| Burbs Burgers | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Exterior of the Pioneer Square, Seattle location in 2023 | |
| Restaurant information | |
| Closed | February 2024 |
| Owner(s) | Josh Henderson |
| Chef | Josh Henderson |
| State | Washington |
| Country | United States |
| Website | burbsburger |
Burbs Burgers was a small restaurant chain based in Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. Owned by Chef Josh Henderson, the business operated in the city's Montlake, Pioneer Square, and Ballard neighborhoods. All five locations closed in February 2024.
Burbs Burgers was a small restaurant chain based in Seattle. The business operated in the city's Montlake, Pioneer Square, and Ballard neighborhoods. The Montlake location was described as "a food truck, plus some fake grass and a couple pergolas for a seating area". [1] The Pioneer Square location was described as a "faux grass-lined sports bar" with "old photos of sports heroes and trophies". [2]
In addition to burgers, the menu included fried chicken sandwiches. [2] The Burbs Classic was a burger with American cheese. The Burbs Special had pickles and "all the works". [3]
Chef and owner Josh Henderson, [4] who previously founded the restaurant chain Skillet, opened two Burbs Burgers locations during the COVID-19 pandemic, in Montlake and on King Street in a Pioneer Square building which had housed his sports bar Quality Athletics. [2] [5] The Montlake location opened on October 1, 2020. [1]
During the pandemic, the Pioneer Square location shared a space with other businesses by Henderson: Trophy Pizza, and the pop-up restaurant Cookie's Country Chicken, which served fried chicken. [6] The businesses operated via delivery and take-out at the time. [7] David Gutman and Tan Vinh of The Seattle Times called Henderson "one of the city's most outspoken critics of the vaccination mandate". [8] In February 2022, when Seattle announced plans to "lift its proof-of-vaccination requirement for restaurants, theaters and gyms" effective March 1, he called the policy change "long overdue". [9]
In 2020–2021, Burbs Burgers announced plans to expand to the cities of Burien and Mountlake Terrace. [1] [10] [11] [12] The Burien location was originally slated to open in November 2020. [1] The Mountlake Terrace location was slated to open at Cedar Plaza in 2020. [13] [14] [15] Burbs Burgers operated at Great Notion Brewing in Ballard as of 2022. [16]
In November 2023, Burbs Burgers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Once the company exited from bankruptcy, the company had planned to expand the Burbs Burgers' name to other parts around the Seattle area. [17] All five locations closed in February 2024. [18] [19]
Tan Vinh included the cheeseburger in The Seattle Times' 2021 list of "5 best dishes our food critic ate in the Seattle area this month for under $10" and wrote, "This is one of the cheapest smashed burgers around town, and it's as good as many higher-priced versions." [3] Vinh also included Burbs Burgers in a list of the "20 best dishes of 2021", as determined by the newspaper's food critics. Vin recommended the smash burger "for a taste reminiscent of a Big Mac, but without the middle bun. Better, though, is the double cheeseburger with none of the add-ons for a cleaner, beefy bite". [20] Allecia Vermillion of Seattle Metropolitan included Burbs Burgers in a 2023 list of the best eateries near Lumen Field and T-Mobile Park. [5]
Zuri Anderson included the Ballard location in iHeartMedia's 2022 list of Seattle's five best burger restaurants, based on Yelp reviews. [21] Kayla Sager-Riley of The Infatuation called the Pioneer Square restaurant "a fine burger savior after hitting every beer garden in T-Mobile Park or hocking family heirlooms to attend a Beyoncé concert at Lumen Field", and said the location served "just-OK burgers and sometimes-soggy buns". [2] Sager-Riley and Aimee Rizzo also included the business in a 2023 overview of "where to eat near T-Mobile Park and Lumen Field". [22]
Julia's on Broadway, or simply Julia's, is a restaurant in Seattle's Capitol Hill, in the United States. It is associated with a small chain of restaurants in the metropolitan area called Julia's.
