10 Best Burgers in Los Angeles That You Have to Try
Finding the best burgers in Los Angeles is a surprisingly serious undertaking. This is a city where an old-school burger counter, a neighborhood dive bar, a modern smashburger stand and a chef-driven restaurant can all make a legitimate claim to serving one of LA’s great burgers.
For guests staying at Best Western Plus South Bay Hotel, there’s another consideration: Los Angeles is enormous. Driving across the city for every famous cheeseburger isn’t necessarily how you want to spend your vacation. So we’ve included some excellent choices around the South Bay along with several legendary LA burger spots that are worth seeking out when your sightseeing takes you farther into the city.
1. Ercoles 1101
If you’re staying in the South Bay and want to understand why Los Angeles has such a strong burger culture, start in Manhattan Beach.
Ercoles is an old-school neighborhood bar that has been around since 1927, and its burger has developed a reputation far beyond the local crowd. There are no elaborate chef tricks involved. The restaurant gets its ground beef from Manhattan Meats next door, then builds the burger with lettuce, tomato, onion, ketchup, mayonnaise and mustard on a sesame bun.
That’s essentially it, and that’s the point.
The bar itself is part of the experience, with checkered flooring, neon signs and an atmosphere that feels increasingly rare in coastal Southern California. Order a cheeseburger, grab a beer and don’t expect a plate loaded with unnecessary garnishes. Burgers are traditionally served with a bag of chips rather than restaurant-style fries.
For hotel guests who would rather find a great burger around the South Bay than cross Los Angeles chasing one, Ercoles is an excellent place to begin.
- Best for: An old-school South Bay burger and neighborhood-bar atmosphere
- Try: Cheeseburger with a cold beer
- Address: 1101 N Manhattan Avenue, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
- Phone: (310) 372-1997
2. The Win-Dow
The Win-Dow proves that a memorable burger doesn’t have to become an elaborate or expensive production.
The concept began as a walk-up window attached to Venice restaurant American Beauty and has since expanded to additional Los Angeles locations. The specialty is a classic smashburger: thin beef patties cooked on the griddle until they develop those deeply browned edges that smashburger fans are looking for.
Keep things simple with a cheeseburger or make it a double. Fries, fried chicken sandwiches, shakes and a surprisingly popular grain bowl round out the menu.
The Venice location is especially useful for travelers because it fits naturally into a day exploring Venice Beach, Abbot Kinney and nearby Santa Monica. Rather than making a special cross-city burger pilgrimage, stop here when you’re already sightseeing on the Westside.
- Best for: Smashburgers, casual lunches and a Venice Beach day
- Website: thewin-dow.la
3. Heavy Handed
Heavy Handed takes the smashburger formula in a richer direction by starting with ground short rib.
The beef is pressed and seared on the griddle, then covered with American cheese, deeply caramelized onions, bread-and-butter pickles and the restaurant’s sweet and tangy Heavy Sauce. Everything gets tucked into a toasted bun.
The fries deserve almost as much attention as the burger. They’re cooked in beef tallow, giving them a crisp exterior and another layer of beefy flavor.
Heavy Handed’s Santa Monica location makes this another smart option to work into a day along the coast. The burgers are rich, messy and filling, so arrive hungry.
- Best for: Short-rib smashburgers and beef-tallow fries
- Address: 2912 Main Street, Santa Monica, CA 90405
- Website: heavyhanded.la
4. HiHo Cheeseburger
HiHo approaches the classic American cheeseburger with an unusual amount of attention paid to the beef itself.
The restaurant exclusively uses 100% grass-fed and grass-finished Wagyu beef. Whole cuts are ground fresh daily and seasoned simply with salt and pepper, allowing the meat to remain the focus.
The signature HiHo cheeseburger is a double with American cheese, ketchup, mustard, slow-cooked onions, lettuce and house-made pickles. Despite the Wagyu beef, this isn’t presented as an upscale steakhouse burger. It still looks and eats like the classic Southern California cheeseburger it was designed to be.
HiHo has several locations around Los Angeles, including Santa Monica and Marina del Rey, making it relatively easy to fit into a Westside itinerary.
- Best for: Grass-fed Wagyu without the steakhouse treatment
- Try: HiHo Double
- Website: hiho.la
5. The Apple Pan
Some restaurants are worth visiting because they serve a great burger. The Apple Pan is worth visiting because it gives you a glimpse of Los Angeles restaurant history at the same time.
The West LA institution has been serving customers since 1947, and remarkably little about the experience feels like it has been redesigned for the modern era. Diners sit around a U-shaped counter and watch their meals being prepared behind it.
There are two burgers that matter most here. The Steakburger comes with the restaurant’s sauce, pickles, mayonnaise and a generous pile of iceberg lettuce. The Hickoryburger adds the smoky-sweet hickory sauce that has become one of the restaurant’s signatures. Add cheddar if you want cheese.
Then order pie.
The name isn’t decorative. The Apple Pan is also known for its pies, including apple, banana cream and other rotating flavors. A burger followed by a slice of pie is the full experience.
- Best for: Classic LA atmosphere, old-school burgers and pie
- Try: Hickoryburger followed by a slice of pie
- Address: 10801 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90064
- Phone: (310) 475-3585
- Website: theapplepan.com
6. Original Tommy’s World Famous Hamburgers
There are cleaner burgers on this list. There are more sophisticated burgers. There may even be burgers that are easier to eat.
None of that is really the point of Original Tommy’s.
Tommy Koulax opened the original stand at Beverly and Rampart in 1946. Over the decades, the restaurant’s chili-covered burgers became so closely associated with Los Angeles that countless imitators adopted similar names and menus.
The classic order is a cheeseburger covered in Tommy’s signature chili. You can lean even further into the experience with chili cheese fries on the side.
