Best Burgers In Bangkok

[bkkjames]

Never forgetting the quest for a good (or even best) hamburger to be found in BKK, we ventured last night back to the Hard Rock Cafe in Siam Square to try their burger for the first time...and were pleasantly surprised. Judged on the standard of an "American" hamburger, it was generally a good burger, and very good by BKK standards.

We'd been there before for the BBQ ribs, which were very good, and reported on here previously... And it was the authenticity of those (that dinner was one of the few I've ever had in BKK where the food made me think I'm actually eating back in the USA) that made me want to come back to try the burgers.

For the record, HRC has a full page of their menu devoted to hamburgers, and two basic categories of offerings: a section of 10 oz. burgers with various choices of fancy toppings, all pricing at 550 to 600 baht including fries. Then there's the regular hamburgers section with 7 oz. choices with various toppings in the 350 to 400 baht range including fries. (I believe the menu indicates they use Australian ground beef for their burgers.) Not being a glutton, I opted for the basic "HRC Burger" with fries for 350 baht, which arrived plain except for a side garnish of lettuce, a couple onion slices, and a couple pickles and tomato slices.

(sorry for the less than optimal photos... My mobile doesn't have a flash, and the inside of HRC is dark....)

The fries were mediocre, regular medium cut style but not arriving particularly fresh or hot. But the burger (the beef) was very good in two respects... First, they ask how you want it cooked, I answered medium, and to my surprise, I actually got a hamburger that was pink inside...which is what I was wanting/expecting. (Too often, of course, no matter how you ask for meat here to be cooked, it arrives brown through and through.) That was a nice touch.

Then, second, the burger arrived with a wonderful charcoal grilled flavor to the meat.... not overcooked or burned on the outside. But just enough real grilling to impart that distinct and remarkable flavor that says HAMBURGER and blows away the flavor of any griddle fried offerings. If they did add any seasonings into the beef, they weren't detectable at all, with the charcoal grill flavor dominating.

And of course, at 7 oz., the burger was quite good in size and shaped as a large patty formed to maybe 1/4 inch thick... and filling out the width of the good sized bun it came with ... not the meatball shaped patty found elsewhere.

Next time, on a day when I'm feeling particularly ravenous, I may give a try to one of the 10 oz. burgers (just under 2/3rd of a pound)... first...to see if they can consistently replicate the quality of the burger last night, and second, sometimes ya gotta just go for the beef!!! ...

http://www.hardrockcafe.co.th/Food_Beverage_BURGERS.htm

Nice review JFC. One piece of advice if I may. Take an extra two minutes and fix the white balance on those images because they look horrible (colour).

[jfchandler]

Never forgetting the quest for a good (or

(sorry for the less than optimal photos... My mobile doesn't have a flash, and the inside of HRC is dark....)

Nice review JFC. One piece of advice if I may. Take an extra two minutes and fix the white balance on those images because they look horrible (colour).

Sorry James, et al... As mentioned above, my mobile phone lacks a flash and takes terrible photos in the dark. I actually did go in in Photoshop and "fix" those photos... You should have seen the originals....

[sabaijai]

He & I went to BAR B Q sandwich King today - as we plan to do once a week.

Best Burger in Bangkok - no qualifiers.

Except one - best burger in your opinion

[Ossies]

Tired a hamburger at the new location of Big Mango this past weekend and it does not measure up to the old place. The burger was on the mushy side I thought and also contained to much black pepper. Figure they are using to much bread or flour trying to hold beef together or they want to stretch the beef further so can keep the price down. In either case its a no no in my book. I for one don't mind paying a bit extra for a good beef burger.

Use to love their burgers so hope things improve soon.

Interesting to see your comment above as I also tried their burger a few months back at the new location on the basis of its legendary status. Low and behold all I could think was 'way too much pepper.' Not tried since...maybe it was a rogue batch where the cook knocked over the pepper pot!

[Ulysses G.]

He & I went to BAR B Q sandwich King today - as we plan to do once a week.

Best Burger in Bangkok - no qualifiers.

Except one - best burger in your opinion

So solly, sabaijai only goes for Japananese burgers these days.

[Thailandf2rally]

Best burger i've had hands down, is at que pasa near ISB, I highly recommend it! Mos burgers is alright, i'm not very fond of the meat sauce on it though.

Here's the que pasa website. www.quepasa-th.com

[worldquester]

Just read through the whole thread. My comments:

As an American, my favorite burger in BKK was/is Tony Roma's. I say "was" because it was a good value at the Tony Roma's Express in Emporium: huge (everyone we took had the same facial expression and question on how to eat it), nice bun, good meat (beef and added-on bacon), garlic french fries... all for something like 100 baht cheaper than the sit-down versions on Sukhumvit or Paragon.

