The best burger places in Manchester – super, smashing, great!

The humble burger’s come a long way since the days when the only places you could get one were McDonalds and Burger King.

And it’s gone mainstream.

Manchester’s gone burger mad. We just can’t get enough of the burger and luckily there are now almost as many burger places as there are pubs in the city centre. Why do we love them so much? Because they’re damn tasty. Enough to make a vegetarian give up their Quorn.

What makes a good burger anyway? Most people say it’s the beef.

Pure 100% fresh beef. A brioche bun, cheese, lettuce, tomato, sauce (slut sauce?).

Onion rings, pickle – a bonus or fuss? Gherkin? Not many people like them. Did you know the reason why McDonalds put gherkins in their burgers is because, without the gherkins, the burgers would be classed as a dessert due to the high levels of sugar. Yep, apparently.

Anyhow, we’ve tasted some of the best, none-dessert burgers in Manchester and ate so many that we don’t want to see another one again. Not until next week, anyway.

The best burger places in Manchester

Leno Ex Machina at DieCast Manchester

The Leno Burger at Leno Ex Machina is a delicious dry-aged Angus short rib patty, with a mix of aged cheddar and American cheese, caramelised onions, pickles, and Leno burger sauce, sandwiched between a potato bun made fresh in-house every day in their warehouse kitchen – which btw is the largest in Manchester.

It is both juicy and has a satisfying crunch to it and the bonus part is the bun doesn’t crumble under pressure.

51 Ducie St, Manchester M1 2JQ

Hard Rock Cafe

The Messi Burger sees two seared ground beef patties, provolone cheese, chorizo, red onions, Hard Rock’s in-house sauce (tangy and smoky with a little bit of spice), lettuce, tomato, and a brioche bun.

Hard Rock Cafe recommends getting extra “Messi” by adding a fried egg on top. Yummy.

The Printworks, Manchester M4 2BS

Hotel Football

You can pick from two delicious burgers at Hotel Football. Pick from the delicious Home Team Burger which includes a beef patty, bacon, cheese, house sauce, beef tomato, gem lettuce, brioche bun (£17.50) or the Special One  which is jam packed with fried peri chicken, bacon, house sauce, beef tomato, gem lettuce, on a delicious brioche bun (£17.50).

Old Trafford, 99 Sir Matt Busby Way, Stretford, Manchester M16 0SZ

The Butcher

A fantastic independent shop, The Butcher delivers on all fronts. Best shout is ‘The Daddy’, which is 230g of prime Aberdeen Angus beef burger topped with melted Edam cheese, lettuce, tomato, bacon, BBQ sauce & grilled onion. The Butcher has an incredible selection of fourteen burgers to pick from, so make sure you’re hungry if you head down to their shop in the Arndale.

Manchester Arndale, Manchester M4 3AD

Sixes Cricket

Sixes have seven delicious cricket themed burgers to choose from. We went down to try them, but couldn’t pick between the Beefy Botham which is stacked with aged beef, double melted cheese, Sixes burger sauce & Dill Pickles and the Delhi Smasher, which is crispy fried Delhi Chicken, melted cheese, curry mayo, pickled red onion and smoked yoghurt.

The Corn Exchange, New Cathedral St, Manchester M4 3TR

Five Guys

This famous American burger chain has built a loyal following worldwide.
The menu at Five Guys is simple, with a range of classic American burgers, hot dogs, and fries.
But their burgers are anything but. Five Guys burgers are made from 120-day grain fed Scottish beef and you can choose from 15 free, fresh toppings, meaning there are over 250,000 different combinations to choose from.

You can find them at U19 Upper Mall, Manchester Arndale, Manchester M4 3AJ or The Orient, R28 The Great Hall, Manchester M17 8EH

The Black Friar

The Blackfriars Burger is a belting big round cake of beef, layered with mushroom ketchup, a slice of German Alpine artisan cheese Alpencheddar, gem lettuce, thick slices of tomato on a poppy and sesame seed brioche bun. Comes on a big wooden board with a decent portion of fries.

Atlas Bar

The Atlas Burger is a mouthwatering delight that promises to satisfy even the heartiest of appetites.

This delectable creation features two succulent 4oz beef patties, cooked to perfection and stacked generously with Swiss cheese, a tantalising combination that adds a creamy and rich flavour to each bite.

The patties are accompanied by a medley of fresh ingredients, including slices of onion that lend a slight crunch and a hint of sharpness, ripe tomato slices that provide a burst of juiciness, and crisp lettuce too.

The burger also has a gherkin, lending a tangy and slightly sweet pickle flavour, and a dollop of the chef’s special House Burger Sauce, which imparts a unique and savoury taste profile to the ensemble.

As a delightful sidekick, the Atlas Burger is served alongside golden and crispy skin-on fries, completing the indulgent experience.

376 Deansgate, Manchester M3 4LY

Honest Burgers

Honest Burger has a class selection of amazing quality burgers with high-quality ingredients.

They’ve been in the city for ten years now, using beef from small farms in Gloucestershire.

Their burgers are made from chuck and rib cap (the bit that’s skimmed off a rib eye steak).

It’s more expensive, but they claim that it makes their burgers juicier, with a ‘good bite’.

It means you can actually taste the beef – really great beef – not just meat. And that’s exactly how it should be.

36 Bridge St, Manchester M3 3BT

Burgerism

Burgerism started making burgers from a factory unit in Salford. Due to critical acclaim, they have expanded with a ghost kitchen in Ardwick and also a joint in Gatley too. They’re no-nonsense; single double, cheese, with bacon, veggie or all of the above.

18 W Ashton St, Salford M50 2XS or 7 Stonepail Rd, Gatley, SK8 4EZ

Yard and Coop

Yard and Coop is a unique and vibrant chicken restaurant that originated in Manchester.  Founded in 2014 by Carl Morris and Laura Morris, Yard and Coop has gained a reputation for its innovative take on fried chicken, laid-back atmosphere, and emphasis on quality ingredients.

The restaurant’s concept revolves around serving high-quality, free-range chicken prepared in a variety of delicious and creative ways.

Their menu showcases a range of fried chicken dishes, from classic favourites like chicken burgers and wings to more unique offerings such as chicken waffles and chicken parmesan.

The focus is on using fresh, locally sourced ingredients and preparing everything from scratch to ensure top-notch flavour and quality.

37 Edge St, Manchester M4 1HW

That Burger Place

Founded in Pendlebury Swinton by chef Ryan McDermott, That Burger Place flips out Cali-style smashed patties aka smashburgers that are thin, crispy and layered with proper American cheese slices and their infamous burger sauce ‘bacon rain’. Their signature burger ‘California Dreaming’ made it to the finals at the National Burger Awards.

160 Bolton Road, Manchester, M28 3GA

Almost Famous

Almost Famous is like Disneyland on acid. In Manchester, they’re not almost famous, they’re actually famous.

So much so, they can make up their own ingredients. People can get a bit too hyped about it. It is just a burger joint – with a massive statue of a gorilla and a few other plastic animals. It’s a proper funky gig.

But behind all that animation and arsey staff is some absolute revolutionary burger.

Pictured: Pheonix (£12.50) “Double cheeseburger, bacon, shoestring onions, frazzles, red chillies, redneck BBQ, bacon bacon mayo, bacon ketchup”

2 Great Northern Warehouse, 235 Deansgate, Manchester M3 4EN and  Northern Quarter. 49-51 Edge St, Northern Quarter

If you have a difference in opinion of our choice, please do let everyone have it..