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A Beep’s burger

17 Standout Burgers in San Francisco

From the crispiest smashed patties to the most decadent wagyu beef, don’t miss these burgers

by Lauren Saria and Eater Staff Updated Jul 28, 2022, 1:46pm PDT

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by Lauren Saria and Eater Staff Updated Jul 28, 2022, 1:46pm PDT

1 comment / new

Patricia Chang

Is there a food as beloved as the hamburger? It's a great American pastime, a symbol of summer barbecues, and all-around icon of fun. San Francisco loves a good burger just as much as the next city, and chefs around town have spent considerable time and effort on stacking up the most crave-able versions possible, resulting in a constellation of star burgers that reflect the tastes of our fair city by the bay.

From humble quarter pounders with just the pickles to wagyu and bison patties, this list covers it all. Here are the juiciest, crispiest burgers in San Francisco.

Health experts consider dining out to be a high-risk activity for the unvaccinated; it may pose a risk for the vaccinated, especially in areas with substantial COVID transmission.

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Abacá

A burger for breakfast? Sure, why not? That’s a more-than-respectable breakfast choice at Abaca, the modern Filipino restaurant at Fisherman’s Wharf where the brunch menu includes an excellent chorizo burger. It’s a hefty, smoky sausage patty stacked with tender leaf lettuce, tomato, and a layer of garlic aioli. If that’s not tempting enough, we’ll note that it’s all smashed between a Dutch crunch pandesal bun and served alongside thick batons of fried potatoes.

Open in Google Maps

2700 Jones St, San Francisco, CA 94133

Visit Website

An overhead view of a burger on a black-and-white table top.

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Causwells

Causwells’ award-winning burger is a true phenomenon in the Marina. The sizable patty has been likened to a souped-up In-N-Out Double-Double, with its char-grilled patties and perfectly melted cheese. The house sauce and crispy onions are a particularly nice finish to this very messy endeavor.

2346 Chestnut St, San Francisco, CA

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Causwells

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Maybeck's

The Marina already lays claim to a number of San Francisco’s most beloved burgers, but a new contender has officially entered the fray. Maybeck’s made its return earlier this year, with a boost from the husband-and-wife culinary team behind the now-closed Baker & Banker. The menu now includes a solid smashburger, served on a squishy potato bun. It’s a double-stacked patty shrouded in melted American cheese and dressed with thinly sliced onions, pickle coins, and special sauce.

3213 Scott St, San Francisco, CA 94123

Visit Website

A burger with fries, aioli, and ketchup.

Also featured in:

Sam's

Of all the burgers on the list, Sam’s is likely to be held closest to San Franciscans’ hearts. Sam’s first opened its doors in 1966 and has been serving up comfort food — until the wee morning hours — ever since. It's a chuck blend with cheese, lettuce, and tomato on a sesame bun. These days they’re flipping patties until midnight seven days a week.

618 Broadway, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

A burger on a white paper plate.

Also featured in:

Gott’s Roadside

Gott’s Roadside burger is your typical all-American-style patty, but with a little more heft. These 1/3-pound patties are made from a proprietary blend of Niman Ranch beef, and the extra-soft egg buns are sourced from Panorama Bakery. As for the secret sauce...it's a secret.

1 Ferry Building Ste 6, San Francisco, CA

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Gott’s

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Pearl’s Deluxe Burger

Pearl’s is a family-run diner, named after the owner’s grandmother, that’s been around for nearly 20 years. The burgers stack up grass-fed beef, turkey, and bison, and the “deluxe” is a serious half pound, while the “mini deluxe” is a more moderate quarter pound. The Bula burger is the crowd favorite, topped with Swiss, bacon, pineapple, and teriyaki.

708 Post St, San Francisco, CA 94109

Visit Website

Also featured in:

The 10 Best Milkshakes in San Francisco

Spruce

Spruce may be on the fancier side, but its burger is accessible to all at lunch or at the bar. The patty is made with a proprietary blend of brisket, short rib, and sirloin, and served on a housemade English muffin. Spruce touches can be seen throughout, like in the turmeric-pickled zucchini, the pickled red onion, beefsteak tomato, and thrice-cooked fries that come on the side.

3640 Sacramento St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

The Spruce burger

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Red's Java House

There is no other singular moment that can take the place of enjoying a sunny, windy lunch at Red’s, where time has stood still since 1955. There, the burgers (and hot dogs) are served on hefty sourdough rolls, topped with mustard, mayonnaise, pickles, and onions (no ketchup), and best enjoyed with a frosty Anchor Steam. It’s particularly hopping before and after a Giants game, when team spirit is at an all-time high.

