Best Burgers in Miami (2025)
Chef Michael Beltrán’s Coconut Grove staple turns out a dialed-in diner burger on a house-made bun. Bib Gourmand in the Michelin Guide and regularly praised by Eater Miami for its balance of crispy sear and soft, saucy nostalgia.
Blue Collar has always had enough regulars to justify a dining room bigger than a tool shed. You come here for massive portions, one of Miami’s best cheeseburgers, and a menu of comfort food classics the entire family, no matter how chaotic their tastes may be, can agree on. This is all still true now that Blue Collar has moved across the street to a bigger space. But a few things have changed (for the better). There are more tables, a slightly expanded menu, and a brand new cocktail program, which includes a $9 martini Blue Collar’s accountant probably hates. RESERVE A TABLE WITH RESERVE A TABLE CARDMEMBER BENEFITS FOR Get access to exclusive reservations at this spot with Chase Sapphire Reserve. New cardmembers get $300 in annual dining statement credits. SEE EXCLUSIVE TIMESAPPLY NOW Food Rundown Chanukah Latkes Crispy fried potato pancakes are too good to only eat on holidays, which is why we’re thankful Blue Collar serves them year-round. We’re also thankful they’re smart enough to serve them with chunky applesauce. photo credit: Karli Evans Shrimp And Grits This is a must-order for anyone who even remotely likes grits, which are cheesy and fluffy here. Even if you don’t, you can still pick off the excellent shrimp and little chunks of bacon and still be pretty happy. photo credit: Karli Evans Crispy Skin Snapper A lot of the fish we see on menus call themselves “crispy,” even though the skin is softer than a piece of paper that’s been marinated in olive oil. This skin on this snapper, though, is actually crispy. It also comes with two vegetables, and one of them should be the curried cauliflower puree. photo credit: Karli Evans Dry-Aged Cheeseburger This is one of our favorite burgers in the city. The NY strip patty is good enough to eat without the bun. But we’d never do that because this bun is a Portuguese muffin, which is kind of like an English muffin that lifts weights. More sandwiches should embrace the Portuguese muffin. photo credit: Karli Evans
Palmetto Bay’s beloved butcher shop flips a prime-and-Wagyu blend with house pickles and sriracha mayo. A recurring Eater Miami pick and multi-year favorite of Miami New Times, it’s a lunch hour rite for South Dade locals.
We first met United States Burger Service on a Friday afternoon behind Wynwood’s Boxelder, and we were hooked pretty much right away. Yes, it had something to do with the several high percentage IPAs we’d just consumed, but it was more because of how delicious these little burgers were. The patties had that magical crust you get from a perfect sear. There was a runny cheese sauce that sunk into all the burger’s little cracks and charred bits. The buns were freshly baked potato rolls dotted with poppy seeds, and they were so soft that your fingers left little imprints like a memory foam mattress. Plus, the burger fit perfectly in the palm of our hand, which allowed us to easily wash down each bite with another IPA without having to put the whole thing down over and over again, risking a structural burger catastrophe. We’ve remembered that burger nearly every Friday since, but after a couple of years of the roaming pop-up life, USBS finally has its own space inside The Citadel, a food hall in Little Haiti. And thankfully their burgers are exactly how we remember them. They’ve expanded the menu slightly from their pop-ups days, adding veggie options and a wonderful fried chicken sandwich. But you’re still coming here for the burger. Keep in mind they aren’t the biggest burgers in town - still about the size of your palm - so if you are extremely hungry, you may want to consider getting two or supplementing your order with some other Citadel vendors, like a scoop of one of Frice Cream’s exceptional ice cream flavors. Food Rundown 2-Day This is USBS’s standard burger. It comes with two patties (order the “Ground” if you’d prefer one), “government cheese,” and priority sauce. That “government cheese” is more of a cheese sauce with a base of (if we had to guess, American cheese). It mixes with the priority sauce (which is part mayonnaise, if we can keep guessing) and coats both patties beautifully, so every bite is a lovely combination of salty beef and cheese sauce. But even despite all that good stuff, their freshly baked and impossibly soft potato buns steal the show. photo credit: Tasty Planet Carrier Pigeon This is USBS’s fried chicken sandwich. Unlike most fried chicken sandwiches we’ve tasted recently, this one is made from ground chicken formed into an aesthetically pleasing round patty - rather than a whole fried breast or thigh. The breading is thin but crispy and there’s a crunchy cabbage situation on top that we approve of. This is an excellent little fried chicken sandwich. photo credit: Tasty Planet Snail Mail USBS offers a couple of veggie patty options and the Snail Mail is their simplest version. The patty isn’t one of those meat imitation patties. It tastes like a black bean burger and it works very well with the cabbage and lemon vinaigrette it’s topped with. And, of course, there’s that bun carrying the whole thing to victory. Caribbean Tariff USBS has four fry options that come coated in various spices. The “Caribbean Tariff” fries are tossed in jerk spice and come with a spicy mustard. Prioritize them, but if you’re here with someone else, make them get the sazon completa-dusted Cuban Tariff to split. photo credit: Tasty Planet
A tiny Little River brewery with outsized bar food, including a deeply savory koji-blended cheeseburger. Lauded by The Infatuation and Thrillist for food that punches far above its size and a neighborhood-first vibe.