There are now multiple Tommy’s locations, but burger-history enthusiasts should consider visiting the original Beverly Boulevard stand. It isn’t merely somewhere to eat lunch. It’s part of the story of fast food in Los Angeles.
- Best for: LA burger history and chili cheeseburgers
- Try: Chili cheeseburger and chili cheese fries
- Original location: 2575 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90057
- Phone: (213) 389-9060
- Website: originaltommys.com
7. Goldburger
If the words “crispy edges” are what you want to hear when someone describes a burger, put Goldburger on your list.
Goldburger specializes in smashburgers, pressing its patties to create a browned, lacy edge while retaining juiciness toward the center. The OG Goldburger keeps the formula recognizable with American cheese, pickles, onions, lettuce and the restaurant’s sauce.
It’s a modern LA burger rather than a historic one, but Goldburger has built the kind of following that shows just how thoroughly the smashburger has become part of the city’s food culture.
- Best for: Crispy-edged smashburgers
- Try: OG Goldburger
8. Amboy Quality Meats & Delicious Burgers
Chef Alvin Cailan’s Amboy is what happens when a butcher’s approach to beef meets a burger shop.
Located in Chinatown, Amboy gives diners more choice than the typical smashburger counter. You can go thin and griddled or choose one of the restaurant’s thicker patties when you want something closer to a serious steakhouse-style burger.
The Slim Thicc is a standout for exactly that reason. A substantial beef patty is paired with American cheese, pickles and caramelized onions. More adventurous variations push things further with ingredients such as aged Parmigiano and truffle aioli.
Amboy is a particularly good stop if you’re exploring Chinatown or nearby Downtown Los Angeles and want a burger that puts the quality and preparation of the beef front and center.
- Best for: Beef lovers and thicker burgers
- Try: Slim Thicc
- Address: 727 N Broadway, Suite 117, Los Angeles, CA 90012
- Phone: (213) 935-8188
9. Hawkins House of Burgers
Hawkins House of Burgers is a reminder that some of LA’s most memorable food comes from neighborhood restaurants far removed from the city’s tourist corridors.
The Watts institution traces its roots back generations and is known for thick, loosely formed beef patties cooked on the griddle. These aren’t delicate burgers designed to disappear in three bites.
If you’re especially hungry, the famous Leaning Tower of Watts takes excess to another level, combining multiple patties with additions including a hot link, pastrami, bacon, egg and chili.
You certainly don’t have to order the biggest thing on the menu to understand why Hawkins has such a loyal following. A straightforward cheeseburger still delivers the substantial, old-school experience that has kept the restaurant relevant for decades.
- Best for: Huge burgers, old-school griddle cooking and serious appetites
- Address: 11603 Slater Street, Los Angeles, CA 90059
- Phone: (323) 563-1129
10. Father’s Office
Father’s Office is the outlier on this list, and that’s precisely why it’s here.
Chef Sang Yoon’s famous Office Burger abandons much of the classic cheeseburger formula. Dry-aged beef is paired with caramelized onions, bacon, arugula, Gruyère and Maytag blue cheese on a French roll.
And don’t ask for ketchup.
The restaurant famously doesn’t offer it, and modifications aren’t part of the experience either. The burger is served the way the kitchen designed it.
This isn’t the place to bring someone who simply wants a traditional cheeseburger with American cheese. It is a destination for travelers interested in seeing how far an LA restaurant can reinterpret the basic idea of beef between bread.
One important thing to know before visiting: Father’s Office is a bar and admits guests age 21 and older only.
- Best for: Food-focused travelers, craft beer and a completely different kind of burger
- Try: The Office Burger
- Culver City location: 3229 Helms Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90034
Which LA Burger Should You Try?
Ten burgers is a lot to chase around Los Angeles, and we wouldn’t recommend trying.
If you’re staying in the South Bay, start with Ercoles in Manhattan Beach. It’s nearby, full of local character and serves the kind of straightforward burger that has earned recognition well beyond the neighborhood.
If your sightseeing takes you toward Venice or Santa Monica, choose The Win-Dow for an affordable smashburger, Heavy Handed when you want something richer, or HiHo if the quality of the beef is your priority.
For classic Los Angeles restaurant history, it’s difficult to beat The Apple Pan or the original Tommy’s. Smashburger enthusiasts should keep Goldburger on their radar, while Amboy is a strong choice when you want the beef itself to be the star.
And if you’re looking for something you probably won’t find anywhere else on your trip, choose the enormous creations at Hawkins or the unconventional Office Burger at Father’s Office.
Build the Burger Into Your Los Angeles Plans
One of the biggest mistakes visitors make in Los Angeles is treating restaurants as if they’re all conveniently located near one another. They aren’t.
Instead of spending your vacation driving across LA specifically to work through a restaurant list, match your burger to the part of town you’re already exploring. Have Ercoles while visiting Manhattan Beach. Stop at The Win-Dow or Heavy Handed during a coastal day around Venice and Santa Monica. Save The Apple Pan for a West LA excursion, Amboy for Chinatown and Downtown, or Tommy’s when your plans take you toward central Los Angeles.
That’s a much better way to eat your way through the city, and it leaves considerably more time for actually enjoying Los Angeles.
A South Bay Home Base for Exploring Los Angeles
Best Western Plus South Bay Hotel puts travelers in a useful position for exploring both the South Bay and the greater Los Angeles area. Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach can become part of your coastal itinerary, while the city’s neighborhoods, restaurants and major attractions give you plenty of reasons to venture farther out.
Best Western Plus South Bay Hotel
15000 Hawthorne Blvd
Lawndale, CA 90260
Phone: (310) 973-0998
bwsouthbay.com
Restaurant locations, menus and hours can change, so check directly with each restaurant before making a special trip.