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?
Good News Austin: Top Notch
Love Austin: Lake Austin
Love Austin: docks & bridges
Love: Austin
Love Austin: Next to New
Hey Susie! I am a SoCal girl who grew up on In N’ Out . Moving to Boerne, TX eight years ago almost killed me with no In N’ Out and no Wahoo’s. We discovered P. Terry’s on one of our many trips up to Austin for Wahoo’s ( we are the “crazy” people who drive an hour or so just for a fish taco!), and fell in love with P.Terry’s from the first bite. Their fries are actually (gasp!) better than In n’ Out! Plus, they have a ground chicken burger that is actually good!
Have to try Top Notch though next time we are up in Austin (which is becoming almost a weekly thing .) Love that city! It’s like the Lord put a bit of California in the middle of Texas for one homesick girl!
Susie I am a HUGE fan of Dirty’s and I also love P. Terry’s. If you are ever in Dallas please please PLEASE try Twisted Root Burger. If they moved to Austin, they would be the best!
My favorite burger, beside the one that I had yesterday at 5 Guys Burgers, has to absolutely be Ski Shores Border Burger! You can view the boaters on Lake Austin, feel the breeze, listen to live music at certain times, and bring your dog and your sweaty self after a walk at Turkey Creek. Perfection! I may make a date with my dogs right now for Saturday!
It’s got to be the Frisco Burger.
Mighty Fine is a close second.
I’ve heard talk of a place called
Elevation Burger that’s supposed to be good.
I’ll be trying it next week!
Those are all awesome choices and if you’re in a hurry and want a fresh, fast burger, you have to consider P. Terry’s and Hat Creek. However, as good as Holiday House was (after I got over my fear of a “flame kissed” burger – that phrase made me so nervous every time I went) the absolute king of burgers for me was GM Steakhouse on the drag. Platter and Pepsi ruled the day. Loved to go with Jimmy Davis to watch him order Cheeseburger No Cheese and get abused. The abuse was so bad he just learned to scrape the cheese off over time.
Well, all these great choices, there’s no doubt what I will be eating for lunch! Thanks for kick-starting my un-healthy obsession this morning!
Jimmy Davis … cheeseburger no cheese. Love that.
PS. Even though he was behind thick glass, the crocodile made me nervous.
I knew my brother would have a thought or two. Back in his traveling days all around the state for his OLD JOB, I would call him where ever I was and ask for the best burger in the area. He would have not one, but TWO options!! I guarantee Thom is having a BURGER today!!
ps. I’m glad to here Frisco’s is still around! I remember those as AWESOME burgers!! And yes, “I AM” old school!!
Oh Susie….you just made my mouth water…..I still miss Holiday House as well…my Mom and I were just talking about it. Oh how I wish they would open again. And Top Notch…..another place that just says “home” to me. We use to walk there when I was little and we lived off of Burnet Road.
And of course Dirty’s reminds me of when we were in High School and I would go for lunch sometimes. I was wondering if it was still open. Oh how this makes me miss Austin even more than I already do…..I must move back!!! Thanks for bringing up the memories….. :)
… come back to Austin!!!!!!!