Taurus Ox is a Lao restaurant in Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. The restaurant launched another called Ox Burger.
Katsu Burger is a Japanese-themed burger restaurant chain in the Seattle metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of Washington.
Maíz is a small chain of Mexican restaurants in Seattle, Washington. The original nixtamaleria has operated at Pike Place Market since 2021. Maíz Molino opened in Denny Triangle in 2022, and Maíz Taqueria opened in the Ballard area in 2024.
El Borracho is a chain of Mexican restaurants in the U.S. state of Washington. The business operates at Pike Place Market in Central Waterfront, Seattle, and in Tacoma. Previously, El Borracho operated in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood.
Beast and Cleaver is a butcher shop and restaurant in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood, in the U.S. state of Washington.
Musang is a Filipino restaurant in Seattle's Beacon Hill neighborhood, in the U.S. state of Washington.
Un Bien is a Caribbean restaurant with two locations in Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington.
Spice Waala is an Indian restaurant with two locations in Seattle, Washington. Uttam Mukherjee and Aakanksha Sinha started the business in 2018, initially as a pop-up in Fremont and South Lake Union. The first brick and mortar restaurant opened on Capitol Hill in 2019, followed by a second in Ballard in 2021. Spice Waala's street food offerings have received a positive reception.
Dead Line is a bar and restaurant in Pioneer Square, Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. Owned by Erik Hunter, the bar was established in 2017 and serves Latin/South American cuisine.
Lil Woody's Burgers & Shakes, or simply Lil Woody's, is a restaurant chain based in Seattle, Washington. Marcus Lalario is the owner of the business, which was established on Capitol Hill in 2011.
Jackalope Tex-Mex and Cantina, or simply Jackalope, is a restaurant in Columbia City, Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. Established by co-owners Jack Timmons and Graham Ayers in 2021, the restaurant serves Tex-Mex and Mexican cuisine, and has garnered a positive reception.
8oz Burger & Co is a burger restaurant in Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. There have been two locations; the original restaurant operated on Broadway from 2012 to 2024, and an outpost operates in Ballard. The business is owned by Kevin Chung, who had intended to expand the 8oz. Burger Bar chain.
Westward is a restaurant in Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. Established in 2013, the restaurant operates on the north end of Lake Union.
Wood Shop BBQ is a restaurant in Seattle's Atlantic / Central District area, in the U.S. state of Washington. Owned by James Barrington and Matt Davis, the restaurant has been featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Wood Shop BBQ has operated outposts.
Sisters and Brothers Bar is a restaurant in Seattle's Interbay neighborhood, in the U.S. state of Washington. It has been featured on the Food Network series Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.
Mt. Bagel is a bagel shop in Seattle's Madison Valley neighborhood, in the U.S. state of Washington. Established by Roan Hartzog in 2019, the business initially operated via delivery before moving into a brick-and-mortar stop in Ballard in 2020. In 2023, Mt. Bagel relocated to Madison Valley.
Sweet Alchemy Ice Creamery, or simply Sweet Alchemy, is an ice creamery based in Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. The business has shops in the University District and Ballard neighborhoods, and on Capitol Hill. Owner Lois Ko opened the first location near the University of Washington in 2016; the Ballard location opened in 2019 and shares a space with Mighty-O Donuts, and the Capitol Hill shop opened in Chophouse Row in 2020. Sweet Alchemy offers a variety of ice cream flavors and other desserts, and makes cakes, cones, cookies, sauces, and toppings in-house. The business pasteurizes its dairy daily from local farms. It has garnered a positive reception and has been deemed among Seattle's best ice cream shops.
Dough Joy is a small chain of doughnut shops in Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. The queer-owned business, which specializes in vegan doughnuts, was established by Christopher Ballard and Sean Willis. Dough Joy initially operated from a food truck in the Ballard neighborhood, and later expanded to brick and mortar shops on Capitol Hill and in the West Seattle neighborhood. In 2024, Dough Joy announced plans to open a third shop in Ballard. The business has garnered a positive reception.