A West Miami landmark where the Cuban frita—spiced patty on Cuban bread showered in papitas—still rules. Featured by Miami New Times and championed by food writers for four decades as essential Miami eating.
Family-run since 1979, El Rey popularized Miami’s frita tradition and still draws locals for its original style and playful variations. Cited by the Financial Times and Eater Miami as a Little Havana essential.
Timing matters at Over Under. And exactly when you should visit this Downtown cocktail bar and restaurant will depend on what sort of experience you’re looking for. Would you like to order a shot and a beer before immediately screaming Mariah Carey's "We Belong Together" into a microphone? Great. Stop by on Wednesday for late-night karaoke. Perhaps you want to sit at the bar and drink alone underneath the glow of a neon mosquito? Cool. Go at 1am on a Monday and enjoy the spooky isolation we usually only feel the day before a hurricane hits. Or maybe you just want to sit down with some friends, be loud, and eat very delicious food that requires no silverware? Then come anytime before the kitchen closes at midnight. Not unlike a surfer looking for good waves or a person trying to catch a specific type of fish, it’s helpful to know the rhythm of Over Under before you go. Or else you might walk in on a Saturday night hoping for a relaxing, chill dinner, only to be greeted by a densely packed room of people partying like they just won a shocking amount of money on a scratch-off. Its many personalities aside, Over Under is primarily a place we go to consume delicious things in an environment where we don't have to worry too much about the clothes we're wearing. The big theme of both the menu and the spiritual core of the restaurant is: Florida. It embraces the state with a mix of irony (they once created an entire menu as an ode to Flanigan's) and sincerity (they once created an entire menu as an ode to Flanigan's). About everything you can eat here has some sort of tie to the Sunshine State. The mahi-mahi in the thick scoop of smoked fish dip, the beef in the outstanding cheeseburger, the crispy fried alligator—all of the above carry Florida IDs. Even the phenomenal shell-tini, a perfectly briny martini with oyster shell-infused gin, utilizes the shells of Florida oysters. There are also rotating weekly specials—one of which is usually vegan or vegetarian—that showcase our state's deliciousness. Ingredients aren't the only thing that makes Over Under feel so Florida though. It's the unpredictability of walking in here. You never quite know what you'll encounter. But, like the state it loves, it'll probably be equal parts weird and fun. @infatuation_miami Make sure you order the shell-tini, a perfectly briny martini with oyster shell-infused gin. #overunder #downtownmiami #barfood ♬ Null Magic - DJ BAI Keep scrolling for the food rundown Food Rundown Blackened Shrimp Skewers These shrimp are great, but the dish could also be called “chili butter you get to mop up with a warm roti.” That’s the memorable element here, although we understand the phrasing might not all fit on the menu. photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc Smoked Fish Dip We might take away Over Under’s Florida card if they didn’t have a great smoked fish dip on the menu. Luckily, this one is excellent. It comes with lightly-fried Saltines for dipping and ultra-thin slices of pickled peppers that help cut through all that salt. Cheeseburger This is just classic burger perfection: thin, deeply charred patties with American cheese, soft griddled onions, pickles, and shredded lettuce between a soft sesame seed bun. The only curveball here is the 1000 Island Dressing, a burger condiment we don't see as often as we’d like. Katfish Po Boi The bread has some squish but doesn’t get soggy, the housemade jalapeno ranch packs a punch, and the shredded lettuce, pickles, and tomatoes are all crisp. This is a great po’boy before you even notice the golden, flaky catfish. photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc Sour Orange Pie The menu description for this dessert says, "Picture key lime pie, except with a fruit that we actually get from Florida." And we actually like this better than about 96 percent of South Florida's key lime pies. The sour orange gives off a perfect tartness. It's topped with a glob of torched meringue and built on a salty crust made from crushed Saltines. Rum Cake The inside of this rum cake is fresh-from-the-oven hot and soaked in a high school house party serving of rum. Its exterior has a light crisp that contrasts gorgeously with the moist interior. Even in a city that loves rum cake, this is one of the best we’ve had. photo credit: Cleveland Jennings / @eatthecanvasllc
From Smorgasburg pop-up to a tight Downtown window, Coney obsesses over every detail—house buns, pickled tomatoes, and a Wagyu Champ that critics rave about. Recently highlighted by The Infatuation as weekend-only gold.
Kendall’s cult BBQ shop also crafts an audacious, award-winning burger and patty melt. Celebrated by Miami New Times and Burger Beast; limited hours, massive flavor, and a fiercely local following.
If you’re looking for a casual burger in or around Coconut Grove, the answer is just about always Lokal. But even if you’re not craving their version of a frita—with potato stix, bacon, and guava jelly that acts as a condiment—it’s still worth coming here for the fried alligator and a beer. You can also stare at all the dogs people bring here while you consume both. Also, check out the vermouth bar next door after you're done, which Lokal also runs.