Pier 30, San Francisco, CA 94105

Visit Website

A burger with fries, onion rings, and a beer.

Also featured in:

Garaje

Garaje's Drive-In Burger is a nostalgic, juicy classic. Served with a single or double patty, for those with particularly large appetites, this one's gone from off the radar, in terms of burger acclaim, to full-on hype, so get after it quick.

Open in Google Maps

475 3rd St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

Marlowe

After an extended pandemic closure and following a change of ownership and fresh remodel, this SoMa favorite is back — burger and all. Chef Jennifer Puccio created a meaty masterpiece using a six-ounce ground beef and lamb mix, chargrilled and topped with cheddar cheese, caramelized onions, horseradish aioli, bacon, and shredded lettuce, all on an Acme bun. The lamb adds a subtle earthiness, while the horseradish brings it all alive.

500 Brannan St, San Francisco, CA 94107

Visit Website

The newly refreshed bar at Marlowe.

Also featured in:

Automat

Pickle lovers, stand up. It would be easy to assume the Cheezy Buddy at Automat is just another solid smash but the goodness is in the details here including tart dill-pickled onions, garlicky melted cheddar cheese, and an airy milk bread bun baked fresh on-site. Don’t sleep on the fries either; they’re tinged green with a dusting of pleasantly pungent dill pickle flavoring.

Open in Google Maps

1801 McAllister St, San Francisco, CA 94115

Visit Website

A burger with fries and a side of sauce.

Also featured in:

Nopa

There is no better late-night burger than the one at Nopa — the restaurant usually serves 29,000 a year, which is certainly proof. This one is wood-grilled and comes with pickled onions, little gem lettuce, and cheddar cheese if you so choose. It's the perfect barstool meal.

560 Divisadero St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

Nopa

Also featured in:

ABV

Originally called the "fuckin’ burger with spicy-ass chips," ABV chef Collin Hilton created a 1/3-pound, grass-fed beef patty with white cheddar cheese, raw red onion, shredded lettuce pickles, and a tangy special sauce, all on a Japanese sweet potato bun. Thinly-sliced jalapeño chips are served on the side, for a total of $15.

3174 16th St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Caleb “Cal” Pershan (@calaesthetic) on May 2, 2019 at 4:08pm PDT

Also featured in:

WesBurger 'n' More

Originally from Texas, Wes Rowe broke loose on the burger scene in 2013, running a wildly popular pop-up for a few years, before moving into a prime spot on Mission at 18th. Last year, he threw out half of the menu, and started mastering the art of the smash burger: thin, crispy patties on a pillowy potato bun. The single is a 3-ounce patty, inspired by the McDonald’s quarter pounder with cheese, and only costs $8. The double adds on shaved red onions and special sauce for $11.

2240 Mission St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

Smashburger from Wesburger

Also featured in:

True Laurel

Without getting into an existential argument about whether a burger is a sandwich and a patty melt a burger, we’ll just acknowledge that a patty melt is not the same thing as a burger. Nevertheless, True Laurel’s patty melt is a thing of beauty and well-worth seeking out when you’re craving a meaty meal. A dry-aged beef patty is grilled to crispy-edged perfection before being layered with cheese, caramelized onions, pickles, and sandwiched between two thin slices of pain de mie. But here’s the kicker: that fluffy pain de mie gets griddled in beef fat, elevating this melt to decadent heights.

753 Alabama St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Visit Website

Patty melt at True Laurel

Also featured in:

Hi-Way Burger & Fry

The small children and tech millionaires of Noe Valley must have their burgers, and Hi-Way is usually hopping on the weekends (Friday night at 5 p.m. gets wild). The cute corner burger shop flips a good grass-fed patty on the flat top, along with griddled hot dogs, sweet potato fries, and Straus chocolate milk shakes. A North Beach outpost debuted in spring 2022 bringing the classic menu to the other side of town.

Open in Google Maps

3853 24th St, San Francisco, CA 94114

Visit Website

Burger and fries at Hi-Way

Also featured in:

Beep's Burgers

Dating back to 1962, Beep’s is a space-age throwback. Pull up to the drive-in for the Angus-beef quarter-pound patty, with secret sauce (a mix of mayo, ketchup, paprika, and cayenne), leafy lettuce, and melted cheddar on a soft Semifreddi’s bun. Juicy, messy, hand-shaped Niman Ranch beef for only $8. The old-school burger joint is also great for crispy onion rings and Twinkie milkshakes.