BUT, that's gone, as Emporium re-imagined their card court. sigh.

We took my visiting mom to the Paragon one, looked at the prices on the menu and said we're not paying over $10 just for a burger. We went Piri Piri instead. Their burger is okay but marinated, and the bun falls apart if you order the double.

The best burger out of Bangkok, I think, is on Koh Samet at the stand outside of Silver Sands bar. Greasy and great and cheese and bun is good. Mmmm, delicious. Mike's in Chiang Mai is really good, too.

As for fast food burger here, it's Burger King or MOS Burger (but I agree, not American burger). Burger King in Malaysia or Singapore is much better than the Thailand version. I think A&W here is a sad, sad name-only version of the American one--blech.

I agree with the comments on Garage. They're all over the place. I like the environment in Central World and the bottomless refills on fizzy drinks. I've only had Bully's once (or twice) and was pretty good.

Fuddrucker's is one of, if not, the best chain in the U.S. But, can you imagine the quality and cost if they had one here? They're a bit pricey back there. They'd have to choose to go local or import, and it would be insanely priced.

From the reports, I'll have to try Big Mango on Suk Soi 4 and Euro-Gourmet on Ekkamai 23.

[CarlBkk]

I had my first Triple O burger (next to supermarket, top floor of Central World) and it was excellent, the best I've had here. But it should be for 400 baht.

[edwardandtubs]

I had my first Triple O burger (next to supermarket, top floor of Central World) and it was excellent, the best I've had here. But it should be for 400 baht.

You could have had 18 McDonalds hamburgers for that price.

[polecat]

Mike's in Chiang Mai is really good, too.

You had to go and ruin all that hard work by mentioning Mike's, didn't you. If you've tried a burger for CM Saloon or The Duke's you'd realise the absurdity of your statement above.

[on-on]

Our gracious host Mark has made little cards, had them laminated & placed one on every table.

I'll paraphrase.

In case I'm not here you can call me anytime on 08x-xxx-xxxx to discuss catering needs - complaints about the food complaints about the service or anything else. We want you to enjoy our food.

He will still be around in 10 years time. Which not many can claim.

He's really a fantastic guy to sit and talk with about the business too. When I was there he had had some jalapeno sausage from Bei Otto smoked in his smokers on a special order and it was fantastic. The other food was as well. Almost makes me wish I lived up in Nonthaburi, heh.

[Ulysses G.]

Mike's in Chiang Mai is really good, too.

You had to go and ruin all that hard work by mentioning Mike's, didn't you. If you've tried a burger for CM Saloon or The Duke's you'd realise the absurdity of your statement above.

Mike's was pretty good back when the original Mike had it.

[Oberkommando]

Mos burgers is alright, i'm not very fond of the meat sauce on it though.

Order the normal burger or cheeseburger then! No meat sauce!

I like the normal cheeseburgers at Mos Burger. Must be up there.

[worldquester]

Mike's in Chiang Mai is really good, too.

You had to go and ruin all that hard work by mentioning Mike's, didn't you. If you've tried a burger for CM Saloon or The Duke's you'd realise the absurdity of your statement above.

Ah, but I've only been through CM twice as a tourist (mostly on the way to Pai/Mae Hong Son), so I haven't sampled those two places.

If I can remember this thread next time I go through, I'll try... (and then realize my absurdity! )

But, I had burgers from Mike's around Christmases '06 and '07, and they were good, so there you go.

[rob5ash]

larry's dive soi 22

Best burger i have had in 3 years,great fries too

[t.s]

Ok very full now from my burger at the Landmark Cafe (outside).

Positives: Like all food I have eaten here, did not disappoint. Burger was juicy, cooked medium, topped with cheese, bacon and kai dao - even though I didn't ask for it. Good flavour, ate it without any sauces. Came with fries and a garnish of coleslaw. Overall rated 8/10 for flavor, quality and presentation.

Negatives: None as far as the food taste, quality go but only that my burger and diet coke came to a total of 476 baht including all the service charges, taxes etc. 295 +++ for the burger, 100+++ for the soft drink.

Now I know it's not fair to compare BK which is down the street with what I just ate, but for more than 2x the cost of a whopper with cheese meal, I feel it's a bit over the top.

The Landmark paints itself to be a 5 star hotel, but let's face it, but sitting next to Sukhumvit road with all the traffic and sorted pedestrians strolling, is not really like sitting at the Oriental or Sukhothai is it.

Anyway you paint is, 14 USD for a burger, fries and coke is a bit much IMO.

