. The Butcher Shop in , Texas had the absolute best bacon cheeseburger I've ever had. I make a beer can burger that's full of taco fixins and queso that I personally think is amazing. The burgers at Whataburger before they changed ownership were so good that I put my health on the line to eat far too many. Dyer's had the absolute perfect burger of the moment for me but the next several times I went it just didn't hit the same.
Best can change from day to day. I hope the next burger you eat is the best you ever have. And then I hope the rest of them you have for the rest of your life are even better than that.

Calle Burger has this chickpea burger and I swear to god, it's better then anything meat based I had.

Super burger in Monahans, TX. It's a banger for the money and it's got so much flavor compared to fast food chains like McDonald's or Burger King

V.J.s Drive Inn in Winnipeg MB Canada. Greasy heaven.

http://roxorburger.sk/en/menu-2 thank me later 😉

Bunsen burger in Dublin, Ireland

The Pesto Burger from Blazes near my house. https://www.blazesburgers.org/

Lamburger at Burgers Bar in Jerusalem. That was tight shit.

Hickory Burger at Apple Pan (West Los Angeles)

Killer Burger's Peanut Butter Pickle Bacon Burger
It's not for everyone
I've had it several times and it's always 10/10
Just wish they'd get their shit together with the fries, inconsistent and forgettable

Gordon Ramsey Burger in Vegas was maybe one of the best craft burgers I've had.

A double-patty cheeseburger from Gasoline grill. Their fries were bad tho.

All time fav: Homemade with a blend of seasonings cooked medium rare. Topped with mayo, ketchup, lettuce, tomato, and onion. Nothing has beaten that.
Fast Restaurant: Smash burger
Overrated: In N Out. I just don’t get the love. They’re slightly better than McDonalds. Yes, I said it. Oh, and their fries are trash. Whataburger is much better.
Fancy: The Skirted Heifer
- I feel like people saying they don't like in-n-out are just being contrarian for no reason. The fries are fresh cut, the burgers are fresh cooked and if you're going to insist that they're comparable to McDonalds, the food is 1/3 the price (and the toppings are undeniably more fresh).
  I've had whataburger and I spent 18$ on what I considered to be at best standard fast food. I can get a 4x4 at in-n-out, leave absolutely stuffed for like 8$.
  
  I feel like the people saying that it’s the best burger are always Californians. But that’s an unfair stereotype.
  They’re cheap, yes, I’ll give you that but that doesn’t make them good. And I’m not being contrarian. My entire family feels the same way. In N Out is overrated.

I made my own on an indoor grill complete with bacon, fried onions, and a homemade mushroom sauce.
Edit: I should make my own patty sometime with onion, garlic, jalapeno and cheese mixed in.

As far as burgers I've gotten from a restaurant, there was a bar on Broadway in Nashville, I can't remember the name, but it had sort of a trailer park theme, not sure if it is still there or not, I was in town for the solar eclipse a few years back and the pandemic wasn't kind to a lot of restaurants. I don't know exactly what they did, I don't remember there being obviously outstanding about that burger, but it hit different.
That said, I really like my own burgers. Coarse ground chuck or brisket, salt and pepper. Preheat a griddle on the grill on high, smash the burgers on there as flat as you can get them. If you're feeling frisky, spread some mustard on the patties and do them animal style. Throw a slice of cheese on towards the end of cooking to get it good and melts, there aren't many cases where I think American cheese is called for but I think burgers and American cheese are the perfect match, but the top 2 runners up for me are muenster and cheddar. Serve with mustard, ketchup, mayo, and pickles, maybe tomato and onion, sometimes bacon, or occasionally a fried egg.
It's not everyone's thing, but I'm also personally a fan of peanut butter, jelly, and bacon on my burgers.
- Paradise Park Trailer Resort. I think it is closed now, but I had some good hot chicken there one night after a few drinks on Broadway. It was a cool place.

There's a sports bar in my hometown that makes the best burgers I've ever had in my life. They're always perfectly cooked.

Sometimes I can get the grill at home (local meat) to offer me up one that would never compare to a restaurant
- This is where I'm at. With a cast iron pan and a decent stovetop it's very easy to make a proper smashburger at home.
  I also can't handle the texture of ground beef at anything below well, and I don't like egg yolks, so that already disqualifies a lot of the popular, fancy pub-style burgers around here.

Home made burger. Lamb, Mild Pork Sausage mix. Cooked to med Arugula. Red Onion. Brie Cheese. Sauce I made with the fond from the patties, deglased with butter/a little red wine, blackcurrant concentrate, and a splash of mango juice. Brioche bun

I'm not sure if this technically qualifies as a 'burger', but I'd say..
Waffle House Texas Cheese Steak Melt, but with mushrooms instead of onions.

Lair of the Minotaur at Kuma's Corner in Chicago. Nothing else comes close.

It used to be at the Pecos Bill Cafe in Disney World. Something about being out there and having the condiment bar...I just really enjoyed that burger in the middle of the long day.
They don't do it anymore apparently. It's just Mexican food now.

Any big Mac when you haven't eaten all day and McDonald's is the only quick option.