I dream of cheeseburgers. I’ve written burger haikus. One even led to my music video debut on YouTube. And you’d think I’d stop there (“Please, stop!”). I hear you. But no, my obsession hasn’t flagged because the cheeseburger remains my favorite food, a patty-shaped talisman of childhood that cuts through the passing fads, cynical noise, and fancy flavors that swirl through a restaurant critic’s world. The best part is that Philly’s chefs have indulged my habit with gusto, creating burgers that remain endlessly fascinating in their ability to tell us about who we are, where we’ve been and where we’re headed. Here’s my take on the state of the Philly Burger.
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Charlie’s Burgers
Ripplewood Whiskey & Craft
Kensington Quarters
Top 25 Pick
Hungry Pigeon
Other Burgers I Crave
The ultimate $5 bar burger with house pickles and craft beer at Fountain Porter (1601 S. 10th St.); the fresh-ground sirloin “Umami” (with mushrooms and ssamjang) at SpOt Burger (2821 W. Girard Ave.); the smashed onion burger at Sketch Burger (413 E. Girard Ave.); the citywide and burger special at Rex 1516 (1516 South St.); the juicy bistro burger topped with raclette at The Bercy (7 E. Lancaster Ave., Ardmore); the grass-fed flat patty with a dreamy blueberry shake on the side at Moo (137 S. Main St., New Hope); the signature burger stuffed with blue cheese that launched (and ended) my music video career at Good Dog Bar (224 S. 15th St.).
The Fry Eagles Fry hamburger prepared by former chef Justin Swain at Rex 1516. (YONG KIM / Staff Photographer)
The Reviews
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Superior
Rare, sets regional dining standards.
Excellent
Special, excels in most every category of the dining experience.
Very Good
Interesting, with above-average food.
Hit-or-miss
Too inconsistent for a strong recommendation.
Two double cheeseburgers, the "Bunny" (left) with raw onions and tomato, and the "Peg" (right) with cooked onions and bacon, with a chocolate milkshake at Charlie's Hamburgers. (JESSICA GRIFFIN / Staff Photographer)
Charlie’s Burgers
The burger is often a griddle-seared bellwether of the times, a stage for the latest toppings, a vessel for the technologies that shape our foodways, even a barometer of our real estate economy. But Charlie’s Burgers, the Delco throwback to elemental slider comfort that dates to 1935, has long been a reluctant holdout. That history was genuinely in danger, though, when Charlie’s was forced to abandon its old location this year and move to a generic Folsom strip mall on East MacDade Boulevard. Suffice it to say, it left its old burger shack charm behind.
But those timeless flavors have definitely made the leap. Just ask the Charlie’s faithful. A mail carrier named Doug sitting at the table beside me even said a little prayer of thanks over his tray of two cheeseburgers — his monthly order since he began coming during high school the 1970s. As for the latest edition of those greasy little patties, all stacked up in humble doubles loose and crumbly inside the snug softness of their griddle-crisped buns? “Oh, my …,” I thought, as the savory warmth washed over and I tried to eat them slowly, wishing I’d ordered more.
The Bunny, Charlie’s, and Peg special combos have transcended the move and not lost one ounce of their old-school griddle powers. Postman Doug enthusiastically devoured his lunch — and so did I, buoyed by the added innovation of French fries (a Charlie’s first) and sips of a chocolate shake still in its frosty metal cup. My quiet prayers to the Burger Gods were answered, too. Charlie’s has survived!
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The burger is pictured with Ripp Fries at Ripplewood Whiskey & Craft. (TIM TAI / Staff Photographer)
Ripplewood Whiskey & Craft
The stacked-patty homage to the Big Mac has now become the preferred format for the upscale burger, as chefs finally acknowledge the virtues of a quick and consistent sear — harder to achieve with fat patties. Some of my city favorites have it down, from Royal Boucherie (52 S. 2nd St., three bells), where the hi-lo combo of American cheese and truffle mayo with a Machine Shop bun, bacon, and pork-fat fries goes down extra nice with $2 lunch martinis, to the other commendable contenders at Common Bar & Grill (3601 Market St.) and a.kitchen (135 S 18th St.).