1051 Ocean Ave, San Francisco, CA 94112

Visit Website

Also featured in:

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Abacá

2700 Jones St, San Francisco, CA 94133

A burger for breakfast? Sure, why not? That’s a more-than-respectable breakfast choice at Abaca, the modern Filipino restaurant at Fisherman’s Wharf where the brunch menu includes an excellent chorizo burger. It’s a hefty, smoky sausage patty stacked with tender leaf lettuce, tomato, and a layer of garlic aioli. If that’s not tempting enough, we’ll note that it’s all smashed between a Dutch crunch pandesal bun and served alongside thick batons of fried potatoes.

Open in Google Maps

2700 Jones St, San Francisco, CA 94133

Visit Website

An overhead view of a burger on a black-and-white table top.

Causwells

2346 Chestnut St, San Francisco, CA

Causwells’ award-winning burger is a true phenomenon in the Marina. The sizable patty has been likened to a souped-up In-N-Out Double-Double, with its char-grilled patties and perfectly melted cheese. The house sauce and crispy onions are a particularly nice finish to this very messy endeavor.

2346 Chestnut St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

Causwells

Maybeck's

3213 Scott St, San Francisco, CA 94123

The Marina already lays claim to a number of San Francisco’s most beloved burgers, but a new contender has officially entered the fray. Maybeck’s made its return earlier this year, with a boost from the husband-and-wife culinary team behind the now-closed Baker & Banker. The menu now includes a solid smashburger, served on a squishy potato bun. It’s a double-stacked patty shrouded in melted American cheese and dressed with thinly sliced onions, pickle coins, and special sauce.

3213 Scott St, San Francisco, CA 94123

Visit Website

A burger with fries, aioli, and ketchup.

Sam's

618 Broadway, San Francisco, CA

Of all the burgers on the list, Sam’s is likely to be held closest to San Franciscans’ hearts. Sam’s first opened its doors in 1966 and has been serving up comfort food — until the wee morning hours — ever since. It's a chuck blend with cheese, lettuce, and tomato on a sesame bun. These days they’re flipping patties until midnight seven days a week.

618 Broadway, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

A burger on a white paper plate.

Gott’s Roadside

1 Ferry Building Ste 6, San Francisco, CA

Gott’s Roadside burger is your typical all-American-style patty, but with a little more heft. These 1/3-pound patties are made from a proprietary blend of Niman Ranch beef, and the extra-soft egg buns are sourced from Panorama Bakery. As for the secret sauce...it's a secret.

1 Ferry Building Ste 6, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

Gott’s

Pearl’s Deluxe Burger

708 Post St, San Francisco, CA 94109

Pearl’s is a family-run diner, named after the owner’s grandmother, that’s been around for nearly 20 years. The burgers stack up grass-fed beef, turkey, and bison, and the “deluxe” is a serious half pound, while the “mini deluxe” is a more moderate quarter pound. The Bula burger is the crowd favorite, topped with Swiss, bacon, pineapple, and teriyaki.

708 Post St, San Francisco, CA 94109

Visit Website

Spruce

3640 Sacramento St, San Francisco, CA

Spruce may be on the fancier side, but its burger is accessible to all at lunch or at the bar. The patty is made with a proprietary blend of brisket, short rib, and sirloin, and served on a housemade English muffin. Spruce touches can be seen throughout, like in the turmeric-pickled zucchini, the pickled red onion, beefsteak tomato, and thrice-cooked fries that come on the side.

3640 Sacramento St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

The Spruce burger

Red's Java House

Pier 30, San Francisco, CA 94105

There is no other singular moment that can take the place of enjoying a sunny, windy lunch at Red’s, where time has stood still since 1955. There, the burgers (and hot dogs) are served on hefty sourdough rolls, topped with mustard, mayonnaise, pickles, and onions (no ketchup), and best enjoyed with a frosty Anchor Steam. It’s particularly hopping before and after a Giants game, when team spirit is at an all-time high.

Pier 30, San Francisco, CA 94105

Visit Website

A burger with fries, onion rings, and a beer.

Garaje

475 3rd St, San Francisco, CA

Garaje's Drive-In Burger is a nostalgic, juicy classic. Served with a single or double patty, for those with particularly large appetites, this one's gone from off the radar, in terms of burger acclaim, to full-on hype, so get after it quick.

