Love Austin: the best burger in town

This quest ~ to find the best burger in town ~ is born of a girl who grew up on Holiday House hamburgers. Not only did Holiday House have the best ‘flame broiled’ burgers in town ~ they had a real live crocodile (or was Charlie an alligator?) in a ginormous terrarium. It was kinda creepy. And kind of fantastic. And very Austintatious. When Holiday House closed their doors, Austinites literally mourned. (Or maybe that was just me and my family …) Holiday House was an Austin institution.

I am pleased to tell you that Top Notch is still around. Order a cheeseburger with shredded cheddar cheese and you’ve got the absolute closest thing to a Holiday House hamburger in town. Not only is Top Notch iconic but it was saved from near death when the good folks of Zocolo / Galaxy Cafe bought it. I want to hug those folks for not changing anything … except maybe adding fried okra which is.the.best.ever! Thank you. Thank you. xoxoxo.

Okay, let’s get to this list of favorites. And I really need your help. Because I kinda got stuck on a couple but I know there are some out there I’m forgetting or don’t even know about. So here goes …

Best Hamburger in Austin (in no particular order):

• Top Notch … the burgers, the fries, the okra, the retro appeal, the people. Love.
• Dirty’s … on the Drag. I haven’t been in forever but with a new longhorn in our family, I bet we’ll be down there just a little bit.
• Mighty Fine … oh, the french fries and the junior cheeseburger. What they do to those pickles. To die for.
• Hopdoddy … Austiny, upscale. Very yummy. Nice place to take new comers.
• Frisco … old school. Try the Frisco, leave the special sauce and order onion rings.
• Phil’s Icehouse … sweet potato fries are great. And of course, it’s right next to Amy’s Ice Cream. Yep.

So … where do you find the best burger in town? Why do you love it? What do you order?