Having lived in D.C. for three years and just outside of it for most of my life, I’ve realized that you have to be borderline-obsessed with the Redskins, pandas and cheeseburgers to truly fit in in this town. Have a conversation with any Washingtonian about Hightower’s chances of being the ‘Skins starting running back, giving Tai Shan back to China or Bobby Flay’s potato chip-laden burgers and you’re in for life.
In the recent years, “burgermania” has taken over the city with New York City imports Shake Shack and P.J. Clarke’s, and President Obama’s fixation on Ray’s Hell Burger. Here are a few new-to-the-D.C.-area burger joints worth checking out that won’t break the bank.
SHAKE SHACK
Metro: Dupont Circle (Red Line)
Having joined D.C. in early summer, Shake Shack has made a seamless transition from New York City to the District’s burger elite. At Shake Shack you’ll find “roadside” burgers, hot dogs, frozen custard and (surprise!) beer and wine. Stick with the classic “ShackBurger” (with cheese, crisp lettuce, roma tomatoes, “ShackSauce” and topped with the best burger bun imaginable), an order of crinkle fries and one of the Shack’s root beer floats.
If you’re feeling extra hungry, try the frozen custard for dessert; along with the signature flavors, the custard menu features a different flavor every day and changes each month. And, as if they couldn’t make their way further into the hearts of Washingtonians, Shake Shack has a mini-menu at Nationals Park.
Bobby’s Burger Palace
Metro: Foggy Bottom (Blue/Orange Line)
Be prepared to wait in line for one of Bobby Flay’s burger creations, as the joint just opened early this month. Flay’s Burger Palace offers every kind of gourmet burger topping you can imagine (watercress and pickled jalapeños, anyone?) along with shakes, sweet potato fries and onion rings. The Palace offers salad and sandwiches too, but why eat one of those when Bobby Flay’s grilling the burgers?
Standouts include the “Crunchburger,” topped with double American cheese and a heap of potato chips (in fact, every burger on the menu can be “crunchified”). Finish your meal with a pistachio milkshake and call it a day.
Elevation Burger
Metro: Court House (Orange Line)
What makes Elevation Burger so unique is its use of “elevated products” and an “elevated” dining experience, according to the restaurant itself. But what really makes Elevation Burger unique is that you can order any burger “bloody,” catering to the ravenous carnivore in all of us.
Eco-friendly diners can rejoice in the use of organic, grass-fed and free-range beef and fresh produce. (Even the tables, chairs and paint are made of recycled materials.) As for the menu, try a malted milkshake or the “Vertigo burger,” a build-your-own burger that allows the hungriest of hungry to fit ten patties under the bun.
BGR: The Burger Joint
Metro: Dupont Circle, Bethesda (Red Line)
BGR: The Burger Joint claims that they offer the “one burger YOU MUST HAVE before you die.” While the attitude is a bit egotistical, the place does offer a damn good burger. BGR’s classic burger features the menu’s star: a prime, dry-aged beef patty that’s topped with a sesame seed brioche bun. The menu also offers turkey, tuna, veggie and lamb burgers along with double-fried Yukon Gold and sweet potato fries. Try the sliders, mini versions of the classic burger, with a side of the “green standard” fries: they’re grilled asparagus spears topped with Parmesan cheese.
Want a free meal? Order the “9 pounder,” a massive burger featuring a 15.4-pound patty with two heads of lettuce, eight tomatoes, three red onions and four whole pickles. And finish it.
