Hill East Burger is a lively joint serving up smoky burgers and creative cocktails, where great vibes and tasty pop-ups make every visit a good time.
"Giddy-on-up to this burger bar featuring Southwest style with everything from ranch water to a green chile burger. Hill East Burger bar routinely invites in top chefs from around the District to introduce limited menu specials including a teriyaki burger (made by Perry’s chef Masako Morishita), leaving us salivating and hopeful that it will return someday soon." - Tim Ebner, Missy Frederick, Tierney Plumb
"All of the smashburgers at Hill East Burger could be DC’s best burger. Perfectly thin (get a double), crispy edged patties on buns so soft they hold your fingerprints make this spot our favorite on the list. But the Lancaster burger at this Capitol Hill spot is so good that we’d fake a throbbing headache just to get out of work early and eat it as soon as they open at 5pm. It’s topped with bacon, smoked cheddar, fresh arugula, and pickled onions. If you’re feeling fancy, top it with their homemade hot sauce—a true spiceophile might need more than the little kick in the tomato relish. " - tristiana hinton, omnia saed
"The local owners of barbecue standard-bearer Sloppy Mama’s and hip Tex-Mex joint Republic Cantina brought this Southwestern-chic burger saloon to Capitol Hill in 2022. The smoked burger — a periodic fascination among Texan pitmasters — is a rare find in D.C. Patties, built with a blend of Sloppy Mama’s prime brisket trim and Roseda Farms dry-aged beef, get a cold-smoke in-house before getting smashed on the griddle." - Tierney Plumb, Eater Staff
"WASHINGTON DC All of the smashburgers at Hill Burger East could be DC’s best burger—perfectly thin (get a double), crispy-edged patties on buns so soft they hold your fingerprints. But if we had to pick just one to order, it’d be the Lancaster burger, which is so good that we’d fake a throbbing headache just to get out of work early and eat it as soon as they open at 5pm. It’s topped with bacon, smoked cheddar, fresh arugula, and pickled onions, and tastes even better with a couple squirts of their homemade hot sauce. " - team infatuation, carlo mantuano
"All of the smashburgers at Hill Burger East could be DC’s best burger. Perfectly thin (get a double), crispy edged patties on buns so soft they hold your fingerprints make this spot our favorite on the list. But the Lancaster burger at this Capitol Hill spot is so good that we’d fake a throbbing headache just to get out of work early and eat it as soon as they open at 5pm. It’s topped with bacon, smoked cheddar, fresh arugula, and pickled onions. If you’re feeling fancy, top it with their homemade hot sauce—a true spicyphile might need more than the little kick in the tomato relish. photo credit: Chris Svetlik" - Tristiaña Hinton
