I am using this page to collect visits to burger places in Hong Kong. For me the perfect burger must have a tender and juicy (but not crumbling) patty, firm buns, appropriate condiments, and be eatable bite by bite without making a mess. In the future I might build a ranking of the places described below, but for now they are listed in no specific order.
The Butchers Club – Wan Chai
Their claim to fame is the use of dry-aged meat for their patties. Apparently they source the beef from Australia and then dry-age it in their own facilities in Hong Kong. They have been featured in the Michelin guide since 2016 when the Hong Kong edition introduced the street food category (they are not a starred restaurant or a Bib Gourmand to be clear).
In my most recent visit (June 2018) I patronized the Wan Chai joint and had a Hogtown burger (160 HKD, around 20 USD). This specific burger adds a good amount of pulled pork to the mix. I give this burger two thumbs up, as not only the patty is juicy and firm, but the various ingredients are splendidly amalgamated. Their standard burger is also excellent and at the time of writing is priced 100 HKD (12.75 USD). I added their duck fat fries (fries “washed up” in duck grease, just to add some cholesterol) and an ice-cream sandwich. This last item is not shown on the receipt in the gallery and accounted for 40 HKD, around 5 USD. The ice cream sandwich is made on the spot, using two of their classic chocolate chip cookies and vanilla ice cream. The cookies were a bit too hard for my taste, I will probably skip the dessert next time. The only big con of this joint is that their locations are very essential, you can only seat on a steel stool. I am ok for a quick burger and I will certainly go back, but I would look for other options if I was to entertain friends.
Where in Hong Kong:
Rialto Building, 2 Landale St, Wan Chai
Other locations across Hong Kong. Check their website for their locations in mainland China as well.
Beef and Liberty – Central
Beef and Liberty is another homegrown gourmet burger operation. In many ways Beef and Liberty and The Butchers Club seem to track each other… In this case the meat is not dry-aged but sourced from Scotland and ground in Hong Kong.
The result is commendable. In my recent visit in June 2018 I went to their location in Central at the third floor of California Tower (in a nice gourmet enclave just a stone’s throw away from the bustling Queen’s Road. It was a public holiday, lunch menus were not available, but some additional brunch items were. I sank my teeth into a Bacon Cheese burger and I added chili fries and an avocado and ricotta toast. The burger was excellent and honestly I have a hard time telling the difference between their meet and the one used by the Butchers Club. They use glazed buns that are ok but not my favorite. In terms of value for money, not sure that the addition of the bacon and a bit of raclette cheese justify the higher price (135 HKD, around 17 USD) as compared to the plain burger that goes for 99 HKD (around 12.6 USD). The avocado and ricotta toast was a nice side (you see, I am totally for healthy food). It should be mentioned that there was a lot of avocado, but only a hint of ricotta. I could not find any dessert to complete my meal, but that was a nice excuse to walk for an ice cream nearby. A big plus is their location in Central: it is a very nice location, ideal to hang out with friends or for business lunches.
Where in Hong Kong:
3/F California Tower, 30-32 D’Aguilar Street, Central
See their website for other locations in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Shake Shack
In May 2018 one of the big events in the Hong Kong food scene was the opening of Shake Shack on the fourth level of the International Finance Center. This is an interesting development, as the fourth level of IFC has always been underutilized in my opinion, while it offers a spectacular view of the harbor. I had an evening burger with friends in mid June and I liked their smoke burger. Smaller than other gourmet burgers reviewed on this page (but you can always order a double patty), but with the addition of crispy bacon strips (I shall repeat crispy twice) that added to the flavor and made it a favorite of mine.
I visited Shake Shack again in July 2018 and I had the smoke burger again and one of their hot dogs. I avoided lines by going right after the opening at 11am. The story of the firm is linked to hot dogs, that’s how they started. It was a very good hot dog, a rarity in Asia. But let’s be clear, it was just a hot dog.
Where in Hong Kong:
4018, IFC, 1 Harbour View Street, Central (4th level of IFC shopping mall)
They are open from 11am to 11pm.
The HK branch has a website.
Five Guys
Similarly to Shake Shack, Five Guys is another acclaimed American burger chain. Their cheese burgers come with two patties and make them a big eat. You can select the condiments, otherwise they will serve it “all the way”, with everything. It is a satisfying burger, but I would not queue for it. Part of the experience, you can pick peanuts for free and nib them while you wait.
Where in Hong Kong:
60 Johnston Road, Wanchai.
Website: http://www.fiveguys.com.hk/
Burger Room
An old player in the Hong Kong burger scene, the Burger Room means creativity. They have a ton of different burgers available. Of note also their seafood burgers. Patties come well done (which is not my favorite) and they have some decadent choice of fries.
Where in Hong Kong:
Shop D, G/F, 50-56 Paterson Street, Fashion Walk.
Website: http://burgeroom.com/ (They also have another location in TST).
Honbo
Honbo is a one-shop burger joint in Wan Chai (Sun street, you may need to take a steep stair if you come from Queen’s Road East). I tried their soft-shell crab burger. I ended up trying also their signature Honbo burger that is a “dirty” American-style cheese burger. Both were excellent and worth a 20-minute wait on a Saturday evening (June 2019). “Honbo” means “burger” in Cantonese.
Where in Hong Kong:
G/F New Sun House, 6-7 Sun Street, Wan Chai.
Website: honbo.hk.