I only get burgers from Whataburger.
ANY of the burgers at The Silver Spur in NYC’s Greenwich Village. Biggest burgers I’ve ever seen, and the tastiest too.
Special mention has got to go to the Wendy’s Baconator, simply because it’s the only fast food burger I know of that I can eat without any modifications and have it exactly the way I want it.
It’s hard to say which of those two is gonna kill me first…
If you are in North Carolina,
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Fayetteville area, Andy’s
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Raleigh area, Andy’s
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I will pass on the Hi, Opal!
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Moyock area, Andy’s
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Jacksonville area, Andy’s
Where else can you eat a 50 oz burger and be immortalized?
SSG Schwartz
Locally, the best burgers are at Red Robin. I don’t have a favorite there; I more-or-less randomly choose from six or eight different ones.
I went to Fuddrucker’s a couple times while visiting San Antonio. I forgot to go to the condiment bar, but they were great anyway!
I also had an amazingly-good burger at a place called Wild Tymes, in St. Paul. Anyone from that area want to concur?
In-N-Out is a must in SoCal, but it’s as much out of tradition as for the food.
I’ve really only eaten two restaurant burgers that stood out as being worth remembering:
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Any burger served at Rare.
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The Mazinaw Monster, served only at the little restaurant on Highway 41 on Mazinaw Lake in Ontario. It had toweigh two pounds and it was delicious. I think they put heroin in it.
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Hudson’s Hamburgers in Coeur d’Alene, ID. Hundred year old hamburger joint that used to serve to the loggers in the city, now serves to the tourists. It was a big deal back in the day when they added cheese to the menu. A burger has to be damn good if the only toppings available are ketchup and mustard (homemade, by the way). Do not order french fries - they don’t have any.
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Ted’s Montana Grill in various states, but not Montana, oddly. Their Kitchen Sink Burger is exactly what it sounds like. Incidentally, I agree with Flander about the fried egg. Its also a good sign when a hamburger has as much pork on it as beef. (Buffalo is available too, if you are into that sorta thing)
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There was a burger place by my high school in Montana that served a decent hamburger. I do not recall the name, but I know it no longer exists. The place used to be a Burger King, but some local controversy forced the franchise to shut down. Unable to open a new Burger King, the owner started his own business. The high school crowd kept the place jumping for several years, but eventually, they shut down. A few years after that, a new Burger King opened up less then 100 yards away. Go figure.
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The $25 burger at my place of employment, that I am not going to mention. This burger is NOT worth the $25 they charge for it, but it is very tasty. I was there to witness the birth of this monster… It was a slow, boring night in a fine dining restaurant kitchen, and with no managers around, someone decided it was hamburger time. (This happened at least once a week.) We pilfered some Kobe burgers and proceeded with our usual routine, until someone decided to spear the thing with foie gras scraps from the freezer. We cooked it up to medium and topped it with some truffled bernaise. And ate it. Oh. My. God.
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There is no number five.
Hut’s in Austin[ol]
[li]The Fats Domino Burger: Lettuce, chopped tomatoes, pickles, mayo and mustard, jalapenos, onions, grated cheddar cheese and spicy New Orleans seasonings[/li][li]The Wolfman Jack: sour cream, diced green chilis, jack cheese and bacon[/li][li]Chubby Chuck’s: pickles, onions, grated cheese and hickory sauce[/li][li]The All-American Buddy Holly Burger: The Works! Mayo, mustard, onions, pickles, lettuce, tomatoes and American cheese[/li][li]The Sink Burger: lettuce, tomatoes, American cheese with grilled ham and hickory sauce[/li][/ol]
1.) Lindy’s Red Lion, in D.C. Right near the Foggy Bottom metro - their big thing is that they have dozens of different toppings for their burger, including tzatziki sauce, sour cream, and - most importantly - a homemade barbecue sauce with chunks of delicious bacon in it. Best burgers money can buy, I think.
2.) Five Guys - yah, I know they’ve already been mentioned, but it’s worth repeating. These guys really are that good. Also, free peanuts! DCDopers, there’s one at Dupont Circle - go, buy, eat!
3.) Wagshal’s - right by my law school. 
Five bucks gets you a darned good burger, with Russian dressing and awesomeness.
Since no one else from North Texas has chimed in, for the D/FW area;
Denton County Independent Hamburger Company - Flame grilled fresh beef with shredded cheddar cheese by the handful and all you can eat fresh cut french fries and red beans.