Recommendation, while the burger at Soi 8 Bar is not to the same standard (but still quite ok), two can dine here for the price of one at the Landmark.

but how much would that hamburger have been in a pseudo 5 star hotel anywhere else?

[bkkjames]

Ok very full now from my burger at the Landmark Cafe (outside).

Positives: Like all food I have eaten here, did not disappoint. Burger was juicy, cooked medium, topped with cheese, bacon and kai dao - even though I didn't ask for it. Good flavour, ate it without any sauces. Came with fries and a garnish of coleslaw. Overall rated 8/10 for flavor, quality and presentation.

Negatives: None as far as the food taste, quality go but only that my burger and diet coke came to a total of 476 baht including all the service charges, taxes etc. 295 +++ for the burger, 100+++ for the soft drink.

Now I know it's not fair to compare BK which is down the street with what I just ate, but for more than 2x the cost of a whopper with cheese meal, I feel it's a bit over the top.

The Landmark paints itself to be a 5 star hotel, but let's face it, but sitting next to Sukhumvit road with all the traffic and sorted pedestrians strolling, is not really like sitting at the Oriental or Sukhothai is it.

Anyway you paint is, 14 USD for a burger, fries and coke is a bit much IMO.

Recommendation, while the burger at Soi 8 Bar is not to the same standard (but still quite ok), two can dine here for the price of one at the Landmark.

but how much would that hamburger have been in a pseudo 5 star hotel anywhere else?

what is your point ts?

[t.s]

Ok very full now from my burger at the Landmark Cafe (outside).

Positives: Like all food I have eaten here, did not disappoint. Burger was juicy, cooked medium, topped with cheese, bacon and kai dao - even though I didn't ask for it. Good flavour, ate it without any sauces. Came with fries and a garnish of coleslaw. Overall rated 8/10 for flavor, quality and presentation.

Negatives: None as far as the food taste, quality go but only that my burger and diet coke came to a total of 476 baht including all the service charges, taxes etc. 295 +++ for the burger, 100+++ for the soft drink.

Now I know it's not fair to compare BK which is down the street with what I just ate, but for more than 2x the cost of a whopper with cheese meal, I feel it's a bit over the top.

The Landmark paints itself to be a 5 star hotel, but let's face it, but sitting next to Sukhumvit road with all the traffic and sorted pedestrians strolling, is not really like sitting at the Oriental or Sukhothai is it.

Anyway you paint is, 14 USD for a burger, fries and coke is a bit much IMO.

Recommendation, while the burger at Soi 8 Bar is not to the same standard (but still quite ok), two can dine here for the price of one at the Landmark.

but how much would that hamburger have been in a pseudo 5 star hotel anywhere else?

what is your point ts?

The world over hotel restauraunt prices are higher than regular restraunts. it is not a condition exclusive to bangkok.

beyond your example of a hamburger, there is nothing you can get at the landmark that isn't half price down the street. you cannot pretend you were suprised by the price, can you?

besides, it is an excellent burger.

Edited March 23, 2009 by t.s

[bkkjames]

Ok very full now from my burger at the Landmark Cafe (outside).

Positives: Like all food I have eaten here, did not disappoint. Burger was juicy, cooked medium, topped with cheese, bacon and kai dao - even though I didn't ask for it. Good flavour, ate it without any sauces. Came with fries and a garnish of coleslaw. Overall rated 8/10 for flavor, quality and presentation.

Negatives: None as far as the food taste, quality go but only that my burger and diet coke came to a total of 476 baht including all the service charges, taxes etc. 295 +++ for the burger, 100+++ for the soft drink.

Now I know it's not fair to compare BK which is down the street with what I just ate, but for more than 2x the cost of a whopper with cheese meal, I feel it's a bit over the top.

The Landmark paints itself to be a 5 star hotel, but let's face it, but sitting next to Sukhumvit road with all the traffic and sorted pedestrians strolling, is not really like sitting at the Oriental or Sukhothai is it.

Anyway you paint is, 14 USD for a burger, fries and coke is a bit much IMO.

Recommendation, while the burger at Soi 8 Bar is not to the same standard (but still quite ok), two can dine here for the price of one at the Landmark.

but how much would that hamburger have been in a pseudo 5 star hotel anywhere else?

what is your point ts?

The world over hotel restauraunt prices are higher than regular restraunts. it is not a condition exclusive to bangkok.

beyond your example of a hamburger, there is nothing you can get at the landmark that isn't half price down the street. you cannot pretend you were suprised by the price, can you?

besides, it is an excellent burger.

i had no beef about the cost of the beef but 120 baht coke is over the top.