My current double-patty idol, however, is the suburban savory bomb at Ardmore’s Ripplewood Whiskey & Craft (29 E Lancaster Ave.). Chef and co-owner Biff Gottehrer stacks two quarter-pounders from Exceptional Foods with extra fat content and dry-aged beefy oomph between melty layers of Gouda, house-pickled onions, a "special sauce" with smoked tomatoes, capers, and shallots over a pain au lait bun that's soft without being eggy. Most important, it’s got local personality: two thin pads of fried Lebanon bologna slipped between the patties that add a touch of smoky sweetness where, in other burgers, bacon plays the common role. It lends a catchy Dutch savor to a gusher so juicy (ordered medium-rare), that you'll need two hands to eat it, and most likely several napkins.
Also featured in: Something to Drink
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The burger at Kengsington Quarters. (TIM TAI / Staff Photographer)
Kensington Quarters
It used to be Philly’s fancy burgers were all about big bopper girth — an open-wide show-off phase that now seems in decline after the overcooked disappointments I recently encountered at old favorites Rouge and Village Whiskey. But the lusciousness of a plump patty done right is still alive and well — maybe better than ever — at Kensington Quarters, the pioneering whole-animal kitchen in Fishtown where a 75-25 blend of grass-fed local chuck from Happy Valley Meats is cut and ground on site daily.
The texture of that fresh coarse grind is key to this $20 half-pound handful. But the smoky details that take it to the next level, the crusty backyard-esque char of the wood-fired grill, smoked raw milk Lancaster cheddar, smoked garlic aioli, tart house pickles for bright crunch, then a mop of caramelized onions soaked in beef jus that accelerate the drip. The mega-flow, somehow, does not dissolve the sweet potato bun made by Philly Bread, whose pliant softness instead molds perfectly around this beefy abundance. Many of the same ingredients are used for the quick-serve KQ Burger stand at Franklin’s Table (3401 Walnut St.), but true to trend, it’s a double-patty edition built for speed.
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Hungry Pigeon's burger is made with local Birchrun Hills veal and Red Cat cheese on a fresh caraway bun, then doused tableside with gravy. (CRAIG LABAN / Staff)
Hungry PigeonTop 25 Pick
In an era that’s all about local sustainability, chef Scott Schroeder $30 “dinner burger” at Hungry Pigeon, made from eight ounces of naturally raised local veal, is an extraordinary creation. Aside from the caraway-scented pain de mie roll baked fresh by partner Pat O’Malley, this occasional special (depending on availability) is truly an homage to Chester County cheesemaker Birchrun Hills Farm. The farm’s grass-fed veal is raised in a humane, free-range manner that bears no resemblance to the horror of factory-farmed veal.
The meat is both delicate and flavorful as a rose pink-colored patty, but comes gratineed in the full-flavored funk of Birchrun’s washed-rind Red Cat cheese, piled high with sauteed wild mushrooms, garlic aioli, and shaved ham from Country Time Farm that lends a subtle pork accent. But that’s not all. When it arrives with crunchy nuggets of potatoes roasted in beef fat, a carafe of hot veal jus steeped from the same animal’s bones is poured over the whole thing. It’s a messy, extravagant and thought-provoking burger feast — one of the few I don’t mind eating with a knife and fork.
Also featured in: Breakfast
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WRITER:CRAIG LABANEDITOR:EVAN S. BENNPHOTOGRAPHERS:TIM TAI (LEAD), JOSE F. MORENO, JESSICA GRIFFIN, MICHAEL BRYANT, CHARLES FOX, HEATHER KHALIFA, DAVID SWANSON, STEVEN M. FALK, ELIZABETH ROBERTSON, YONG KIM, MICHAEL S. WIRTZ AND TOM GRALISHPHOTO EDITORS:DANESE KENON AND FRANK WIESEDIGITAL PRODUCTION & DESIGN:GARLAND POTTS AND MEGAN GRIFFITH-GREENECOPY EDITOR:BRIAN LEIGHTONPRINT DESIGN:AMY JUNODAUDIENCE:ROSS MAGHIELSE AND RAY BOYDINTERNS:SERAPHINA DiSALVO AND STEFANIE PERNA