Sid’s Rainbow Grill in oldtown Carrollton - 50’s style diner with the best jalapeno bacon cheeseburger ever, but you have to know to order it that way. When I walk in they just say “The usual?”. Sometimes it arrives before I order!
Fred’s Texas in Fort Worth - 1/2 pound Fredburger with cheese, please.
Kincaid’s in Fort Worth. Cash only, no checks or plastic accepted. It used to be the grill counter at the back of a grocery store. Now it’s just the restaurant. Outstanding handmade hamburgers.
And for off-the-beaten-path The Busy Bee Cafe in Maypearl, Texas. If you ever find yourself in Maypearl, you went there on purpose or you are just flat lost. It’s not on the way from anywhere to anywhere else. But they make a damned fine cheeseburger and their onion rings are not to be believed. In addition, there is a small bar with live music in what used to be the garage area of this converted 1930’s era gas station. Worth the trip.
In Knoxville we’re blessed with Gridiron Burgers, a place where you can still order a rare hamburger - and have the thing come back rare. None of this "OMG we might give you Teh Mad Cow/We don’t cook below ‘medium’ " crap for GB. 
I almost don’t feel qualified to nominate this place because I’ve only been there once but I pick the Red Mill in Seattle. Although not everyone would like the combination of ingredients, I really liked their Bleu Cheese N’ Bacon Burger.
OK, I’m just going to stick with fast food burgers to simplify things:
- In n Out Burger
- Fatburger
- Culver’s
- Fuddrucker’s
- Carl’s Jr.
I’m not a fan of 1/2 pound burgers, much preferring a loosely formed, 1/4 lb or smaller burger, and all the burger joints above do a good job given those constraints.
I recall some damn good burgers at Toby’s Good Eats, in Toronto. No idea if any Toby’s locations still exist–they were a small chain and a Google search reveals little but memories–but a Toby’s burger with some fries and a Coke was indeed the food of the gods. Damn, I miss them.
This place makes some serious burgers, but they can sometimes be too large.
A good Blue 9 Burger is hard to beat when you are in New York.
The best burgers in the Milwaukee area:
- Solly’s butter burgers - a heart attack waiting to happen but oh so good
- Fuddrucker’s
- Culver’s
- Sobelman’s
Fuddrucker’s used to be the best in our town, but now I reckon it’s a place called “Burgers, Fries, and Cherry Pies.” That’s not just the name, that’s the whole menu. Well, they do have onion rings and shakes, too.
I usually order the half-pound Trifecta, which has three slices of cheese on it. Mmm, cheesy. They have some toppings you don’t commonly find, like bearnaise sauce, guacamole, roasted green chiles, and pineapple.
This will be meaningless, since these are all up here:
Lucky Wishbone cheeseburger
Arctic Roadrunner cheeseburger
Club Paris filet mignon burger
Max’s Beefy Burger 1/2 pounder
Here in Austin:
Happy to see so many replies!
There’s an In-N-Out here; honestly I’ve never tried it. After they opened, the folks who’d waited all their lives for an In-N-Out in Reno were ecstatic, but everyone I knew who’d never tried one before was extremely unimpressed. I still see a pretty amazing line of cars out there every day, though.
For shame! In all seriousness, just about the most perfect burger ever. Does the Nugget Diner have an Oyster Bar, or are you thinking of John Ascuaga’s? I’m talking about the wee, cramped, scary one downtown. Great atmosphere for enjoying a huge burger and fries, served in a basket.
Amen!
Ended up having a Bullseye burger from Shenanigans last night, which is their take on the Western Bacon from Carl’s Jr. - the onion rings were burned which, strangely, made it even better!
Hope you enjoy! More info: we usually use the Knorr Cracked Peppercorn Ranch dry mix to mix with the meat, let the onions get a lovely dark brown until there’s no liquid left at all, and melt the muenster over the top of the burger and onion before topping with the other half of the bun. Best served on an onion bun, IMO.
If you come to Lima, Peru, you MUST try Bembo’s, and there you ahould ask for “Huachana” (burger with a spicy sausage).
A guilty pleasure is Sanguchón Campesino. If you don’t mind the less-than-sanitary conditions and don’t worry about increasing you cholesterol by 40 or 50 points. It’s a college guy’s dream with more than 200 combinations posible and opens until very late.