B&D Burgers
Savannah Restaurants > B&D Burgers
Review
There is a vigorous debate here in Savannah about who has the best burgers and by vigorous debate I mean arguments that threaten to, and may occasionally reach, fisticuffs.
There seem to be three camps – one who advocates for Betty Bombers, one who champions Green Truck Pub, and one that gets behind this place, B&D Burgers.
There are four locations around town; two in the Historic District (on Congress and Broughton), one on the south side, and one in Pooler. The food is same in each, but the vibe is different with the one on Congress offering a lovely dining room in a historic building plus a big outdoor patio with a bar and frequent entertainment.
The menu includes wings, tenders, chicken sandwiches, and a few salads, but most people come here for the burgers, which come in both traditional and slider variety. They come in various signature styles, all named after local landmarks although the connection to those landmarks is murky at best. The Ellis Square, for instance, has habanero Jack, bacon, and avocado. What that has to do with Ellis Square is not exactly clear. Other options include burgers with buffalo dip, blue cheese and onion rings, jalapenos, and more. You can also build your own from a list of a two dozen toppings plus your choice of beef, bison, chicken, turkey, or veggie patties.
The big question, of course, is are they the best burgers in town as the people in the B&D camp insist? It’s all a matter of opinion, but I say no. The patties are small and thin, the buns look and taste like the kind you can get in the supermarket, and the toppings wind up sounding more interesting than they actually are. A burger with peach bourbon BBQ sauce? Sign me up! But the result was disappointing, with the sauce not being particularly flavorful and not very much of it on the burger.
They’re expensive, too. A specialty burger is going to run you anywhere from $15 to $24 depending on your protein and if you load up the BYO version it gets pretty easy to go over $20.
But enough people love these burgers that you should probably try one. You may wind up in their camp, but if you don’t, come visit me in the one devoted to Betty Bombers.