[Boater]

larry's dive soi 22

Best burger i have had in 3 years,great fries too

must try there

i had a big mango cheese burger the other day, and was not overly impressed! ... bun was not so good and the fries where awfull and also they didnt shread the lettuce !

there was a place down Koh San where i had a really good burger 3 years ago, i believe the place was ' silk ' ?

cheers

[johnefallis]

......best burger search....

I don't know how exactly I ended up here, but I agree with all your burger assesments so far, except that I think I actually prefer the McD's little double cheeseburger over the MOS. But only by a small margin.

Hands down, the best, and really the only "Good" burger I've had in Thailand, I get at the street vendor cart right outside the entrance to Nana Plaza at Sukhumvit soi 4, you know, all those raging little bars collected together for our perverse enjoyment? It's there in the evenings after say around 8pm until the wee hours of the morning (did I just say "wee hours of the morning"???) Anyway, I now get this burger everytime I go there, sometimes I go there just for the burger, sometimes I have to avoid going there because I've had too many burgers lately and will want one if I go drinking there.

BURGER... nice piece of meat, made to order while you watch and direct it's preparation if necessary, cheese (melted as much as you want), bacon (cooked as much as you want, add as much as you want), decent bun, plenty of fat for flavor, and about 100, 120 baht, depending. Although I am usually blissfully enlightened when I exit, so the burger really tastes good, I usually order an extra and take it home to the fridge because I know I will be hungry soon after waking up. It is still decent then although better fresh. Could be that I'm still drunk when I eat it the next morning, but give it a try. Sorry I don't know about the vegetable aspects, I never pay much attention as I am busy thoroughly enjoying the cheese, bacon and greasey meat at the time. Could be it just isn't there, or doesn't stand out. I don't know.

Sh!t, now I'm hungry and heading to Nana Plaza for a burger. Somehow I knew this was gonna cost me.

John

[onethailand]

......best burger search....

I don't know how exactly I ended up here, but I agree with all your burger assesments so far, except that I think I actually prefer the McD's little double cheeseburger over the MOS. But only by a small margin.

Hands down, the best, and really the only "Good" burger I've had in Thailand, I get at the street vendor cart right outside the entrance to Nana Plaza at Sukhumvit soi 4, you know, all those raging little bars collected together for our perverse enjoyment? It's there in the evenings after say around 8pm until the wee hours of the morning (did I just say "wee hours of the morning"???) Anyway, I now get this burger everytime I go there, sometimes I go there just for the burger, sometimes I have to avoid going there because I've had too many burgers lately and will want one if I go drinking there.

BURGER... nice piece of meat, made to order while you watch and direct it's preparation if necessary, cheese (melted as much as you want), bacon (cooked as much as you want, add as much as you want), decent bun, plenty of fat for flavor, and about 100, 120 baht, depending. Although I am usually blissfully enlightened when I exit, so the burger really tastes good, I usually order an extra and take it home to the fridge because I know I will be hungry soon after waking up. It is still decent then although better fresh. Could be that I'm still drunk when I eat it the next morning, but give it a try. Sorry I don't know about the vegetable aspects, I never pay much attention as I am busy thoroughly enjoying the cheese, bacon and greasey meat at the time. Could be it just isn't there, or doesn't stand out. I don't know.

Sh!t, now I'm hungry and heading to Nana Plaza for a burger. Somehow I knew this was gonna cost me.

John

Funnily enough, if it's the same guy that's been there for years, I've actually tried that burger (was quite cheap at the time) and it's not bad. But frankly he's just using Foodland beef patties and other standard ingredients - there's nothing particularly special about them.

But you're right. They do hit the spot if you're in the mood.

For the moment I've abandoned my search... but if anyone finds a great burger that can tempt me out of my diet...

[dotcom]

Have you tried Triple O ?

I still like the Metro burger at BBQSandwichKIng

[onethailand]

Have you tried Triple O ?

I still like the Metro burger at BBQSandwichKIng

Yeah been to Triple O. Good burger but way overpriced, especially for fast-food. For the same price, I can get a Triple Fatburger with all the fixins in Hong Kong or Macau... way the hel_l better burger too. Have one or two each time I go to the Venetian in Macau, which is 3-4x a year.

Haven't been up to BBQ Sandwich King since we went with jfchandler... if I do manage to get up there again I'll try the burger.

[DP25]

Yeah been to Triple O. Good burger but way overpriced, especially for fast-food. For the same price, I can get a Triple Fatburger with all the fixins in Hong Kong or Macau... way the hel_l better burger too. Have one or two each time I go to the Venetian in Macau, which is 3-4x a year.