Open in Google Maps

475 3rd St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

Marlowe

500 Brannan St, San Francisco, CA 94107

After an extended pandemic closure and following a change of ownership and fresh remodel, this SoMa favorite is back — burger and all. Chef Jennifer Puccio created a meaty masterpiece using a six-ounce ground beef and lamb mix, chargrilled and topped with cheddar cheese, caramelized onions, horseradish aioli, bacon, and shredded lettuce, all on an Acme bun. The lamb adds a subtle earthiness, while the horseradish brings it all alive.

500 Brannan St, San Francisco, CA 94107

Visit Website

The newly refreshed bar at Marlowe.

Automat

1801 McAllister St, San Francisco, CA 94115

Pickle lovers, stand up. It would be easy to assume the Cheezy Buddy at Automat is just another solid smash but the goodness is in the details here including tart dill-pickled onions, garlicky melted cheddar cheese, and an airy milk bread bun baked fresh on-site. Don’t sleep on the fries either; they’re tinged green with a dusting of pleasantly pungent dill pickle flavoring.

Open in Google Maps

1801 McAllister St, San Francisco, CA 94115

Visit Website

A burger with fries and a side of sauce.

Nopa

560 Divisadero St, San Francisco, CA

There is no better late-night burger than the one at Nopa — the restaurant usually serves 29,000 a year, which is certainly proof. This one is wood-grilled and comes with pickled onions, little gem lettuce, and cheddar cheese if you so choose. It's the perfect barstool meal.

560 Divisadero St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

Nopa

ABV

3174 16th St, San Francisco, CA

Originally called the "fuckin’ burger with spicy-ass chips," ABV chef Collin Hilton created a 1/3-pound, grass-fed beef patty with white cheddar cheese, raw red onion, shredded lettuce pickles, and a tangy special sauce, all on a Japanese sweet potato bun. Thinly-sliced jalapeño chips are served on the side, for a total of $15.

3174 16th St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Caleb “Cal” Pershan (@calaesthetic) on May 2, 2019 at 4:08pm PDT

WesBurger 'n' More

2240 Mission St, San Francisco, CA

Originally from Texas, Wes Rowe broke loose on the burger scene in 2013, running a wildly popular pop-up for a few years, before moving into a prime spot on Mission at 18th. Last year, he threw out half of the menu, and started mastering the art of the smash burger: thin, crispy patties on a pillowy potato bun. The single is a 3-ounce patty, inspired by the McDonald’s quarter pounder with cheese, and only costs $8. The double adds on shaved red onions and special sauce for $11.

2240 Mission St, San Francisco, CA

Visit Website

Smashburger from Wesburger

True Laurel

753 Alabama St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Without getting into an existential argument about whether a burger is a sandwich and a patty melt a burger, we’ll just acknowledge that a patty melt is not the same thing as a burger. Nevertheless, True Laurel’s patty melt is a thing of beauty and well-worth seeking out when you’re craving a meaty meal. A dry-aged beef patty is grilled to crispy-edged perfection before being layered with cheese, caramelized onions, pickles, and sandwiched between two thin slices of pain de mie. But here’s the kicker: that fluffy pain de mie gets griddled in beef fat, elevating this melt to decadent heights.

753 Alabama St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Visit Website

Patty melt at True Laurel

Related Maps

Hi-Way Burger & Fry

3853 24th St, San Francisco, CA 94114

The small children and tech millionaires of Noe Valley must have their burgers, and Hi-Way is usually hopping on the weekends (Friday night at 5 p.m. gets wild). The cute corner burger shop flips a good grass-fed patty on the flat top, along with griddled hot dogs, sweet potato fries, and Straus chocolate milk shakes. A North Beach outpost debuted in spring 2022 bringing the classic menu to the other side of town.

Open in Google Maps

3853 24th St, San Francisco, CA 94114

Visit Website

Burger and fries at Hi-Way

Beep's Burgers

1051 Ocean Ave, San Francisco, CA 94112

Dating back to 1962, Beep’s is a space-age throwback. Pull up to the drive-in for the Angus-beef quarter-pound patty, with secret sauce (a mix of mayo, ketchup, paprika, and cayenne), leafy lettuce, and melted cheddar on a soft Semifreddi’s bun. Juicy, messy, hand-shaped Niman Ranch beef for only $8. The old-school burger joint is also great for crispy onion rings and Twinkie milkshakes.

1051 Ocean Ave, San Francisco, CA 94112

Visit Website

Related Maps