Salems

Cheerleaders (award winning)

Hello bistro

Moonlight burgers

Tessaros

Morton’s steakhouse. The best burgers overlooked because of stellar steaks and perceived high prices. Made with prime aged trimmings and freshly ground by their in-house butcher with a proprietary blend of ingredients and then seared in a salamander just like their porterhouse et al, it is the pinnacle of burgerdom IMO. And yep, you can easily get it to go and curbsided to you. Ask me how I know. Pro tip: don’t forget the French onion soup.

Tessaro’s is always a top answer, despite its managerial flaws and percolating attitude that has ruined it’s once OG bar vibes, but has slipped since its expansion (and COVID)

But: either Burger Hut in Butler are convenient and surprising underdogs.

Applewood Smoke Burger Company, too, but odd hours. Get the onion rings if you go.

Lastly, the Costco pizza of burgers, is McDonalds, especially during the holiday season and their Gold Card McD’s for life sweepstakes.

Lots of people are too swamped to post for burger reccos here on Reddit, let alone go out of their way to search out a particular burger place in the holiday hustle and bustle, but we’re always in the relative proximity of the Golden Arches. This means lots of people are patronizing them, which, in turn, means high turnover and fresher food that hasn’t had the luxury of gracing their holding drawers too long, if at all.

The key is a special grill order (i.e. add pickles, no pickles, extra cheese, heavy onion) on top of that high turnover, which guarantees you a freshly made burger every time. Make it a Quarter Pounder that uses fresh, never frozen beef—preferably a double, no pickles, with bacon if you’re feeling porky—and you’ve got yourself a burger that, believe it or not, meets, and in most cases, exceeds, any cheffy local recco, but at a third the price and time, available with the best fries* on Earth all day after 10:30 (11 on weekends). The triple cheeseburger (no pickles, extra cheese, ketchup, and onions) is also a stellar choice.

Pro tip: use their app for even quicker, more convenient service, gain valuable points and unlock hidden rewards unavailable to mere drive thru denizens, and bonus, you could win McDonald’s for life as every order automatically enters you in that promotion until 11:59PM on 12/26/22.

*you can also special order fries for the freshest, hottest golden sticks of joy you’ve ever had. No salt or extra salt unlocks this deep fried culinary magic.

And hey you Burger Snobitors: don’t downvote me til you try it.

You are the goat! I tell people this about McDonald’s food all the time. I always ask for Mac sauce and no pickles on all of my burgers. They are all made fresh.

Burgatory

Applewood smoke burger

I really appreciate the detailed comment here. I’ll have to try your hack for for getting great burgers at McDonald’s.

Unfortunately a lot of these recs - which i have no doubt are really good dine in burgers - aren’t quite what I’m looking for. I think it just doesn’t exist here. I’ve lived in a handful of places and there usually a local drive through burger joint that’s a cut above all other fast food places, but the prices are still comparable. These burgers might never be as good as a gourmet burger, but it’s more of your good quality diner burger. Maybe the McDonald’s trick will cut it.

Try Burger Hut.

And if you’re willing to drive, Tastyland off Route 66 in Westmoreland County not only fits this bill, but eclipses all others in my post for overall best burger, McDonalds hack notwithstanding as you can do it anywhere. I only excluded it because of distance (and because I’m a selfish f@ck that doesn’t want to give up his best burger secret lest everyone converge and make the lines untenable at this otherwise quiet, bucolic place).

Go-to Tastyland order: double cheeseburger, onions, bacon; add ketchup to taste. Do not overlook the perfectly cooked crinkle cut fries which taste like an amusement park in your mouth and are the perfect fodder between burger bites. Oh, and get a Dole Whip for dessert.

Oh my gosh, this looks like exactly what I’ve been searching for!

Rest assured, they are an hour away from my house. I will not be frequenting this closely held secret of yours enough to affect any lines.

Thank you for the tip! I can’t wait to try it.

Burghers and I can’t eat enough of their fries

I wanted to come back and let you know i tried a special order burger at McDonald’s and you were spot on, it was a pretty decent burger.

Thank you!

You’re very welcome. I’m glad I could help a fellow burger lover!