Haven't been up to BBQ Sandwich King since we went with jfchandler... if I do manage to get up there again I'll try the burger.

Wow they have Fatburger in Hong Kong and Macau now? I thought it was just a California thing. I hope they open one in Thailand.

[onethailand]

Yeah been to Triple O. Good burger but way overpriced, especially for fast-food. For the same price, I can get a Triple Fatburger with all the fixins in Hong Kong or Macau... way the hel_l better burger too. Have one or two each time I go to the Venetian in Macau, which is 3-4x a year.

Haven't been up to BBQ Sandwich King since we went with jfchandler... if I do manage to get up there again I'll try the burger.

Wow they have Fatburger in Hong Kong and Macau now? I thought it was just a California thing. I hope they open one in Thailand.

Never seen the ones in HK, but the one in the Venetian is operated by the same company, so it's been a couple of years now.

If they opened in Thailand, I'd be in heaven!

[jfchandler]

Stopped by the Outback Steakhouse on the second floor of Siam Discovery the other day for the first time, and had to try their 299 baht Mad Max burger and fries. For an American style hamburger, it was pretty darned good, and the beef patty was not only generously thick and tasty, but also probably the largest I've eaten yet in Bangkok.

The Mad Max comes topped with two slices of good bacon strips, two slices of melted American cheese, pickles, onion, lettuce, tomato and mayonaise. Added mustard by request. Nice order of hot, crisp, good french fries on the side, and a pretty tiny cup of average cole slaw. The menu doesn't say the weight of the single burger patty, but as the photos attest, it was big. And it arrived cooked exactly to order (requested and delivered medium rare).

Service was very attentive and good, and they offer a standard menu item of 69 baht for refillable soft drinks, coffee or tea. Only minor quibble is all their menu prices are before their mandatory 10% service charge and the 7% VAT that they add on, meaning everything is actually about 17% higher than the menu price. So the combined price of the Mad Max Burger and an unlimited soft drink (all in with tax) was about 430 baht.

Outback also offers another (presumably smaller) of their burgers, the Outbacker, on their Lunch Specials Menu, which is available Mon.-Fri. from 11:30 am to 2:30 p.m. (except on holidays). The regular burger for 259 baht++ or the cheeseburger for 279 baht++ comes on the lunch specials menu along with a cup of soup, a loaf of their bread, and your choice of a refillable soft drink. (The 259/279 baht amounts also are the price for the Outbacker burger alone on their regular non-lunchtime menu.) So with tax, the 279 baht lunch special cheeseburger set totals at about 327 baht.

All in all, I'd certainly go back for their burgers again, especially if I could hit the weekday lunch special offering.

[onethailand]

Chose the Caesar Salad Beefburger at the Dubliner today. No photos, I always forget when I see food

Cost was 300 baht plus vat. The burger was a decent burger, but clearly seasoned, probably with onion soup mix. Got a decent portion of fries as well. Decent meal but I think it's overpriced.

Given the cost, I would prefer the Triple-O at the same price.

[ashacat]

Chose the Caesar Salad Beefburger at the Dubliner today. No photos, I always forget when I see food

Cost was 300 baht plus vat. The burger was a decent burger, but clearly seasoned, probably with onion soup mix. Got a decent portion of fries as well. Decent meal but I think it's overpriced.

Given the cost, I would prefer the Triple-O at the same price.

I took my family out for burgers in The Dubliner last night and they were the worst excuses for burgers I have ever seen in Bangkok.

They cost 300++ Baht each and came with absolutely no salad/coleslaw/garnish. The meat was terrible quality offal and I think I was given about 12 chips in total.

I would strongly advise you to stay away from them!!!!

[onethailand]

I took my family out for burgers in The Dubliner last night and they were the worst excuses for burgers I have ever seen in Bangkok.

They cost 300++ Baht each and came with absolutely no salad/coleslaw/garnish. The meat was terrible quality offal and I think I was given about 12 chips in total.

I would strongly advise you to stay away from them!!!!

LOL. Incidentally, I was meeting a friend from the US there, and he was thinking of the burger as well. Guessing that he would be like me, I told him that the burger probably had onion soup mix in it, but it wasn't bad - sure enough he turned up his nose. But he wanted a burger so badly, he ordered it - and asked if they had American cheese!

In the end, he said the same thing - sort of ok but not what he was looking for.

Chips-wise - we had both gotten decent servings of chips, though perhaps this was because we had ordered individually at different times. I bet they simply split what they had made for your family between the plates.

Anyhow, too pricey. The saving grace was that they had free wi-fi (True) which was extremely fast.